Matchday Details
Sunday, August 31 – 2pm (AEST) – Sharks Stadium
📺 Broadcast: Fox League / Kayo
Referee: Gerard Sutton | Bunker: Adam Gee
Sharks
1. William Kennedy 2. Sione Katoa 3. Mawene Hiroti 4. KL Iro 5. Ronaldo Mulitalo 6. Braydon Trindall 7. Nicho Hynes 8. Addin Fonua-Blake 9. Blayke Brailey 10. Toby Rudolf 11. Billy Burns 12. Teig Wilton 13. Jesse Colquhoun 14. Hohepa Puru 15. Siosifa Talakai 16. Thomas Hazelton 17. Braden Hamlin-Uele 18. Daniel Atkinson 19. Tuku Hau Tapuha 20. Jayden Berrell 21. Samuel Stonestreet 22. Niwhai Puru
Knights
1. Dane Gagai 2. Dominic Young 3. James Schiller 4. Bradman Best 5. Fletcher Hunt 6. Jakob Arthur 7. Jack Cogger 8. Jacob Saifiti 9. Phoenix Crossland 10. Leo Thompson 11. Jermaine McEwen 12. Kai Pearce-Paul 13. Tyson Frizell 14. Jayden Brailey 15. Mathew Croker 16. Thomas Cant 17. Elijah Salesa Leaumoana 18. Greg Marzhew 19. Jack Hetherington 20. Matthew Arthur 21. Connor Votano 22. Lachlan Crouch
Match Preview
The Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks return to the fortress that is Sharks Stadium as they host the Newcastle Knights on Sunday afternoon. The Sharks have a 7-2 record at home this season while the Knights have had unhappy trips down the M1 and are yet to claim a victory in Sydney this year.
The Sharks come into this clash fresh off the bye and find themselves in the fight for the final top four spot with the Warriors and Broncos, while the Knights were dominated by the Broncos last week and a win in this one would almost guarantee them avoiding the dreaded wooden spoon.
The Sharks blew the Titans off the park 54-22 and would have taken plenty of confidence into the bye and made the most of a valuable chance to freshen up just before the NRL finals. The Sharks’ spine was at their very best against the Titans, with four tries and five try assists between them, and the Sharks will need to see much more of that over the coming weeks if they hope to have any significant impact in the finals. With Hynes, Trindall and Brailey all ranking in the top 15 in the league for try assists, this Sharks side has no shortage of players able to put on points.
The Knights were battered from pillar to post against the Broncos as the home side fell to a 46-12 defeat in front of the Newcastle faithful. While they may have been outmatched across the park, Knights pair Dane Gagai and Bradman Best provided a bright spark for the Novocastrians, with the duo combining for 18 tackle breaks between them. You can be sure the Sharks’ edge defence will have alarm bells ringing whenever Gagai swings down the edge with a rampaging Best on his shoulder.
The battle in the front row is worth the price of admission alone as Addin Fonua-Blake takes the fight to fellow Kiwi front rower Leo Thompson. The pair are firebrands for their respective sides and neither is likely to take a backwards step as they try to get their side on the front foot. Expect these two to find each other often throughout the contest with the goal of dominating their match-up.
The Sharks and Knights have shared the chocolates over their last 10 clashes, each walking away with five victories. The Sharks may have lost captain Cameron McInnes for the season with Jesse Colquhoun taking up the 13 jersey in his stead, but they also welcome back tackle-busting centre KL Iro for the first time since round 14. The Knights are 1-17 to the squad that lined up on game day last week, where Dane Gagai shifted to fullback with Connor Votano dropping to 18th man.
Prediction
RLZ Tip: Sharks by 16.
See our full Round 26 Predictions (live Wednesday 12pm) here: 2025 NRL Tipping: Round 26 Writer Predictions
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