Sea Eagles v Sharks: Garrick ruled out; Dykes missing, Moylan returns
With their finals dreams shattered at the Gold Coast on Sunday, the Sea Eagles must find a way to regroup before confronting the high-flying Sharks at 4 Pines Park.
Seemingly in good shape after a Round 18 win over Newcastle, the Sea Eagles have slumped to four losses in a row for the first time since the opening month of the 2021 season to now sit four points outside the eight.
They face a confident and composed Sharks outfit who have a top-fourth berth well and truly in the grasp with games against Manly, Bulldogs and Knights to come.
Craig Fitzgibbon's men are playing a brand of footy well suited to high-pressure play-off games and they have every reason to believe a second premiership in seven years is a real possibility.
Sportsbet Betting preview: Sea Eagles v Sharks
The Rundown
Team news
Sea Eagles: No further changes on game day after Jake Trbojevic (hand), Reuben Garrick (shoulder) and Andrew Davey dropped out earlier in the week. Tolu Koula is the new fullback, Alfred Smalley comes in on the wing for his second NRL game and Dylan Walker replaces Trbojevic at lock. Ethan Bullemor joins the starting side and Kurt de Luis is added to the bench.
Sharks: Rookie fullback Kade Dykes was taken out at the 24-hour update on Friday due to a calf injury, with Lachlan Miller shifting to fullback and Matt Ikuvalu joining the side on the wing. Interchange forward Teig Wilton is also out, replaced on the bench by Braydon Trindall. Connor Tracey (head knock) and Matt Moylan (quad) return from injury. With Toby Rudolf facing a month on the sideline with a torn medial, Braden Hamlin-Uele comes into the starting side with Andrew Fifita joining the bench. Centre Siosifa Talakai remains sidelined with a shoulder injury.
Match: Sea Eagles v Sharks
Round 23 -
home Team
Sea Eagles
away Team
Sharks
Team Lists
Backs
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Fullback for Sea Eagles is number 2 Tolutau KoulaFullback for Sharks is number 2 Lachlan Miller
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Winger for Sea Eagles is number 5 Christian TuipulotuWinger for Sharks is number 5 Ronaldo Mulitalo
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Centre for Sea Eagles is number 3 Brad ParkerCentre for Sharks is number 3 Jesse Ramien
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Centre for Sea Eagles is number 4 Morgan HarperCentre for Sharks is number 4 Connor Tracey
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Winger for Sea Eagles is number 23 Alfred SmalleyWinger for Sharks is number 20 Matt Ikuvalu
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Five-Eighth for Sea Eagles is number 6 Kieran ForanFive-Eighth for Sharks is number 6 Matt Moylan
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Halfback for Sea Eagles is number 7 Daly Cherry-EvansHalfback for Sharks is number 7 Nicholas Hynes
Forwards
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Prop for Sea Eagles is number 8 Josh AloiaiProp for Sharks is number 8 Braden Hamlin-Uele
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Hooker for Sea Eagles is number 9 Lachlan CrokerHooker for Sharks is number 9 Blayke Brailey
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Prop for Sea Eagles is number 10 Martin TaupauProp for Sharks is number 10 Royce Hunt
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2nd Row for Sea Eagles is number 11 Haumole Olakau'atu2nd Row for Sharks is number 11 Briton Nikora
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2nd Row for Sea Eagles is number 16 Ethan Bullemor2nd Row for Sharks is number 12 Wade Graham
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Lock for Sea Eagles is number 13 Dylan WalkerLock for Sharks is number 13 Dale Finucane
Interchange
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Interchange for Sea Eagles is number 14 Ben TrbojevicInterchange for Sharks is number 15 Cameron McInnes
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Interchange for Sea Eagles is number 15 Joshua SchusterInterchange for Sharks is number 16 Aiden Tolman
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Interchange for Sea Eagles is number 17 Toafofoa SipleyInterchange for Sharks is number 17 Andrew Fifita
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Interchange for Sea Eagles is number 18 Kurt De LuisInterchange for Sharks is number 18 Braydon Trindall
Reserves
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Replacement for Sea Eagles is number 21 James RoumanosReplacement for Sharks is number 22 Luke Metcalf
Match Officials
- Referee: Gerard Sutton
- Touch Judge: Matt Noyen
- Touch Judge: Peter Gough
- Senior Review Official: Grant Atkins
Last updated:
Key match-up
Daly Cherry-Evans v Nicho Hynes: The Manly skipper continues to play at a high standard and will be hurting as he comes to grip with the fact his team won't be part of the finals. With 16 try assists, 10 line break assists and 21 forced dropouts, DCE has been up with the best halfbacks in the competition in 2022 and he'll be keen to finish the season on a high. Hynes' influence at the Sharks has been enormous with 12 try assists, 19 line break assists and 20 forced dropouts. Time and again he has come up big in the clutch, icing games with a pressure goal or field goal, or putting his team in position to snatch victory when all seemed lost.
Stat Attack
Sea Eagles halfback Daly Cherry-Evans sits equal third in the NRL for try assists with 16 in 19 games. He also has 10 line break assists. The Sharks' try assist leader is Nicho Hynes with 12 in 20 games to go with has 19 line break assists.
Match: Sea Eagles v Sharks
Round 23 -
home Team
Sea Eagles
11th Position
away Team
Sharks
3rd Position
Venue: 4 Pines Park, Sydney
