Today we take a look at the NRL finals woes of the Cronulla Sharks and their halfback Nicho Hynes, the worrying return of Jared Waerea-Hargreaves, and the dual code Friday night transport nightmare.
Read on as we tackle some of the big talking points in this week's Real or Not.
The Sharks are big game chokers and Hynes is overrated
REAL: This "REAL" might not last very long as the Sharks face the Cowboys tonight, with the perfect opportunity to put all this talk to bed. But until they do, it is painfully true that the Sharks have serious issues winning the big games at the pointy end of the season.
Their last finals win was in 2018 and since that one-point victory over Penrith they have lost their next seven finals games. Their only reprieve came in 2021 when they didn't make the Top 8. In fact, since their 2016 premiership victory, the Sharks have played in nine finals games and won just that one, ironically against the now dominant Panthers.
Nicho Hynes has been part of the last four finals defeats suffered by the Sharks. If they are to end their finals drought, then halfback Hynes will have to be at his very best. The question is whether Hynes at his very best is as good as he is cracked up to be. When the club brought him up from the Storm, he was playing mainly fullback, but his foray into the halves was met with high praise. In recent times however, that praise has wavered, replaced by suggestions that he would be better off in a wider running role. Coach Craig Fitzgibbon is having none of that talk.
"I've heard it, but I won't be picking [the team] based on what anyone else says," Fitzgibbon said.
"We've been working really hard at blocking that [talk] and not looking at it. It has less of an effect if you're not constantly searching and looking at it.
"It's happened to a lot of high-profile players - or I should say price-tag players - in the past, and halves in particular. With that [price tag] comes responsibility and scrutiny.
"For the situation we're in, Nicho and everyone else, the only was out for us is through it, so let's bunker down and get after it."
There are fans of a few clubs who would give anything to have their team play consistently in the finals, but making it almost annually only to bomb out every time wears thin pretty quickly, too. Of late there has also been talk of the Sharks only making the finals by beating up on the teams below them, while struggling against the stronger teams. Whilst winning the games you should win is never really a negative, it is hard to succeed in the finals where you are faced with the best, playing under maximum intensity.
In this sudden death clash, they take on a Cowboys side that has been building nicely towards the finals all year. The Queenslanders are full of confidence having beaten the Knights last week and if they can get their defensive efforts right, they could continue the Sharks' finals woes.
Another loss and the choker and overrated tags will really start to stick.
JWH needs to take the gloves off on his return
NOT REAL: Jared Waerea-Hargreaves returns from yet another suspension to face the Sea Eagles in a sudden death final on Saturday night. The Roosters could have used his authority in the middle of the park last week against the Panthers, and they'll certainly need him against the big Manly pack.
He will be up against former teammate Matthew Lodge who has been in rampaging form of late. Both are renowned hot heads and the sparks are sure to fly. Alongside Lodge will be fellow middle-of-the-field behemoths Taniela Paseka and from the bench, Josh Aloiai. They represent some serious line-bending grunt and the Roosters will need Waerea-Hargreaves' help in limiting their effectiveness.
What they can't afford is to be left a player short by one of Waerea-Hargreaves' mental lapses. He can't be making high and forceful contact to any of his opponents, the referees already have his number penciled into their books. It remains to be seen whether Waerea-Hargreaves can be at his best without the aggressiveness that often lands him in trouble. He simply has to find the right balance on Saturday night, because the Roosters will struggle to hold the Sea Eagles if they are reduced to 12 for any length of time.
Moore Park set to be a Friday nightmare
REAL: With the opening bounce of the preliminary final between the Swans and Port Adelaide set for 7:40pm Friday at the SCG, and a crowd of over 40,000 expected, transport systems are going to be at their peak. Add the 7:50pm kick-off next door for the NRL final between the Sharks and Cowboys and these systems are going to be really stretched. The crowd for the NRL wont be quite as large, but that's still around 65,000-70,000 fans pouring into the area.
Add to all that, industrial action by the state's railway workers who are refusing to run extra trains on the night. Sharks fans who are notoriously reluctant to leave the Shire at the best of times, will be strongly considering watching the game from the comfort of their own homes.
The one saving grace for the night is that the NRL will finish earlier, allowing a somewhat staggered departure on the trams which will be filing through the Moore Park stop like an endless string of sausages.
It makes you wonder why these clashes, as infrequent as they may be, can't be managed better.