Sharks’ $1.8m move triggers epic ‘shootout’

When Matt Moylan and Shaun Johnson spearheaded a dominant 38-10 win over the Titans on the weekend, it appeared Cronulla had settled on its first-choice halves pairing moving forward.

The NRL news cycle moves fast though.

Skip ahead a few days and the signing of Nicho Hynes has suddenly thrown that plan out the window.

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Now it appears as if one will be forced out and that both now have the rest of the season to prove they should be the one to partner Hynes.

Both were already likely looking at reduced deals if they wanted to remain at Cronulla.

But the signing of Hynes and extensions of Will Kennedy and Toby Rudolf reportedly set the club back $4.3 million and there may not be space left for both.

The Daily Telegraphreported on Wednesday that Moylan has the upper hand, with the club set to re-sign the 29-year old, leaving Johnson’s future at the Shire clouded.

For the time being though, both are off-contract and looking to stamp their claims for a new deal — be it at Cronulla or elsewhere.

Matt Moylan of the Sharks.Source:AAP

According to Fox League’s Michael Ennis, that in itself could spark the best out of both players, with the former Sharks skipper predicting a “shootout” between the two.

“They’ve basically got a good old-fashioned shootout to show the coach who is going to be the dominant playmaker or who can compliment Nicho in the halves as best as possible,” he told foxsports.com.au.

“I think the great thing with it for Craig is he is going to see two quality players fight hard to show they want to retain their spot in the halves and that pressure in itself will be a great test for these two to see how hungry and desperate they are.

“Both of them need to put in a strong 12-14 games regardless because at the moment they are in the shopfront window and both have missed a lot of footy through injuries. Regardless of whether it is at Cronulla or somewhere else they need to play well.”

Josh Hannay said after last week’s victory over the Titans that he saw promising signs from both Johnson and Moylan, declaring he hoped it was “a sign of things to come”.

“I thought our halves were really smart. I thought they were composed,” Hannay said.

“They played when there was time to play, and they were within themselves when it was time to cart the ball forward and get to a kick.

“I thought they got the balance (right).

“For Shaun and Matt as our halves combination, I hope it was a sign of things to come.

“They haven’t played a lot of football together, so the hope is we saw a good performance there this afternoon, let’s hope we see some more of that.”

It was just the fourth time the pair had played together in the No. 6 and No. 7 jerseys.

Matt Moylan is reportedly leading the race for a new deal.Source:Getty Images

Johnson’s kicking game was off early, but he quickly improved to finish with 370 kick metres alongside a try assist.

Moylan, meanwhile, had two try assists and ran the ball eight times for 156 metres in one of his best performances in recent memory.

Having been heavily criticised for missing out on the signature of Adam Reynolds last month, Cronulla’s $1.8 million Hynes coup has somewhat softened the blow.

There are always question marks when Storm players leave for a rival club, with doubts raised over whether they will be able to translate their success in a different system.

Ennis does not share those concerns when it comes to Hynes.

“The standards that are set in Melbourne have given him a great grounding for what he now knows it takes to have success at the top level,” he said.

“I think he is getting the rewards for that in his game.

“I think his workrate definitely (is a strength). He’s always busy, he’s always on the footy and that’s the reason why he’s been able to set up as many tries as he has in recent weeks.

“He’s willing to call the footy away from Jahrome Hughes and Brandon Smith or whoever is in those pivotal roles and back his ability so I think he has definitely shown enough.”

Shaun Johnson’s days in the Shire could be numbered.Source:AAP

Hynes is far from the first player to make the switch from fullback to permanent five-eighth at the top level.

Cronulla’s own Moylan did it while at Penrith while Newcastle’s Kalyn Ponga also had a brief stint experimenting with that new role.

Crucially, Hynes played the majority of his junior football in the halves so the transition should be a smooth one.

“When he (Ponga) got moved there so early on he struggled a bit so it will be interesting to see how Nicho goes in the front line,” Ennis added.

“I’m not saying he can’t do it, it will just be interesting to see how he goes. He’s a quality player and has great hands.

“He’s obvious very athletic and a big body so he’s got all the attributes to play in the halves.”

Originally published asSharks’ $1.8m move triggers epic ‘shootout’

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