Titans come up trumps in the Shark showdown
The embattled Gold Coast Titans have broken through for their first win of the NRL season with a 24-22 defeat of winless Cronulla.
SCOREBOARD: CRO 22-24 GCT
 | 22-24 |  |
|---|---|---|
| at Robina Stadium, March 28 2015 | ||
| Tackles: | Luke Douglas (GLD) – 41 | |
| Hit-Ups: | Paul Gallen (CRO) – 19 | |
| Offloads: | Matt Prior (CRO) – 3 | |
| Run (m): | Paul Gallen (CRO) – 199 | |
| Sharks: V Holmes 2, M Ennis tries; M Gordon 1/3 cons, 4/4 pensTitans: J Roberts 2, D Taylor, A Paasi tries; A Sezer 4/4 cons | ||
An Aidan Sezer conversion was the difference after a James Roberts intercept, from a Wade Graham pass, locked the scored up at 22-22 with just over two minutes to play.
Cronulla had looked in control of the contest at 14-6 at half-time and 22-18 in the dying minutes before Roberts pounced and raced 70m for his second four-pointer of the afternoon.
The loss leaves the Sharks 0-4 and staring down the barrel of another wooden spoon season, while the Titans have eased the pressure of their cocaine dramas to finally enjoy victory after two heartbreaking defeats and a 40-0 loss to Penrith.
In a first half punctuated by spilt pill, the first of two tries to Valentine Holmes tied the scores at 6-6 after 28 minutes after a Dave Taylor touchdown in the 21st minute.
Cronulla added another try in the 34th minute through Michael Ennis, his first in Sharks colours, and should have had another before the break but a Michael Gordon try was disallowed after Ennis interfered with a Gold Coast defender.
Roberts’ first of two tries just after half-time kept the Titans in touch, before Holmes’ second in the 48th minute put the Sharks further ahead.
Agnatius Paasi crashed over in the 59th minute for the visitors before two late penalty goals to Gordon looked to have given the Sharks the win before Roberts raced away before 9,566 fans at Remondis Stadium on Saturday.
In the other Saturday NRL clash the St George Illawarra Dragons defeated the Sea Eagles 12-4.
In Super Rugby, the Waratahs have earned a convincing 23-11 victory over the winless Blues to move into a top-six spot on the Super Rugby ladder. An early try to Nick Phipps was cancelled out by Blues centre Francis Saili, but replacement back Peter Betham scored a 77th minute try to widen the margin at the death.
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