Watch: Inside the moment that enhanced Cronulla Sharks’ NRL finals curse

Cronulla’s 2024 finals charge was left in tatters before it even started — but that was just the beginning of the carnage which continued after the match, as BRENT READ reveals.

Nothing went right for Cronulla in Melbourne on Saturday night. From the first minute to the last it bordered on a disaster. Not even coach Craig Fitzgibbon was immune to the carnage.

The Sharks arrived at AAMI Park intent on a fast start. Instead, they were on the back foot from the opening seconds as fullback Will Kennedy made a mistake from the kickoff, misjudging the flight of the ball and conceding possession with the crowd still settling into their seats.

The ball bounced off his fingers and Melbourne were gifted an opportunity to set the pace.

GO BEHIND THE MOMENT WITH BRENT READ IN THE VIDEO ABOVE

Storm playmaker Cameron Munster made them pay, using the threat of Nelson Asofa-Solomona to distract the defence and then slide through a gaping hole to give the home side an early lead.

“When you got Nelson like that close to the line, I was always going to dummy to him,” Munster said.

“He just attracts so many defenders. Sometimes it comes off, sometimes it doesn’t.

Craig Fitzgibbon bad end to a horror afternoon

“I was lucky enough tonight that they all made a beeline for Nelson and I got the chocolates.

“I just looked off the cuff and asked Nelson to come underneath me. I was a bit surprised how many bodies went to Nelson. You have to start well in finals.

“You look at the Roosters this weekend [against Penrith] - they didn’t start well and they were chasing their tail for the whole game.

“I obviously looked at that game last night and thought we needed to start well.”

The Storm controlled the opening half but the Sharks managed to get themselves back in the contest with a moment of magic from Braydon Trindall on the stroke of halftime, sending Briton Nikola over to close the gap.

Cronulla had hope but they were eviscerated in the second half as Munster and the like went to work. It was an ominous performance as the Storm look to end Penrith’s stranglehold on the code.

The Sharks, having struggled in the finals in recent years, have days to regroup. It was a chastening night for everyone in the Cronulla squad, even their coach.

Having watched his side suffer a 37-10 loss to the Storm at AAMI Park, Fitzgibbon addressed his outfit’s performance at the post-match press conference, rose to his feet and accidentally knocked over the trestle table holding the microphones and tape recorders.

Dejected Sharks William Kennedy and Braydon Trindall walk from AAMI Park. Picture: Quinn Rooney/Getty Images

An apologetic Fitzgibbon, who was already down in the dumps after watching the Sharks miss another chance to prove their critics wrong, helped pick the table up and then trudged off to the dressing room to rally his bruised, battered and beaten troops for next week’s sudden-death.

They will head into that game having suffered their seventh consecutive finals defeat on Saturday night. Of most concern to Fitzgibbon was the way they wilted in the second half as the Storm produced a flawless performance, with captain Harry Grant helping himself to a hat-trick of tries.

It was Melbourne at their very best. Playing with a stiff breeze in their face, they controlled field position and possession. They strangled the Sharks into submission.

The good news is that Cronulla still have hope. It wasn’t their night but they will now head to a sudden-death final with their season still alive.

Fitzgibbon will be counting on a change of fortune. A better start would help.

Originally published as Watch: Inside the moment that enhanced Cronulla Sharks’ NRL finals curse