‘Week-by-week proposition’: Nicho Hynes no certainty to return next week as Sharks seek finals revenge

Sharks fans may have to wait a little bit longer to see Nicho Hynes in action, with the club happy to play the long game with the Dally M Medal.

Sharks coach Craig Fitzgibbon says Nicho Hynes’ calf injury will be treated as a “week-by-week proposition” as Cronulla seeks finals redemption without their Dally M halfback.

Hynes will miss Saturday’s sold-out game at home against the Rabbitohs with a calf complaint after excelling in the pre-season where he was named man of the match for his performance for the Indigenous All Stars.

Nicho Hynes was the best player on the field for the Indigenous All Stars during last month’s historic win in Rotorua. Picture: NRL Imagery

The former Storm utility made the most of his massive move to the Shire in 2022 and exceeded everyone’s expectations to take out the Dally M Medal.

Hynes emerged as a clutch player with a couple of telling field goals, including the golden point strike that edged the Sharks past Souths in the corresponding clash last year.

But he won’t get the chance to repeat his heroics this weekend, and there are no guarantees that he’ll be back for what shapes as a blockbuster Friday showdown with the Eels next week.

Hynes slotted the field goal to seal victory over Souths last year, but he’ll be missing on Saturday night with a calf injury. Picture; Matt King/Getty Images

“It’s not a huge injury. It’s just in a delicate spot. You’ve got to play the long game a bit there,” Fitzgibbon said.

“He’s a valuable player to the club, and we felt like it was a risk at this stage. It hasn’t happened that long ago, so we’ll have to wait and see. It’ll be a week-by-week proposition, but it’s not a huge injury and we want to get it right so it’s not lingering.”

It’s been a big week for Hynes, who fronted the media on Monday and delivered an emotional press conference in which he defended his mum and spoke of the pain his family is going through ahead of her sentencing over drugs charges.

His maturity and humility has made him one of the most liked players in the game, and his coach says that’s exactly how Hynes is at training.

Hynes answered all the tough questions about his mum during a press conference in Cronulla on Monday. Picture; Jonathan Ng

“What you see is what you get with Nicho, and I think that’s what makes him so popular with everyone,” Fitzgibbon said.

“He’s an open book, that guy. He just walks in and he’s the same guy every day he walks in. He’s happy, he’s working hard, and he’s obviously dealing with stuff to the best of his ability. He’s done a really good job at staying consistent in how he is.

“It’s really hard to put yourself in his shoes – none of us have ever walked through that – but he’s been fantastic for us.”

The Sharks are outsiders now that they’re without their most influential player against the Bunnies, but Fitzgibbon is backing Braydon Trindall to get the job done like he’s done so often in the past.

“I wouldn’t say it’s frustrating. I’d suggest it’s an opportunity for Braydon,” said Fitzgibbon, who isn’t focusing on last year when the Rabbitohs knocked Cronulla out in week two of the finals.

“He’s had a lot of training time and he’s got a lot of combination time with the players inside and outside of him. We share our combination time a lot, so we’re confident in Braydon and I think it’s an opportunity for him.

“It’s such a long year, so there’ll be other hurdles that we have to face throughout the course of that.”