Shane Flanagan has one simple message for his team – enjoy the hype.
Cronulla will face the winner of North Queensland and Brisbane in their preliminary final at Allianz Stadium, Moore Park next Friday night after a heroic 16-14 win over Canberra in the qualifying final on Saturday night.
Cronulla overcame injury and a hostile home crowd to get the better of the Raiders and move one game away from what would be the club’s first grand final since 1997.
But the pressure of history and the weight of expectation doesn’t phase the Sharks’ coach, whose focus is only on enjoying the ride.
“I’m always told don’t worry about things you can’t control and I can’t control [everything],” he said.
“I think we need to enjoy it as well. Being a grand final qualifier it doesn’t come around too often.
“I think the players need to get a feel for it. But I’ve got a pretty smart footy team there. They’ve been around. They wont get caught up in the hype.
“Enjoy the week and enjoy the hype but know there’s still a game of footy at the end of it to be won.”
Flanagan was glowing in his praise of his battered and bruised troops after they bravely overcame the aggressive Raiders.
“I said to the boys I couldn’t be prouder of how tough and resilient [they were],” he said.
“After all the hurdles we had to go through during the week and losing Wade… they’re a tough footy team. Real tough.
“I thought our bad luck had come in at the wrong time of the year. [With] Gal going down during the week I was really just proud of the way the boys reacted. They didn’t drop their bottom lip or react too much. They just got on with it.
“[The week off is] outstanding for us. We’ve got a few bumps and bruises. At this time of year I suppose everyone’s got them but it gives Gal an opportunity now that we don’t have to rush [him].”
Sharks hooker Michael Ennis, who will retire at the end of the season, paid tribute to Cronulla’s travelling support, with thousands of Sharks fans making the trip to GIO Stadium to help get the team home.
“That far south-eastern corner was great. When we came out for the warm up we were right in front of them and we were really surprised. There was a lot of talk about [them] in the warm up,” he said.
“It’s not a place you tend to come for a weekend at this time of year. We certainly heard them in the second half.
“No one thought we could win when Gallen got ruled out. Everyone thought we were just making up the numbers. We’ve got a pretty resilient footy side there.”
St George Illawarra’s under-20s are also through to their preliminary final and will play before Cronulla’s first grade grand final qualifier after a Matheson Johns try secured a 34-30 golden point extra time win over North Queensland.
The Dragons could face a hostile Cronulla home crowd, with the Sharks’ Holden Cup side a chance of being St George Illawarra’s opponent should they get past the Sydney Roosters on Saturday night. Cronulla went down 28-6 to Penrith in their qualifying final.
