Cronulla forward Chris Heighington is hopeful Sunday’s grand final against Melbourne isn’t his final game in the black, white and blue.
Heighington has been another of Cronulla’s unsung heroes during his time from the club, having played an important part in the Sharks’ resurgence.
The 33-year-old, along with Paul Gallen, Andrew Fifita, Matt Prior, Luke Lewis, Wade Graham, Sam Tagataese and Jayson Bukuya, have been the core forward group used by Shane Flanagan over the last two years.
Heighington is uncontracted for next season and jokingly pointed out one major benefit of Cronulla winning the decider on Sunday.
“Obviously if we win the game my contract money will go up so I’m pretty happy about that,” he said.
On a more serious note, Heighington was hopeful Sunday wouldn’t be his farewell to the shire.
“Hopefully we can work something out and I can stay at the Sharks,” he said.
“I’ve really enjoyed the last four years and hopefully I can stay around for another year or two. I’ve really enjoyed the ride, especially this year.
“We’ve built some really good combinations and I’d like to be a part of it in future years.”
While being a staunch member of Cronulla’s older brigade, Heighington – a premiership winner with the Wests Tigers in 2005 – is a big fan of the club’s younger players and backed them to shine on the big stage on Sunday.
“The young kids are really confident in our team. We let them do their thing,” he said.
“If they need to get pulled up or spoken to we’ve got a good senior group here who can do that role. With [Jack] Bird and Val [Holmes] they’re confident players and they played really well [last] Friday night.
“You don’t have to say too much to them. You just need to let them know that you’re there if they need to call you or go and grab a coffee or something.”