The nib Newcastle Knights have been left heartbroken for a second consecutive year, downed 18-12 by the Cronulla Sharks in a tense Harvey Norman Women's Premiership Grand Final.
A dominant opening by Cronulla, followed by a staunch defensive effort, proved the difference as the Sharks edged out the Knights, denying the red and blue ladies the trophy in their second consecutive Grand Final.
Cronulla set the tone early. In the first stanza they laid down a commanding performance, as the Knights got off to a cagey start.
Sharks hooker Koffi Brookfield was the first to trouble the scorers, crossing for the opening four pointer after catching the Knights napping from dummy half close to the line.
They doubled their advantage just five minutes later, with centre Monique Donovan storming onto a neat pass from her No.7 to score for the Sharks.
When Dominique du Toit added a further try in the 24th minute, the Knights all of a sudden found themselves 18-0 down with a huge mountain to climb.
The Novacastrians slowly began to dig in and work their way back into the contest, and began to gain a foothold in the back-and-forth arm wrestle as the game settled after a hectic opening 25 minutes.
Eventually, the minor premiers found a breakthrough.
A classy attacking kick from Ashlee Harvey sat up perfectly in the in-goal area, with winger Tyla Brown swooping on the loose ball to score the Knights' first in the shadows of half time.
A missed conversion saw the Knights down three tries to one, heading into halftime 18-4 behind.
After halftime, the Knights rallied.
After struggling with their attack in the opening 40, the backline clicked into gear as their forward pack continued to claw back momentum in the middle.
The slick back-line combinations delivered a try immediately after the break, with impressive young fullback Kayla Henderson hitting a hole close to the line to get the Knights back within 10.
With 14 minutes left in the game, the Knights looked to the boot of Harvey, whose cross field kick found Lucy Spain.
In traffic, Spain managed to find Charley Lahmert in space, who surged for the line and found the grass in the in goal area. By that stage the score had moved to 18-12, and hopes of a comeback were well and truly alive.
The Knights then spent much of the last ten minutes camped inside the Cronulla red zone, but the Sharks’ defence held firm in the closing stages.
A potential final effort from Newcastle was ruled out by penalty for a double movement, leaving the Sharks to clinch their first title in the competition.
Despite the loss, the Knights showed grit and fight, especially in the second half.
Their attempts to penetrate the Sharks’ line tested Cronulla’s resolve to the end, with the devastated playing group leaving the field knowing they gave it everything, but came up just short in a thrilling decider.
