Braydon Trindall produces a standout performance in Sharks’ 30-point win against Tigers in Rockhampton

Braydon Trindall celebrated his 10th NRL win on Saturday afternoon which he and his Cronulla Sharks teammates earned in style when they scored a dominant victory against the Wests Tigers at Rockhampton’s Browne Park.

Trindall, a Wee Waa Panthers junior, played a starring role in his side’s 50-20 round 23 win which saw the Sharks finish the weekend in eighth place with just two rounds remaining.

He played the entire 80 minutes at halfback and finished with 14 points after successfully slotting seven of his nine conversion attempts.

He also set up four tries, two of which were for right winger Sione Katoa with sensational cut-out balls for the team’s first try in the 10th minute as well as its ninth and final four-pointer in the 77th.

It was the 22-year-old Wee Waa boy’s best performance since he made his debut in July last year, and he earned the praise of the Sharks’ most recent premiership-winning coach Shane Flanagan.

“He’s had a day out, he’s been fantastic,” Flanagan said while commentating the match on Fox Sports.

Flanagan coached the club to grand final glory in 2016 when the Sharks downed the Melbourne Storm 14-12 at Sydney’s ANZ Stadium.

The Sharks’ premiership-winning hooker that night was Michael Ennis, who is currently also an analyst for Fox Sports.

Ennis spoke with Trindall after Saturday’s match and the Wee Waa boy said that he was determined to make the most of his time on the field in 2021.

“It was a tough start to get a gig at the start of the year,” said Trindall.

“There’s been some injuries so I’ve got my opportunity and I’ve tried to take it with both hands.”

The club’s current first grade coach Josh Hannay also praised Trindall as well as fellow young half Luke Metcalf, who started the match at five-eighth, and said he now had a selection headache with Matt Moylan returning to the team.

“The young fellas in the halves put up a fight today in terms of (Moylan) getting his jersey back,” Hannay said after the match.

“I thought that Luke Metcalf was tremendous in his first starting game at five-eighth and Braydon Trindall has been doing a really good job for us at seven. I was really proud of those two young fellas today.”

2021 has been a breakout season in the NRL for Trindall.

He played five games in 2020, two of which the Sharks were victorious in, and in 2021 he has played in 16 matches during which the Sharks were winners on eight occasions.

He has scored three tries this season, assisted nine more and kicked 30 conversions.

After coming off the interchange bench for his first eight games in 2021, Trindall has since locked down a starting spot in the halves for the Sharks.

He wore the number seven jersey in his four most recent appearances after donning the number six jersey during the previous four matches.

Trindall’s young career could hit new heights in the coming weeks with the finals around the corner.

The Sharks are currently ranked eighth on the 16-team ladder after accumulating 20 points in 2021.

The top eight teams qualify for the finals, and with two other sides on 20 points and three more on 18, a red hot battle for eighth position is well and truly underway.

The Sharks take on the 14th-placed Brisbane Broncos on Saturday at Suncorp Stadium where a win would put them in the box seat to clinch eighth place.

Should the Sharks qualify for the finals and Trindall earns selection, it would be the Wee Waa boy’s first taste of the NRL post season.

The Cronulla men qualified for the finals last season after finishing in eighth, but they were knocked out in the first week after going down 32-20 against the fifth-placed Canberra Raiders in an elimination final.

Trindall did not feature in that match but is determined to play finals footy in the NRL for the first time when the business end of the season rolls around next month.