Cronulla coach Craig Fitzgibbon has praised Nicho Hynes' effort in bouncing back from a quiet State of Origin debut to his influential best in the loss against fellow premiership contenders Brisbane.
After two years on the fringes as 18th man, Hynes finally earned his NSW debut from the bench in Wednesday's series opener but a week of speculation as to how Brad Fittler would use him culminated in only a cameo appearance.
Hynes came on in the final 12 minutes after Tom Trbojevic left for a head injury assessment but was exposed in the unfamiliar position of centre, Queensland dashing down his edge to score the match-winning try.
Undeterred, the Cronulla halfback lined up in Saturday night's clash with Brisbane and returned to form.
The 26-year-old was the Sharks' most effective player in attack and his running game on the edges helped them take control of the game midway through the first half.
Hynes gave the Sharks the lead when he edged up to the defence from a scrum play and popped a short ball up to Siosifa Talakai, who dashed over to score.
The reigning Dally M Medallist cooled off in the second stanza but finished with four line break assists and 156 run metres - another strong performance following on from last year's Dally M season.
"It's tough to wash yourself off after that (Origin) and feel the response to come back," Fitzgibbon said.
"His effort, he was everywhere. He never stopped trying.
"He started to tune in pretty quickly from the other night, to get back out there. There was a lot of decision-making that rested on his shoulders there.
"He certainly didn't let us down with his effort."
Hynes could not rouse the Sharks to victory, though.
Cronulla did not want for opportunities but were clumsy in attack at close range and finished with 15 errors, almost double the 8.2 they average in 2023.
"We kept getting into a rhythm and thinking that it was coming, then kind of lost it," Fitzgibbon said.
"It was just one of those nights where every time we got ourselves into a position, we'd let them off the hook.
"It was kind of just the nature of the game. We couldn't get a hold of it."
Cronulla hooker Blayke Brailey faces a nervous wait for Sunday's charge sheet after felling Reece Walsh in a hip-drop style tackle in the first half.
Sharks five-eighth Matt Moylan was also cited for a high shot on Kotoni Staggs, while winger Ronaldo Mulitalo could face scrutiny for a crusher tackle, also on Staggs.
