Mulitalo in awe of Rooster, but ready to shut him down
Scott Bailey |
Ronaldo Mulitalo has backed himself to be the man to shut down Mark Nawaqanitawase, declaring he won’t be intimidated by the Sydney Roosters star.
Mulitalo will have one of the hardest jobs in the NRL in Cronulla’s elimination final against the Roosters, tasked with marking up on the red-hot Nawaqanitawase.
The rugby convert has scored seven tries in the past two matches alone, taking him to the Ken Irvine Medal as the NRL’s leading try-scorer in his first full season.
Beyond Nawaqanitawase’s try-scoring potency, the ex-Wallaby’s freakish ability to offload, take bombs and move in tight space has made him the must-watch man of 2025.
Mulitalo admitted he had found himself in awe of the 24-year-old, but said that would matter little when the two meet at Shark Park on Saturday night.
“I couldn’t care less what he’s got. It’s me or him next week and that’s all that matters to me,” Mulitalo said.
“You’ve got to respect when players are playing out of their skin like that. The talent is obviously outstanding. I sit there in awe of what he can produce.
“But it’s a different challenge next week. I’ll back myself against anyone. I’ll be looking forward to that challenge.”
Nawaqanitawase was relatively quiet when the two sides last met in July, with his one big involvement outleaping Mulitalo to bat a ball back for a try.
He also scored one try playing at centre in the teams’ other clash this year, with Mulitalo admitting Cronulla had a “piss-weak” attitude for that loss in Gosford.
But the Sharks winger said that was all irrelevant heading into Saturday’s blockbuster.
“The past is the past. I’m not going to hang on to anything that was done before,” Mulitalo said.
“That first game, he played really well against us. In the second game, we were lucky to contain him.
“You can brag on about your year, but this is an open competition.
“I’m excited for that challenge. I’ll meet him at the top, hopefully, and best man wins.”
Cronulla’s complete performance in their 24-6 win over Canterbury on Saturday appeared the perfect warm-up for the finals, before Nicho Hynes was told on Sunday he was facing a ban for a hip-drop tackle.
Saturday’s match marked the first time Cronulla had their back five together for a game this season, while Braydon Trindall will return from a rolled ankle to face the Roosters.
But that good news now appears to be offset by Hynes’ charge for a tackle that injured Bulldogs winger Marcelo Montoya, with the half facing a one-game ban.
“We’ve got guys that are coming back in and firing for us at the right time of the year,” Mulitalo said before news of Hynes’ charge.
“Jesse (Ramien) hasn’t played for three weeks, KL Iro’s just come back into the swing of things, and Sione (Katoa), he’s only played half the year.
“We’ve been around for a long time now … we knew what to expect from each other. To have a big game was important, so I’m really happy with that.”
AAP
