His Roosters opponent is one of the most adored players in the NRL, but Cronulla winger Ronaldo Mulitalo has had the last laugh, scoring two tries in five minutes as the Sharks banished the Sydney Roosters into the NRL offseason.
After the 20-10 victory at Sharks Stadium, Mulitalo had strong words for the media while also speaking highly of Roosters star Mark Nawaqanitawase.
“He’s an outstanding athlete and to be fair I think he played a better game than me,” Mulitalo said of Nawaqanitawase, who crossed for the opening try of the match to take his own season tally to 24 tries in 23 matches.
“I love playing against guys like that, you get the best out of each other.”
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‘Keep bagging us’ says Ronaldo
Never one to shy away from a confrontation, or the spotlight, at full-time Mulitalo was quick to express his delight at yet again proving Sharkies doubters wrong.
“All the crap that’s been said in the media about us, they’ve kicked us while we’re down,” he told Triple M.
“Well shove that up ya pipe bra!
“We’re here, we love each other, we work hard for each other and our community.
“No-one gave us a shot, keep bagging us in the media, we’re going to keep getting through it.”
It’s an attitude Cronulla coach Craig Fitzgibbon has come to expect from his fiery number five.
“That’s Ronnie, that’s why we love him so much,” Fitzgibbon said after the game.
“He’s combative, but he’s also just an out and out ‘Shark’—he just loves the Sharks.
“It was a good duel out there tonight, I thought Mark (Nawaqanitawase) played really well too, if you’re a fan watching Ronnie and Mark go at it, it’s awesome.”
Cronulla now moves on to week two of the NRL finals where they will play the loser of today’s qualifying final between the Canberra Raiders and Brisbane Broncos.