Cameron Smith's message to Nicho Hynes as fellow NRL great calls for Cronulla star's axing

Cameron Smith has urged Nicho Hynes to ignore the criticism coming his way, however fellow NRL great Greg Alexander reckons the Sharks have no choice but to drop their star halfback. The big-game credentials of Hynes continue to be questioned after another underwhelming showing in Cronulla's 37-10 loss to the Storm.

Sharks coach Craig Fitzgibbon defended the former Dally M Medallist in the lead-up to the finals clash with Melbourne, amid criticism that he goes missing in the biggest games. Hynes has suffered a couple of demoralising axings from the NSW State of Origin side after failing to deliver for his state and the 28-year-old's mentality and playmaking credentials have frequently come under the microscope.

And on Saturday, Hynes had an opportunity to show that he can perform on the big stage but merely provided his critics with even more ammunition after being largely anonymous in a poor showing. Hynes' performance was minimal while also being riddled with errors. In one instance he inexplicably failed to find touch from a penalty and spilled a regulation catch off an attacking bomb when the Sharks tried to rally in the second half.

And almost more concerningly, he was outplayed by his halves partner Brayden Trindall. The contrast in confidence between Trindall and Hynes was clear for all to see, and following the match, Smith delivered a message to the under fire 28-year-old to block out the hate.

"You can't listen to external noise. You got to put that aside," Smith said in Channel 9 commentary after the Sharks' 27-point loss. "You're always under pressure to perform in the big matches.

"You've got to put aside all of that noise because, at the end of the day, that doesn't matter. It can't help you in your preparation for a big match. It can't help you in your preparation for what you're trying to do with your footy side and your teammates and you can't get the best out of yourself if you occupy your mind with things that aren't going to help you perform.

"He's got to get back to training, get back to the basics of the game that bring out his strengths. Bring his strengths to the footy side and help the players around him play the best they can as well. "

Greg Alexander calls for Nicho Hynes to be axed by Sharks

Cronulla is yet to win a finals game with Hynes at halfback, losing twice in 2022 as the Sharks made a straight-sets exit, then again in 2023 with a four-point loss to the Roosters. And while he has shown he can lead his side to victory during the regular season, in finals, he hasn't had the desired impact.

According to Panthers legend Alexander, the Sharks would be better served with Trindall and Daniel Atkinson in the halves. “He’s their marquee man and their $1 million player,” Alexander said on SEN radio on Monday. “He must be under pressure to keep his spot in the side. The performance against the Storm over the weekend (was poor).

“Braydon Trindall and Daniel Atkinson had been doing a good job as the halves pairing and then Nicho Hynes came back into the side. There now has to be serious questions about whether Hynes gets a start. I would personally go with Trindall and Atkinson.

“If Craig Fitzgibbon says to Hynes that he isn’t their man for this game then that’s saying he has no faith in him being the man for next year or the year after that. Hynes can play footy but he’s lacking something and that’s confidence. He is hesitant at the moment. He needs to go back to 2022 and last year to watch how he used to play.”

The Sharks will meet the Cowboys next week, a team who will be buoyed by their tense elimination final victory over Newcastle. But much of the NRL world has already written Cronulla off, believing that Hynes simply can't lead the side to finals success.

Nicho Hynes believes Sharks can bounce back against Cowboys

But Hynes insists the Sharks can bounce back against the Cowboys and end their finals curse. Cronulla appeared a genuine shot of upsetting the Storm when they scored just before halftime to trail 14-10 at the break. But they were blown away in the second half as Melbourne went on a 23-0 run.

And Hynes says they already know what went wrong against Melbourne and know what they need to do to ensure it doesn't happen again this weekend. "Don't lose our heads here, and learn from our mistakes from this game," Hynes said.

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"Just get together quick as we can, get back to the training paddock, review the game, and then get ready to go. We knew where we went wrong. They (Melbourne) won the last plays, and it's just about staying tight, not worrying about the outside noise, not blaming anyone."

with AAP