Cronulla Sharks teammates respond as NRL team hit with ugly claims about Nicho Hynes

The Sharks have hit back at suggestions the loss of Nicho Hynes means they can't make a deep run into the NRL finals after their superstar halfback was ruled out till the end of the season. Hynes was looking to bounce back from his State of Origin setback when he went down with a syndesmosis ligament injury during a training session.

The halfback was carried of the training ground and is expected to miss more than six weeks of NRL footy, which initially threw Cronulla's season into turmoil. Hynes has seen specialists and could return for Cronulla's final game of the regular season when they face the Sea Eagles away in NRL round 27.

And after Hynes' injury, fans questioned whether the Sharks could maintain their form and remain in the hunt for finals footy. The 2022 Dally M winner is instrumental for the Sharks and the loss left many questioning whether Braydon Trindall and Daniel Atkinson could step up in his absence.

But the Sharks responded two weeks ago with a huge win over the Wests Tigers. While many still feel the Sharks could struggle without their playmaker, others have questioned whether the team excels without him. With Hynes the Sharks have a 8-5 record in 2024.

Without him they are 3-1. And those three wins have come against the Broncos, Melbourne Storm and the Tigers. Plenty still feel the Sharks might struggle against the heavy-hitters without their No.7, but Braden Hamlin-Uele has claimed the calls are slightly disrespectful to the team coming third after 21 rounds of action.

"Nicho is a big part of our team and the success we've had," Hamlin-Uele said. "Holding up that trophy has been out of our grasp and the stigma around us and finals series hasn't been great, but without Nicho we wouldn't have got there.

"Everyone that comes into our team is there to do a job and it's given Daniel Atkinson the chance to show what he's capable of. We all love Nicho but this whole thing of us being the Cronulla Nicho Hynes Sharks is unfair to us, but also to him because there's 16 other guys who are out there with him.

"We're the Cronulla Sharks, we're not one player and the rest. People will always have opinions … but opinions are just someone's thoughts so we'll let them have those thoughts and we'll go about our business."

A number of teams have struggled without their first-choice halfbacks this year with Canberra (Jamal Fogarty), Brisbane (Adam Reynolds), the Warriors (Shaun Johnson) and Parramatta (Mitchell Moses) all losing a host of games without their No.7. The Sharks have a chance to silence the doubters this week against the Cowboys with both teams fighting for a top four position on the ladder.

Nicho Hynes endures tough run after Origin

Hynes is Cronulla's most important player but he endured a rough few weeks before he was injured. The halfback was dropped from the NSW State of Origin squad and replaced by Mitchell Moses after Game 1. Hynes has copped backlash over his failure to ice big moments late in games as well, after missing a sideline conversion against the Dolphins that would’ve sent the game into golden point.

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He then missed a field-goal attempt from point-blank range in a golden point loss to the Bulldogs in round 17. The Sharks suffered a loss, before they defeated the Tigers with their biggest win of the season in round 19. They had a bye in round 20. The Sharks play the Cowboys this weekend and could move up to second on the ladder if the Dragons defeat the Panthers.