'Three cheers for Gus': Sharks slam Gould after win

Cronulla coach Shane Flanagan has expressed his continued disappointment with Panthers supremo Phil Gould following the Sharks' win over Penrith on Sunday.

The Panthers were held to just two points in front of their home fans as last year's premiers won 28-2 despite making 15 errors at Pepper Stadium.

Cronulla moved to third on the NRL ladder after the win, while Penrith were consigned to 12th - and they will fall again when the Eels and Wests Tigers play later on Monday.

Sharks players delighted in the result, with reports that one filled the dressing room with cries of 'three cheers for Gus'.

Flanagan then resumed his complaints against Gould, who has irked the Sharks with his comments about the club since last year's success.

"I am filthy with Gus saying we won a soft competition," Flanagan said.

"You could find 100 takes from Gus during the year about how tough this competition is. When the Panthers were playing the Bulldogs at the SFS he was saying 'what a great competition' and 'it's the hardest competition in the world'.

"All of a sudden the Panthers get rissoled and it's the weakest comp in the world. I thought it was poor form. There's no premiership, especially in this competition, that is soft. And he knows that.

"It's poor form from him to say the team that wins the competition after 26 rounds in the NRL is a soft competition. We beat Canberra, we beat the Cowboys, we beat Melbourne. C'mon."

Flanagan renewing the fire between the two clubs came after Gallen criticised the same comments by Gould last month - once on TV and once on radio - and hinted at why Cronulla's players celebrated hard on Sunday.

"I've got to say I find that insulting and I think the whole club would as well," Gallen said on the Sunday Footy Show in March.

"As a group of 25 or 30 players and staff, we trained our backside off like 16 other clubs from November."

Gallen did not address Gould's comments again on Sunday beyond saying "it was good motivation", but he was miffed that Penrith only provided seats on the hill for the players' families.

"I couldn’t believe our wives and partners got general admission tickets. Our wives and partners sat on the hill," he said.

"They are supposed to get seats. That was another thing that was extra motivation for us too. I thought that was pretty ordinary. I don’t know what the situation is here with seats but I know every seat wasn't full."

The Panthers were demolished by the Sharks despite welcoming back captain Matt Moylan, Peta Hiku and Waqa Blake after they had been dropped from staying out drinking after the loss to Melbourne in round six.

Moylan was ambushed by Cronulla, recording just 130 metres from 22 runs and otherwise having little impact in attack.