Sharks end NRL hoodoo

Welcome home, Harold.

It’s been worth the wait.

Super coach Jack Gibson famously once said waiting for Cronulla to win an NRL premiership was like leaving the porch lamp on for the former Australian Prime Minister.

It was a great punchline.

But Cronulla have had the last laugh after finally breaking their premiership duck, downing Melbourne 14-12 in the NRL grand final at ANZ Stadium on Sunday night.

It broke the longest remaining drought in NRL premiership history.

Up, up Cronulla indeed.

The Sharks may have been in their first grand final since 1997 but they set the pace in front of 83,625 fans, nabbing an 8-0 halftime lead after fullback Ben Barba scored in the 15th minute.

Melbourne looked to have grabbed the momentum after they nabbed a 12-8 lead when centre Will Chambers – back from a foot injury – crashed over in the 64th minute.

But the Sharks were not to be denied.

Controversial Cronulla forward Andrew Fifita bulldozed his way past five defenders to score in the 69th minute as Sharks fans dared to dream.

The Storm went down swinging but it was the Sharks who emerged triumphant, finally ending the club’s premiership hoodoo 49 years after they entered the premiership.

It provided a triumphant end to retiring Cronulla hooker Michael Ennis’ 14 season career.

But more importantly for Sharks fans, it also ended one of the great long running gags in the NRL.

You can turn the light off now.

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