Some late Brett Kimmorley magic in the shape of a try and a last minute field-goal has enabled the Cronulla Sharks to complete an exciting 13-12 comeback win over arch-rivals the Dragons at Toyota Stadium on Saturday night.
The Sharks looked gone for all money at 0-12 down after 51 minutes, but the Dragons imploded, allowing their gritty rivals back into the contest to eventually claim yet another come-from-behind victory at home.
The catalyst for the comeback was the inspirational Kimmorley, who cleaned up his own grubber to claim the try which leveled the scores at 12-all with five minutes to go, following winger Luke Covell's simple conversion.
Then a brilliant dummy-half raid from hooker Isaac De Gois put the Sharks in perfect field position for the match-winning field goal, slotted calmly by Kimmorley in the 79th minute.
Kimmorley, along with skipper Paul Gallen, provided the drive required to turn around a rather forgetful opening 60 minutes of the match for Cronulla.
The Sharks enjoyed much of the early field position, but could not turn pressure into points although centre Ben Pomeroy did get over the line in 11th minute only to be held up in a desperate Jamie Soward tackle.
Soward maintained his influence on the game in the form of two brilliant plays which resulted in the only try of the first half in the 23rd minute.
The former Rooster produced a 40/20 then from the ensuing scrum kicked through for winger Brett Morris to chase down and score a converted try, giving the Dragons the 6-0 lead they would take to the break.
Unfortunately for the visitors, Morris injured his left shoulder in the process of scoring and was forced to leave the field in obvious pain a few minutes later.
The second half began similarly to the first with the Sharks dominating possession, but their lack of attacking prowess was painfully obvious to any of the 18,256 fans at the ground.
The Dragons, now running into a stiff breeze, took full toll of their limited opportunities when Belmore-bound centre Josh Morris produced a neat little in-and-away on opposite Pomeroy to complete a fine 50th minute solo try from close-range.
Soward converted from a sharp angle to put the Dragons out to a commanding 12-0 lead.
The Sharks were robbed of a vital four-pointer 58 minutes in, ruling a pass from five-eighth Brett Seymour to Brett Kearney forward in the lead up to what appeared a legitimate try to centre David Simmons.
But the locals were not to be denied courtesy of a stunning flick pass out the back from Seymour to Kearney, resulting in Covell's 10th try of the season.
Covell's cruical conversion attempt bounced off the posts, but he would soon atone with a 63rd minute penalty goal to put the Sharks six points behind.
While the Dragons started to lose their way, the Sharks continued their revival via the brilliance of Kimmorley who scored with five minutes remaining to level the scores before slotting the match-winning field goal with a minute remaining.
Not only did the Dragons lose Brett Morris to injury, but prop Justin Poore was taken off on a medicab late the game with what appeared to be a serious knee problem.
Cronulla Sharks 13
Tries: Covell, Kimmorley
Conversions: Covell
Penalty goals: Covell
Field goals: Kimmorley
St George Illawarra Dragons 12
Tries: B. Morris, J. Morris
Conversions: Soward 2
Sportal's NRL Player of the Year:
3 - Brett Kimmorley (Sharks)
2 - Paul Gallen (Sharks)
1 - Jamie Soward (Dragons)