Sharks captain Tiana Penitani has put her hand up to fill the No.1 jersey as team-mates rallied around injured fullback Jada Taylor.
Taylor suffered a suspected knee injury during Sunday's 18-16 defeat of Parramatta, leaving Cronulla coach Tony Herman to make further adjustments to his backline for the Round 3 trip to Canberra.
Kiwi Ferns back Annessa Biddle, whose try levelled the scores at 16-16 before halfback Tayla Preston converted from the sideline to snatch a late win, reflected on the early season injury to Taylor.
Annessa Biddle Try
“It's really devastating to see Jada go down. I mean, it was the same last season, but I'm hoping she just gets a speedy recovery,” Biddle said in reference to the shoulder injury that cut short her 2023 season.
Herman said it was disappointing to see Taylor taken from the field in the second half after the hard work the 20-year-old had put into her recovery from surgery late last season.
“She's been having an awesome year, she's trained really hard in the pre-season and she was really pumped for a great year, so it's not easy for her," Herman said.
"She's got some really good people around her, ‘T’ [Penitani] and all the girls are in around her and talking to her, so she is in a good place that way. She's got a good support network around her."
Jada Taylor leaves the game injured
The Sharks lost star playmaker Emma Tonegato, the NSW Origin fullback, on the eve of the match due a calf injury, with rookie utility Georgia Hannaway called up for her second NRLW appearance on short notice.
With the injuries to Taylor and Tonegato, Cronulla's backline depth is set to be further tested in upcoming weeks as they face tough games against the Raiders and reigning premiers, Newcastle.
Penitani hasn't trained at fullback during the pre-season but she has spent time in the position in the past and put her hand up to fill the vacant No.1 jersey against Canberra on Saturday.
“I played on the wing in State of Origin so I'm quite comfortable getting under the high balls and I'll play wherever the team needs me,” Penitani said.
Taylor scored just after halftime to put Cronulla ahead for the first time in the match, but she was injured just minutes later.
Jada Taylor Try
Despite Herman having to rejig his backline, the Sharks managed to snatch their second win of the season after Biddle, who polled six Dally M votes, regathered the ball from a Preston grubber to score in the 65th minute.
The match winning try was her first of the season and Cronulla's 2023 NRLW rookie of the year was relieved after bombing an earlier opportunity to score.
"I felt like it was all in the kick, I honestly owed that to Tay [Preston]," Biddle said. "As soon as I got that try, I was just so excited that I was finally able to get over the line."
Herman also praised Preston for steering the team home and revealed she had been ill leading into the match.
“You lose Emma, who's probably one of the best players in the comp, and you know, that's tough," Herman said.
"Then we lost Jada through the second half there and I thought Jada started that second half on fire, so for Tayla, who has been crook all week and hardly trained, to come out there and play like that and manage that last bit ...
“You've got Georgia Hannaway in her second game of NRLW. We're asking a lot of her at that back end, you know, for how we could finish it, so I thought Tayla was particularly good."
