The Southern Sydney Rooster Sharks have kept top place on the National Rugby League ladder after an epic 8-4 victory over last place NT Rangers in front of 7,374 fans at the Clover Moore Memorial Stadium.

It was not an easy night for the competition leading Rooster Sharks who lost skipper Mitchell Pearce junior due to ongoing contract issues pre-match only to have the matter resolved just prior to kick-off. The beloved captain, nicknamed ‘Ju Ju Ju’, had been released last week to take a up a contract with Japanese rugby franchise Tokyo Potato Chips FC only to be sold an hour later to the Toronto Raptors NBA team before being traded back to the Rooster Sharks for veteran ground announcer Vince Sorrenti and a blender.

There were also reports in warm up that Pearce junior’s halves partner Terry Cherry-Evans had back flipped on his $32million two week deal with the Perth Reds and was set to stay in Sydney.

The night didn’t start well for the Rangers with Israel Folau being placed on report for spitting just before kick-off. After sixteen minutes of review from the NRL bunker, it was deemed that Folau had shown intent with the saliva passing the horizontal. Folau then quizzed the nine on-field referees who gave the grizzled lock an on-field $50,000 fine for raising his voice above “the appropriate, respectable level.” Coach Paul Gallen reviewed the decision and after another sixteen camera angles, the on-field decision stood.

Rugby league fans then broke the internet complaining that official kick-off had been pushed back from 8pm to 1.25am.

But what goes around comes around in the NRL with the very first kick of the night being penalised.

Rooster Sharks’ Kane Elgey was returning from a kicking suspension and was immediately under scrutiny from the referees after kicking the ball too hard off the tee.

“You can’t kick anymore mate,” pocket referee six told Elgey, “Kids watch this Kane.”

The Rangers took the tap but were handed another penalty after Elgey went high on Folau, making contact with Folau’s sternum.

It was a fiery start for Folau who had been under the microscope of the NRL Integrity Unit in the lead-up to the clash after a fan video showed Folau tossing grass clippings into the wrong bin out the front of his home.

But it was Folau who’d get the last laugh scoring for the Rangers under the posts. A late forearm from Rooster Sharks enforcer Dylan Napa was picked up by ball-cam and nipple-cam but nothing came of the incident.

Referee microphones picked up the exchange after the incident.

“It seems you may have made contact with my noggin, Mr. Napa” Folau quipped.

“Sorry about that dear friend, a terrible accident” Napa responded.

“Better head off to the hospital now” Folau skipped from the field.

Napa waved back, “Jolly good show!”

Eventually the game settled into a grueling contest of five hit-ups for a turnover with the Rangers taking a 4-0 lead into the break.

But in a huge decision that would change the momentum of the match leading into the second stanza, the Rangers decided to release Folau on compassionate grounds only for him to sign a contract with the Rooster Sharks in the tunnel and was out onto the bench in a Southern Sydney jumper to start the second half!

Folau had passed the concussion test, sitting through an episode of ‘My Big Brother Rules The Block: Farmers Wants an X-Factor’, and returned to the field with the Rangers still leading by four.

It would be a controversial next passage of play with the Rooster Sharks hitting back with a try to Paul Pauli Pauli Paulo next to the posts. On closer inspection however it looked like the prop had lost possession in the process of grounding the ball. The Rangers challenged the try but when the Roosters Sharks used their challenge to challenge the challenge, the try was given after the NRL bunker deemed the challenge of the challenge was a reasonable enough challenge to give benefit of the doubt.

The final ten minutes of the clash would become the most chaotic with the following day’s Greater Parramatta Panthers versus Adelaide Rams kicking off on the same ground. The extra twenty-six players on the field seemed to favour the home side with the Rooster Sharks piling on the pressure and eventually grabbing the winner on the bell after a try to Pearce junior.

@CurtisWoodward1

Video Source: Marco Lino