The Melbourne Storm demolished the Cronulla Sharks 54-10 on Sunday afternoon in a surprisingly one-sided affair.
In Nick Meaney's 100th game, Melbourne put on a show at home, with Harry Grant and Xavier Coates both picking up doubles.
For the opposition, however, the result represents a major blow to Cronulla's confidence and potentially impacts Nicho Hynes' chances of selection for Origin Game II.
The Sharks halfback was not at his best at AAMI Park, with Mitchell Moses now looming as the favourite to be selected at No. 7 for the Blues.
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'The life of an elite player': Sharks coach acknowledges challenges of Origin selection
It was a clunky afternoon for Hynes in Melbourne, uncharacteristically misplacing a few passes and failing to stamp his typical impact on the match.
Sharks coach Craig Fitzgibbon admitted that Hynes wasn't at his best, but felt he wasn't afforded the right team environment to thrive.
"(Nicho) probably was not at his best but he didn't have much support there today," Fitzgibbon said.
"You need a strong team line-up to play well - I think the team performance wasn't strong enough to help him."
When asked if a lack of clarity around Hynes' potential selection impacted the Cronulla No. 7's performance, Fitzgibbon was blunt, stating that it is all part of being a top player.
"The life of an elite player is turning up and getting your job done," he said.
"Good footy usually seems to take care of most of those decisions.
"There are some strong candidates [for the NSW halfback spot], they're all playing well - that's just life and pressure in professional sport.
"Circumstances can't be all your way - you've just got to turn up and get your job done sometimes."
Craig Bellamy throws support behind Nicho Hynes ahead of Origin
Hynes' former coach Craig Bellamy had plenty to say regarding a potential selection for the Cronulla half, heaping lots of praise on the reigning Dally M Medal winner.
"His team got beaten by a big score today, but that wasn't Nicho's fault," Bellamy said.
"I don't understand. He's a Dally M winner.
"He was on the bench for New South Wales last game and came on for five or six minutes, whatever it was.
"It's hard to sit there for 75 minutes, then come on and try to make an imprint - that that's not easy to do.
"With Nathan (Cleary) out I'd be picking (Hynes) every day of the week.
"I think he's done enough over the last 18 months to prove that he's an Origin player."
Match Highlights 🎥 - #NRLStormSharks
— NRL (@NRL) June 11, 2023
The Storm recorded their biggest win of the season as they hammered the Sharks at AAMI Park! pic.twitter.com/iu0bkh7OmK
Melbourne captain Christian Welch also mirrored his coach's thoughts and put his support behind Hynes for an Origin call-up.
"I think that if you look at Cronulla's rise ... (Hynes) is a great person and a great game manager.
"I think he's like-for-like almost for Cleary and a big reason why Cronulla have been doing so well.
"He's a good friend of ours and a good friend and everyone at the club and I really hope he gets picked up because he can't get judged on that last (Origin) game where he came on to play in the centres.
"I hope (Brad Fittler) picks him."
Who will replace Nathan Cleary at halfback for the NSW Blues?
Despite Hynes being an obvious early frontrunner, Mitchell Moses appears to be the favourite to take the reins at No. 7 for Brad Fittler's side.
One of the best halfbacks in the competition, he has already had a small taste of the Origin arena back in 2021 and while the side did fall short, he has only improved over the past 18 months for the Eels.
A report from the Sydney Morning Herald has the Parramatta Eels halfback as the new top candidate in the race for selection.
The 28-year-old is coming into the prime of his career and if anybody can replicate the general play-kicking game of Cleary, he might be a strong choice.
If Moses is picked to wear the Blues’ No.7, Hynes is predicted to retain his bench spot.
Also in contention is veteran playmaker Adam Reynolds, along with Matt Burton and Cody Walker.
