Dally M Medal winner Nicho Hynes returned in style on Sunday night, producing an emphatic individual display against local rivals St George Illawarra.
The 26-year-old missed the opening three rounds due to a calf issue, but made his comeback in Cronulla's 40-8 victory over the abysmal Dragons in front of a boisterous crowd at Kogarah Oval.
Hynes had his hands on everything, finishing with five linebreak assists, three try assists, 148 run metres and five conversions, proving exactly why he is considered one of the competition's finest.
Speaking to the media after the game, Sharks coach Craig Fitzgibbon praised the star No.7 but also credited the players around him for their best performance of the year to date.
MORE: Ben Hunt left 'embarrassed' as Dragons coach fights for NRL career
“He obviously got excited a little bit at times – he is hard to keep up with Nicho," he said.
"I thought it was a strong performance considering the lack of training time, lack of connection time with the guys. I thought he seamlessly fit right in and gave a boost.
“I’ve gotta say his teammates stepped up more so, and he was a beneficiary of the better team performance.
"I feel like each week we’ve improved parts of our game, but we haven’t put it together. Not to single anyone out, but some individuals haven’t been so consistent – everybody got their job done today.
"Obviously Nicho gives us a chemistry thing that he has with the guys and it worked out well."
Oooooh Nicho... how we have missed you.
— Fox League (@FOXNRL) March 26, 2023
📺 Watch #NRLDragonsSharks on ch.502 or stream on Kayo: https://t.co/B1ijnGY1g8
✍️ BLOG https://t.co/CISJHPYqVG
🔢 MATCH CENTRE https://t.co/fPC8UOikWK pic.twitter.com/7u6mLh0N3p
Cronulla skipper Dale Finucane wasn't surprised by his teammate's display, having seen Hynes come through into the NRL during their time together at the Storm.
“I’m not surprised with how Nicho came back," he said.
"All throughout his career, even back in his Melbourne days, he was in and out of the side and whatever position was required of him…he always played his role really well. That was evident tonight - he really stepped up for us.
"I agree with Craig about the players around him complimenting him and playing really well – obviously he has got Briton on that edge who has been punching really hard lines off whoever is playing in that position."
