Are the Cronulla Sharks contenders or pretenders?

SEN's Andrew Voss has questioned the Cronulla Sharks’ premiership credentials following their 30-28 loss to the Dolphins on Thursday night at Shark Park.

The Sharks trailed 22-0 after just 24 minutes before the home side rallied and took the lead in the 52nd minute courtesy of a William Kennedy try.

Cronulla would surrender the lead moments later and in devastating fashion, Sharks halfback Nicho Hynes missed the game-tying conversion after full time to seal Cronulla’s third loss in four games.

Voss said he doesn’t see any improvement from the 2022 and 2023 Cronulla teams who both failed to win a finals game.

“It’s shades of the finals,” Voss said on SEN 1170 Breakfast.

“Lucky for them, they have points in the bank but do we go the early crow and label them as pretenders?

“I’m going to say yes because every time they have a big win against a side like Melbourne and take two steps forward, they take two steps back.

“Let’s go back to the Penrith defeat that was shattering. It was 42-0 and that’s the one that will stick in their heads and is a hard one to shake.

“That’s baggage right there. You forget about the fight last week against the Broncos.

“They have issues.”

The loss to the Dolphins has also put a significant dent in Hynes’ aspirations to retain his NSW Blues jersey for the must win Game II at the MCG on June 26.

The Daily Telegraph’s Michael Carayannis was not willing to write the Sharks’ premiership hopes off but thinks the Sharks are in a worrying state of purgatory.

“They sit in between because they are the bottom of the top four or five,” Carayannis said on SEN 1170 Breakfast.

“They won’t drop out of the top eight which makes them a contender and I still think they can win the Grand Final.

“They have a lot of improvement in them and come the finals, I’d be more afraid to play the Sydney Roosters or the Brisbane Broncos who are down the bottom of the top eight.”

The Sharks have the bye in Round 16 before facing another big test against the in-form Bulldogs on June 28 at Accor Stadium.