Cronulla's Kayal Iro has vowed to improve his tackle technique on the run to the NRL finals, after a high shot in the loss to the Warriors may have thwarted the Sharks' top-two hopes.
The Sharks were up 22-14 when Iro went to the sin bin for striking Dallin Watene-Zelezniak high in cover defence on Saturday night. While they were down a man, the Sharks leaked two tries.
Cronulla eventually lost 30-28 after a magical pass from the retiring Shaun Johnson that sent Watene-Zelezniak over for a hat-trick in the final seconds and iced the Warriors' comeback.
Iro dodged suspension for his high shot and will face finals-bound Manly in the sides' last game of the regular season, but admitted his tackle hurt the Sharks against the Warriors.
"We made a good start to the game but we just got done with a few penalties, including my send-off (sic, sin-binning). That probably impacted us a lot," the centre said.
"Once I come on, I just try to bring some energy, and I think we just need to ice that towards the end of the game."
The Sharks can ill-afford to continue their losing ways so close to the finals, particularly given a poor recent record in the post-season.
Coach Craig Fitzgibbon spoke to Iro about his tackle technique after the Warriors game, with the centre thankful his blue did not come a fortnight later during the play-offs.
"(Fitzgibbon) said he wants that aggression, but obviously just get my arms out of the way and make the tackle cleaner," the 24-year-old said.
"It would've been more damaging if I was suspended, but luckily I came off with a fine.
"I base my game off aggression, that's what I want to bring. I just need to clean up my arm stuff, keep my arms lower."
The Sharks' loss to the Warriors means that to lock up a top-two finish and home final in week one, they need to beat Manly and hope both Penrith and the Sydney Roosters lose this weekend.
If all three teams win, the Sharks will finish fourth on the ladder and travel to Melbourne for a tough qualifying final against minor premiers the Storm.
A heavy loss could push the Sharks down to fifth if Canterbury also win big against North Queensland on Saturday night.
"We're just focusing on this week and what we need to do to hopefully secure a top-four spot," said Sharks second-rower Briton Nikora.
