‘He’s still up against it’: Sharks sweat on star centre’s fitness as they look to shock the premiers

There’s mixed news for the Sharks on the eve of their preliminary final against the Panthers, with Kayal Iro cleared to play while fellow centre Jesse Ramien is in major doubt as he continues to battle an ankle injury.

Reports earlier in the week suggested that Iro was racing the clock to be fit for Saturday’s showdown with the premiers, but Cronulla coach Craig Fitzgibbon confirmed on Friday morning that the left centre was good to go.

“He’s fine,” he declared.

“Kayal has had a slight wrist injury for a number of weeks, but he’s good to go.”

The news on Ramien isn’t as encouraging, with the strike centre needing to prove his fitness on Friday if he’s any chance to face Penrith.

Ramien missed the qualifying final loss to the Storm but returned last week and starred against the Cowboys with 122m, four tackle busts and a glorious flick pass to set up a Braydon Trindall try.

He was spotted in a moon boot this week and hasn’t trained, with the Sharks unlikely to risk him if he’s hobbled.

“He’s still up against it but I haven’t seen him this morning and I haven’t had the medical review of yesterday, so we’ll see where he’s at,” Fitzgibbon said.

“He did a really good job to get ready and play last week, so that’s the risk you’re looking at with the same sort of risk this week.

“He’s tough. He barely ran a step for a couple of weeks. He looked after himself, he’s a good professional. He did such a good job for us (last week) and just to have him out there was a lift for the team.”

Fitzgibbon does have the luxury of moving Siosifa Talakai to centre, while utility Daniel Atkinson can also slot in if they want a little bit more speed out wide.

“Sifa played there a couple of weeks ago when Jesse missed out on the game in Melbourne and I actually think he was really strong,” Fitzgibbon said.

“It wasn’t a terrific performance from the team, but I thought Sifa was probably our strongest performer that day.

“He’s played so long in the centres so he knows what to do and he knows his role.”

The Sharks are looking to make their first grand final in eight years against a side that is looking to qualify for its fifth decider in a row.

It’s why the Panthers have been tipped by most people to breeze past a team they’ve beaten 70-0 in their past two clashes.

“I wouldn’t say it’s a free hit. I think that’s probably a dangerous mentality going into a game with a team like Penrith,” Fitzgibbon said.

“For obvious reasons they’d be roaring favourites and rightly so. They’re the three-time premiers and have plenty to play for with some milestones and some players leaving.

“The greater the challenge, the greater the opportunity for us. We’re so excited and looking forward to it, but we understand it’ll be difficult.”