Shark Ronaldo Mulitalo's sickening high shot rocks the NRL
Sharks winger Ronaldo Mulitalo may have just booked himself a decent holiday after a horror high shot on the Roosters' Mark Nawaqanitawase on Saturday night.
With just over 15 minutes remaining in the first half of the Roosters' 42-16 victory in Gosford, Mulitalo set himself and wiped out Nawaqanitawase as he was making a pass near the right touchline.
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The former Wallaby's flick pass found Dom Young, who then passed inside to James Tedesco, with the Roosters skipper producing an audacious backhanded flick to Hugo Savala.
Savala strolled over the tryline to cap a moment of absolute brilliance from the Tricolours, but Cronulla's woes deepened when referee Grant Atkins called Mulitalo over to inform he he'd been placed on report and handed 10 minutes in the bin.
Watch the high shot in the video player above
'Off he goes,' Dan Ginnane said on Fox Sports. 'This night just goes from bad to worse and Ronaldo Mulitalo – not sure there'll be much sympathy for him outside the Cronulla region.
'He's been sent to the bin and he's got a problem.'
Michael Ennis replied: 'He's got a problem all right. That's a heavy shot and he just launches.
'Although his body position is lowering at the point where he's delivering the pass, the duty of care which they look for, he gets him flush.'
Those looking on were confident Mulitalo would be facing a suspension for the high shot.
'That's going to be a suspension and they're playing the Warriors next week,' Ginnane said.
'When a player is sent to the sin bin, it pretty much is an automatic suspension, but the match review team will have a look at that.'
At halftime, NRL great Cooper Cronk said the Sharks winger was lucky the shot didn't have a worse result, with Nawaqanitawase managing to recover and play out the game.
'The lead up to that, Ronaldo Mulitalo put Mark Nawaqanitawase into next week with that contact,' Cronk said.
'He went to the sin bin, there was a penalty, and I think that is going to get looked at.
'He's lucky he didn't get him flush, he might be off the field for the rest of the game.'
The Sharks were trailing 20-6 after the Savala try, with the Roosters playing some outstanding football.
Trent Robinson's side scored two more tries after the break to stretch their lead before the Sharks rallied with two late tries of their own.
But the Mulitalo act was a major talking point, with most watching on believing the 25-year-old should have copped a tougher punishment from the officials.
Sports journalist Martin Gabor tweeted: 'That's a clear send off. Late, forceful, direct to the head. Gonna be a long break for Mulitalo.'
X account Wandering Eels said: 'Ronaldo should be sent off, not 10m bin. Shocker.'
Cookie man wrote: 'Just saw the Mulitalo shot, that's a send off.'
There was a smattering of support for the Cronulla star, with Luke Sheppeard tweeting: 'He went low, had his head down and braced himself. Mark then went lower. Not much Mulitalo could have done in that situation.'
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