Cronulla have gone from being handed the softest NRL draw to one of the hardest, asked to play the equal-most games against this year’s top-eight teams in 2025.
Often accused of having one of the NRL’s easiest runs, the Sharks emerged as one of the biggest losers of the league’s draw released on Thursday.
Cronulla will have 13 games against this year’s finalists in 2025, with Penrith being the only side out of this year’s top eight that they do not face twice.
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That number is drastically high in comparison to the likes of Newcastle’s fixture list, who only play nine games against this year’s finalists.
Cronulla have long rejected suggestions their draw is the weakest in the NRL, and had a number of statement wins early last season on their way to the finals.
But they will now face their toughest schedule in years, beginning with a season opener in Las Vegas against Penrith followed by a road trip to North Queensland in round two.
South Sydney have also been handed a difficult draw, as the only club asked to face each of last year’s top-four sides twice.
Wayne Bennett’s return to the Rabbitohs also includes a brutal start to the year, facing seven of last season’s finalists in a row between rounds three and nine.
Along with the Sharks and Parramatta, they play 13 games against last year’s top eight in total.
In comparison, the Knights, Warriors, Canberra and Gold Coast will walk away from Thursday happiest.
Newcastle only play Penrith and Cronulla twice out of last year’s top-eight sides, while the Warriors, Raiders and Titans only play each of the top four once.
Meanwhile Canterbury and the Eels have usurped Souths as the most marketable teams, handed the equal-most free-to-air games with 14.
Canterbury’s resurgence last season means their Nine Network exposure has more than doubled from six games to 14.
They also have one of the softest starts to the season, facing only the Sydney Roosters, Cronulla and Newcastle from this year’s top eight in the first 16 rounds.
More to come …
