The Canberra Raiders will have to get to the NRL preliminary finals the hard way after a late penalty against England international Elliott Whitehead consigned them to a nail-biting 16-14 loss to the Cronulla Sharks at Canberra Stadium on Saturday.
Raiders coach Ricky Stuart conceded it was a penalty on a weekend when the NRL referees came under fire for their decision-making.
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Sharks edge Raiders in thriller
A late penalty seals victory for Cronulla in a classic.
He'll be sweating on the fitness of star hooker Josh Hodgson, who rolled his ankle at the start of the second half and couldn't return to the field.
Whitehead dropped on an already tackled Ben Barba, with his arm catching the Cronulla fullback high — almost directly in front of the posts.
Sharks five-eighth James Maloney calmly slotted the kick with just five minutes remaining and while the Raiders had two late cracks at the visitors they were unable to breach their line.
"It was obviously a penalty. There are about 12 of those in a game and they pick up a couple of them. Unfortunately that one was picked up," Stuart said of the decision.
"They're in enough hot water from different scenarios over the weekend. I don't want to make this another one of them. We got beaten tonight and I'm not using that as an excuse."
The Raiders dominated the first 30 minutes, but only took a 12-6 lead into half-time in front of a sold-out crowd of 25,592.
They will now play the winner of Sunday's elimination final between the Canterbury Bulldogs and the Penrith Panthers in next week's semi-finals, while the Sharks head straight to the final four.
Sharks second-rower Wade Graham missed most of the game after he was on the wrong end of a charging Joey Leilua ball carry.
He went off for a concussion test after just seven minutes and didn't return, which compounded the pre-game loss of skipper Paul Gallen (back).
Dally M contender Hodgson sold a dummy and darted through the Sharks' line to open the scoring and then a loose Maloney pass sent Raiders winger Jordan Rapana sprinting away almost the length of the field for the second try of the game.
It could have been even worse for the Sharks if Canberra winger Edrick Lee had held onto a Jarrod Croker pass with the tryline begging.
It was one of a couple of missed opportunities in the first half as the Raiders failed to capitalise on their dominance.
"There was an opportunity down there where I probably threw it to the wrong bloke. It hit Eddie on the chest there when I probably could've popped it up to him," Croker said.
"I didn't see him there and I was throwing it long. It's finals footy, it's going to be tough, it's going to be a grind. We talked about it all week and that's what it was. Unfortunately we couldn't get home."
The Sharks then pinched a try just before half-time, with Cronulla prop Matt Prior bursting through the Canberra line to charge over despite a valiant last-man tackle from fullback Jack Wighton.
It sent the visitors into the sheds trailing, but with the momentum.
Disaster struck for the Raiders almost immediately after the restart and Hodgson's injury proved a pivotal moment as Cronulla ground its way back into the game.
Sharks veteran Luke Lewis put through a delightful grubber in behind Lee for winger Valentine Holmes to pounce on in the corner.
If it wasn't for Boyd popping up for an intercept in the right place at exactly the right time, the Sharks would have gone ahead.
A Maloney penalty goal levelled the scores and set up an exciting final 15 minutes.
Sezer missed a field-goal attempt before Whitehead gave away the penalty right in front.
Sharks hooker Michael Ennis praised Prior for lifting the team on the stroke of half-time.
"Down 12-0 in the nation's capital, there were plenty of excuses to turn it up and the positive talk behind the line and in the defensive line, we just needed someone to put themselves in the frame," he said.
"In semi-finals there are always moments and you have to make sure you're in the frame when they arise.
"Matt Prior was that in the first half, he changed the momentum heading into half-time and from there the spirits lifted and away we went."
CRONULLA SHARKS 16 (Matt Prior, Valentine Holmes tries; James Maloney 4 goals) bt CANBERRA RAIDERS 14 (Josh Hodgson, Jordan Rapana tries; Jarrod Croker 3 goals) at Canberra Stadium. Referees: Matt Cecchin and Alan Shortall. Crowd: 25,592.