Luke Keary has laid on a masterclass to lead the Sydney Roosters to a 30-16 NRL thumping of fellow top-four fancies Cronulla.
While the premiers were often sloppy, they ran out convincing winners thanks to some moments of brilliance, particularly from Keary who led the rout with three try assists at PointsBet Stadium on Saturday night.
The Roosters turned the screws in an 11-minute period either side of halftime during which they ran in four tries.
The Sharks lost skipper Paul Gallen (ribs) on game day, compounding the absence of Matt Moylan (hamstring), Aaron Woods (foot) and Wade Graham (knee).
The Chooks victory ensures their grand final rematch with Melbourne next Friday will double as a blockbuster top-of-the-table clash.
The Roosters (68 per cent completion, 14 errors) and Sharks (66 per cent, 16 errors) were both poor with the ball but Trent Robinson's side won it with some moments of class.
After they led 6-0 late in the first half, they put on three tries, all on the back of Sharks errors to take the game out of the home side's hands.
The Roosters went 12-0 up on the stroke of halftime after they punished Shaun Johnson for a horrible lapse in judgment.
With a minute on the clock, the Sharks five-eighth elected to put in a chip which cheaply handed over possession.
With the last play of the half Keary landed a kick on a dime for Latrell Mitchell, who ran 60 metres to score as the hooter sounded in the background.
The Sharks blew a golden chance to claw one back in the first minute of the second stanza when Briton Nikora broke open the defence and Bronson Xerri dropped it cold.
From the next set, Mitchell spun out of a couple of tackles and sent James Tedesco over.
And when the Sharks kicked it dead on the full from the restart, Boyd Cordner crashed over a minute later.
The Roosters effectively sealed the result when Joey Manu produced a magical flick pass for Matt Ikuvalu who simultaneously defied gravity and some desperation cover defence to plant it in the corner.
The Sharks ran in three consolation tries to Josh Morris, Shaun Johnson and Jack Williams to lend some credibility to the scoreline.
Australian Associated Press
