'Cinema' expected as rival wingers go to battle one last time

Roosters and Sharks NRL finals match features final battle between star wingersPosted Thu 17 Sep 2026 at 2:02pmThu 17 Sep 2026 at 2:02pmThe battle between Mark Nawaqanitawase and Ronaldo Mulitalo will be a feature of the Roosters-Sharks semifinal. (Getty Images: Matt King)In short:Wingers Mark Nawaqanitawase and Ronaldo Mulitalo will continue their running on-field battle when the Roosters and Sharks play on Saturday night.The pair have engaged in entertaining battles since Nawaqanitawase switched from rugby union to league, with this Saturday's match the last before Nawaqanitawase goes back to union.What's next?The Roosters and Sharks kick-off on Saturday at 7:50pm AEST, with the winner to face the Dolphins at Lang Park in the NRL preliminary finals.Robert Toia will have a front-row seat to the last instalment of the battle between teammate Mark Nawaqanitawase and Ronaldo Mulitalo, and the Sydney Roosters centre is bracing himself for more box-office entertainment."Cinema, that's what I expect — [another chapter in] an ongoing battle and I think if we get the win that will top it off," Toia said.Saturday's sudden-death semifinal could be Nawaqanitawase's last in the NRL, with the 26-year-old former Wallabies star switching back to the 15-man code with Japanese side Saitama Wild Knights.Few could have imagined the impact Nawaqanitawase would have had in rugby league when he crossed codes after the Paris Olympics.There have been highlights in just about every game — be it his grubber ahead and tip toe down the sideline against Canterbury last season that was named try of the year, or last weekend's tap-ahead intercept before climbing off the deck and racing away to score against Penrith."It's pretty hard to stay alert because you don't know what's going to happen," Toia said."I didn't expect him to do what he's been doing, I think he has shocked everyone."Nawaqanitawase's long-running on-field feud with the sledge-happy Mulitalo — the pair of wingers openly admire each other off it — has made Roosters-Sharks games fixtures to savour."There's a bit of competitiveness there but I think that is what makes the game so great — it's the best of the best going at it with each other," said Roosters forward Siua Wong.Toia's opposite number KL Iro said of Mulitalo: "He can get personal at times but after the game he always makes sure he clears it up straight away and shakes his hand."He loves getting in the mix, he's a huge competitor."Nawaqanitawase has made the switch to rugby league look easy, having won caps for the Kangaroos, played State of Origin for NSW and scored 41 tries in 44 games for the Roosters.The Roosters and Sharks battle on Saturday night from the Sydney Football Stadium.AAP