<p>The Cronulla Sharks will be looking to regain their spot in the top eight when they host the Sydney Roosters at Sharks Stadium on Friday night.</p> <p>This clash shapes as a classic ‘four-pointer' with the two teams locked on 22 points and occupying eighth and ninth on the table entering Round 20.</p> <p>Cronulla will hope to maintain its momentum from last Friday's 24-12 win over the explosive Dolphins, which followed a run of four losses in five.</p> <p>Meanwhile, the Roosters held on in a 31-24 thriller against the Dragons in Sam Walker’s return game last Saturday. Walker will have a new halves partner this week with Hugo Savala to miss due to a wrist injury.</p> <p>In a surprise move, Trent Robinson has opted for veteran Chad Townsend over Sandon Smith to replace Savala at five-eighth, while Lindsay Collins and Spencer Leniu have swapped, with the latter named on the bench.</p> <p>If it isn’t broken, don’t fix it, as they say. As a result, the Sharks go into Friday with an unchanged starting 13.</p> <p>Let’s take a look at some betting tips for the H2H, first try scorer, and over/under markets for this one. As well as how both teams will line up. This is our Sharks vs Roosters prediction.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h2>Sharks vs Roosters Prediction and Betting Tips</h2> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Head-to-Head Prediction</h3> <p>You wouldn’t have thought that Roosters halfback Sam Walker had missed nearly an entire year of footy, the way he played last week.</p> <p>The diminutive No.7 was everywhere (including the sin bin at one point) as his side saw off the Dragons in a high-scoring thriller.</p> <p>He’ll be up against Nicho Hynes this week, who has started to reclaim his best form after intense scrutiny this season.</p> <p>The former Dally M medallist scored two tries last week, including the opener and we fancy him to have another big one here.</p> <p>This is a massive match in the complexion of both sides' seasons. They currently occupy 8th and 9th on the ladder and are deadlocked on 22 competition points.</p> <p>That means this one will carry a four-point swing in terms of the race for the eight. We’re going to back Cronulla to win the battle here, but come the end of the season, will they have won the war? Watch this space.</p> <p><strong>Betting tip</strong>: Cronulla Sharks.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>First Try Scorer Prediction</h3> <p>After his two-try effort last week in his side's win against the Dolphins, which included the first four-pointer of the game, Nicho Hynes has presented himself as a very appealing option for this market.</p> <p>After being well below his best to start the season, it looks as if Nicho is finally catching fire and we’re prepared to ride the rush and back him to open the scoring for the second week in a row.</p> <p><strong>Betting tip</strong>: Nicho Hynes.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Over/Under Prediction</h3> <p>History suggests there will be points in this one and we’re inclined to agree. Six of the last eight matches between Cronulla and Sydney have gone over the total match points line, so that’s the way we’re siding here.</p> <p><strong>Betting tip</strong>: Over total match points.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h2>Sharks vs Roosters Teams</h2> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Cronulla Sharks Team List</h3> <p>1. William Kennedy</p> <p>2. Sione Katoa</p> <p>3. Jesse Ramien</p> <p>4. Siosifa Talakai</p> <p>5. Ronaldo Mulitalo</p> <p>6. Braydon Trindall</p> <p>7. Nicho Hynes</p> <p>8. Addin Fonua-Blake</p> <p>9. Blayke Brailey</p> <p>10. Oregon Kaufusi</p> <p>11. Briton Nikora</p> <p>12. Teig Wilton</p> <p>13. Cameron McInnes</p> <p>14. Daniel Atkinson</p> <p>15. Jesse Colquhoun</p> <p>16. Toby Rudolf</p> <p>17. Braden Hamlin-Uele</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Sydney Roosters Team List</h3> <p>1. James Tedesco</p> <p>2. Daniel Tupou</p> <p>3. Billy Smith</p> <p>4. Robert Toia</p> <p>5. Mark Nawaqanitawase</p> <p>6. Chad Townsend</p> <p>7. Sam Walker</p> <p>8. Naufahu Whyte</p> <p>9. Connor Watson</p> <p>10. Lindsay Collins</p> <p>11. Angus Crichton</p> <p>12. Salesi Foketi</p> <p>13. Victor Radley</p> <p>14. Zach Dockar-Clay</p> <p>15. Blake Steep</p> <p>16. Egan Butcher</p> <p>17. Spencer Leniu</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h2>Sharks vs Roosters Match Details</h2> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Date</strong>: Friday, July 18, 2025.</p> <p><strong>Kick-off</strong>: 6:00pm AEST.</p> <p><strong>Location</strong>: Shark Park, Sydney.</p>