Cronulla ironman Cameron McInnes celebrated breaking the record for most tackles in an NRL match by pushing a double pram uphill at Taronga Zoo on Sunday morning.
McInnes was praised for making 81 tackles for the Sharks in their 28-0 loss to Penrith on Saturday night. Some statisticians had the tackle count as high as 84, however the NRL’s official website marked the number at 81.
The previous record of 78, according to NRL.com, was set by the Warriors’ Michael Luck in an extra-time game against the Storm in 2009.
McInnes went home on Saturday night to watch the Ashes, drifted off to sleep about 4.30am, then was back up at 6am to honour a promise to his two young children, Noa and Mia.
“I told the kids I’d take them to Taronga Zoo, so we were there at 9.30am,” McInnes told this masthead on Monday.
“It was tough because that carriage [sky safari] that takes you from the bottom to the top is also gone.
Cronulla’s Cameron McInnes made history with 81 tackles on Saturday night.Credit: Getty
“But the best thing you can do after a game is to get up and get moving. And the kids had a ball.
“We were weighing up whether to go to Sydney Zoo out west, it’s a lot flatter, but given it was closer to the Penrith area, we thought we’d steer clear of there and go to Taronga.
“I was stopped by a few Cronulla fans and had a chat with them.
Cameron McInnes with his children, Noa and Mia, at Taronga Zoo on Sunday.
“We’re away in Perth this weekend, the kids will be home alone with Mum [Rachel], who is in her third trimester, so it was also good for us all to spend the day as a family.”
McInnes was unaware of the record until a Panthers player told him after full-time.
Cronulla coach Craig Fitzgibbon called McInnes’ effort “one hell of a knock”, and resisted giving him an early mark because GPS data suggested he was still full of energy.
The Sharks players enjoyed Monday off, but McInnes kept his fitness ticking over with a light cardio session at home on the rower and exercise bike.
“Making tackles isn’t the hardest part of the game,” McInnes said. “I find those long 50-metre runs much harder – I’d rather be making tackles than do what the wingers do.
“I’ve heard I made 84 tackles, 81 tackles and 78 tackles. It was a lot. I didn’t know what the previous record was. I’m not proud of the record, I’m more proud of the effort we showed as a team the other night.
“Penrith were outstanding and almost played the perfect game. But 28-0 didn’t show how hard we worked and kept turning up for each other.”
McInnes’ face was bloodied after the effort, but he said his family loved his “rugged looks”.
McInnes also said the criticism of Nicho Hynes’ post-Origin I form was unfair. Hynes inspired the second-half fightback against Manly a week earlier, and tried to get things going late against the premiers.
“He knows when he’s going well he gets the accolades, and when things don’t work out he’s the one who cops it,” McInnes said of the Dally M Medal winner.
“He’s attacking the guts out of a game, and even when things aren’t going well. He’ll go after it. We had no possession the other night, we were out on our feet, but we kept trying until the end.”
McInnes said things would not get any easier against South Sydney, the club where he started his NRL career, but the Sharks’ best football would match it with any team in the NRL.
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