The Sharks were up to the task, just, successfully holding on to secure a 28-24 victory.

It was a wild, entertaining affair in wet and slippery conditions, with both teams willing to throw the ball around. Despite the rain, the completion rates were impressively high.

Read more: The Big Read: Olympic athletes chasing new dream as milestone weekend arrives

But while they put on a show for the fans braving the weather, and those watching at home, the Dragons fell to their local rivals in a match that could prove pivotal to their finals chances.

Here are the five things we learnt from Saturday night's clash.

The Dragons effort can't be faulted, but their execution is proving costly

With halfback Adam Clune and forward Trent Merrin ruled out at halftime due to failed Head Injury Assessments, and a number of others playing through pain, St George Illawarra's second half comeback was a brave effort.

All the stats were against them, possession, territory, set restarts. The match could very easily have developed into a blowout, but the Dragons dug in and fought to claw their way back.

But while St George Illawarra were able to get back into the match, they were unable to find the execution required to hit the front and claim the win.

Paul McGregor's side cut the deficit to just four points with 22 minutes remaining and they had every chance to level the scores in the final quarter.

Both Matt Dufty and Jason Saab were unable to ground the ball in the in-goal, with the kicks they were chasing just slightly off target.

Had they been perfect, perhaps the Dragons would have been the team to leave Kogarah with two vital competition points, rather than the Cronulla Sharks.

First half fades are a concerning trend

For the second-straight week, St George Illawarra allowed an early lead to develop into a half-time deficit.

While they were good enough against the Bulldogs, it was a different story on Saturday night.

Every team suffers momentum swings against them in matches, the best teams are able to weather the storm and limit the damage. For two weeks in a row, the Dragons have shown an inability to weather that storm.

Speaking post game, McGregor lamented his side's inability to turn the tide back in their favour before the damage was done.

"We can change that momentum by our defence," McGregor said. "You can change momentum a lot of ways in games, we just didn't do that tonight for 55 minutes."

St George Illawarra's top eight chances are on life support

The Dragons are one of five teams chasing the final two spots in the top eight, with the top six sides starting to clear away from the pack.

With that in mind, every match against the Tigers, Rabbitohs, Sea Eagles and Sharks is vital for St George Illawarra.

Instead of drawing level with Cronulla, the Dragons are now four points adrift in 11th place on eight points.

The Sharks and Sea Eagles both sit on 12 points, while the Tigers and Rabbitohs are in ninth and tenth, respectively, on 10 points.

The state of the ladder means Thursday night's clash with South Sydney is close to a must win for the Dragons.

Should St George Illawarra sit six points outside the eight with just eight games remaining, it's pretty close to season over. Particularly when the side still has to face the Roosters, Eels, Raiders, Knights and Storm in the run home.

Zac Lomax is developing into a future star

Despite stating his desire prior to the season to play fullback, the 20-year-old has excelled in the centres in recent weeks.

Lomax was among the Dragons best on Saturday night, looking dangerous every time he touched the football and regularly beating his opponent with late footwork before the defensive line.

He also scored two tries, set up another and was on song with his goal kicking in tough conditions.

While he was picked at fullback for round one, an experiment that lasted just one game, centre is the position many have expected the youngster to star.

Two years ago St George Illawarra recruitment manager Ian Millward said the team will be built around Lomax for the next decade and with performances like that on Saturday, it's not hard to see why.

The centre has the size and skills required to be a superstar of the game, and based on McGregor's comments after the match, he has the attitude to get there as well.

Living a short walk from WIN Stadium, the centre has impressed those at the club with his time spent on the training paddock honing his craft.

With Lomax locked up until the end of 2025, St George Illawarra fans should start to get excited by what he could produce in the coming seasons.

There is no way to eliminate human error

In what has become a recent trend, the bunker made a crucial mistake in awarding Jack Williams a try for the Sharks.

The decision came in the ninth minute and the Dragons had plenty of chances to win that game. St George Illawarra may have lost by four, but the ruling didn't cost the team the match.

With that said, it played a role in shaping the outcome and it's impossible to know what would have happened had the bunker correctly denied the try.

The decision was met with a fierce backlash from fans and commentators, with some calling to eliminate the bunker completely.

This is fanciful thinking and ignores the fact the bunker gets the majority of rulings correct.

The NRL told us when they introduced the new video referee technology that it would eliminate the mistakes. This was never realistic and the sooner we accept the fact that errors will be made, the better.

We can try as much as we like, but there is no way to eliminate human error. No matter how you set the system up, it all boils down to the fact a person is the one deciding which button to press and unfortunately people get things wrong.

Steve Clark and Ben Galea were punished by being removed from Sunday's clash between the Titans and Panthers, providing the NRL with an example that they hold their officials to account.

Yes, the NRL should do everything they can to reduce the number of bunker errors to as close to zero as possible, but that number will never hit zero.

On this occasion it was the Dragons who were on the wrong end of a bad call. There will be a next time, and maybe then, they will be the ones to benefit.

Sign up for Tackle Count, the NRL newsletter you need: Straight to your mailbox every Thursday before the footy kicks off