LeagueNews.co | Jess Malloy
The NRL world has been left swooning over a lovely moment between Kalyn Ponga and Shaun Johnson only seconds after winning his first Dally M award.
Ponga and Johnson were standing next to each other as the round 26 and 27 votes were announced with the two neck-and-neck on the Dally M leaderboard.
Johnson was leading on 55 points heading into round 27, but the Warriors halfback missed the final round of the season due to injury ahead of the NRL finals.
This left Ponga needing maximum points in the final round to win the Dally M.
The pair were seen sharing a word and a laugh a few seconds before the votes were announced.
And Ponga was granted six points in a suspenseful finish to take him one ahead of Johnson to win his first ever Dally M award.
Both players seemed relieved the voting was over and Ponga put his head on Johnson's shoulder in a sign he felt for the Warriors halfback.
Johnson had led the tally most of the night and went into the ceremony as strong favourite to win the award.
One fan noticed the moment and praised the camaraderie between the two players.