"It was handy," laughed captain Simon Mannering. "He can create something out of not much. That's pretty much the main time when you want him to bring that stuff out.
"He's obviously got all the skills - he's got a real quality kicking game and he steers the guys around the park. That's 90 per cent of his job but sometimes, when you need him to bring out something special, it's handy when he can."
The try would have been especially sweet for Johnson after coming under criticism as the Warriors stuttered their way through the campaign's opening couple of months. Doubts were raised surrounding the playmaker's selection for the Kiwis but an impressive performance in last weekend's win over the Kangaroos silenced the knockers.
Last night's heroics should ensure another quiet week, even if Johnson, like his teammates, had hardly been near his best in the opening 70 minutes. But the Warriors stayed atypically calm to secure the type of victory they need if this season is to take a favourable turn.
"With where we are as a team - we're probably down on confidence a bit - sometimes you've got to tough a game out and we found a way," said coach Andrew McFadden. "I'm just really proud of the boys. I thought we were the better team and I thought we deserved the points, so I'm really happy for them."
A couple of concerns did emerge from the match and will slightly dampen the Warriors' spirits. Manu Vatuvei, who scored the Warriors' second, suffered a sternum injury that curtailed his involvement shortly after halftime, while Konrad Hurrell was placed on report for leading with a knee that saw would-be tackler Anthony Tupou suffer a badly broken jaw.
And the Warriors' discipline will cause some consternation among McFadden and his staff. It took the visitors only half an hour to surpass their season average in penalties, allowing the Sharks plenty of possession and leaving the Warriors with plenty of tackles to make.
Pleasingly for a side that switched off defensively for large portions of their previous outing against the Titans, the Warriors made the majority of those tackles to restrict the Sharks to a pair of tries. Developments on the other side of the ball were a bit of a mixed bag, though, with the Warriors illustrating impressive execution in some attacking raids but guilty of aimlessness in others.
The visitors completed 16 of their 17 sets in the first half but that composure deserted them after the break and, when they did manage to take it to tackle five, Johnson's tactical kicking was often wayward.
But that all changed with a clever kick that sent away Solomone Kata with seven minutes to play and, after Fifita hit back to put Cronulla back in control, Johnson conjured up yet another piece of late-game sorcery.
"It's in those moments where he's got to stand up," McFadden said. "He came up with something special and it's a real credit to him."
Sharks 16 (L. Lewis; A. Fifita tries; V. Holmes 2 cons, 2 pens)
Warriors 20 (J. Wright, M. Vatuvei, S. Kata, S. Johnson tries; S. Johnson pen, con)
HT: 8-8
