Manly Warringah Sea Eagles will pay tribute to the Club’s 1996 first grade premiership win at Brookvale Oval this Sunday.
As part of the Golden Eagles Day celebrations in the Club's 70th Anniversary year, the Sea Eagles will show video footage of Manly’s 1976 Grand Final win (13-10 over Parramatta), and the 1996 Grand Final win (20-8 over St George) prior to the main game between Manly and Newcastle at 4pm.
Buy tickets for Sunday’s game.http://bit.ly/28PKArd
Read about Manly's 1976 Grand Final winning team here.
Manly team: Matthew Ridge, Danny Moore, Craig Innes, Terry Hill, John Hopoate, Nik Kosef, Geoff Toovey (c), David Gillespie, Jim Serdaris, Mark Carroll, Steve Menzies, Daniel Gartner, Owen Cunningham; interchange: Cliff Lyons, Neil Tierney, Craig Hancock, Des Hasler; Coach: Bob Fulton.
1996 Grand Final Match report
Manly centre Craig Innes won the chase and scored after a grubber kick by his skipper Geoff Toovey in the fifth minute. Matthew Ridge converted from the sideline for 6–0. At the 15-minute mark Saints' halfback Noel Goldthorpe conceded a penalty right in front of their goalpost after committing a head high tackle on Manly's Daniel Gartner. Ridge took the kick, extending the lead to 8–0. Up until the 19th minute mark when Manly veteran five-eighth Cliff Lyons took the field, their coach Bob Fulton was using six running forwards with Toovey as dummy half.
The Dragons' first points came in the 37th minute when Wayne Bartrim kicked a penalty awarded when Manly forward Cunningham stripped the ball. From the ensuing kick-off just before half-time came the game's controversial moment and a hotly disputed try. Ridge made a spectacular short kick-off and regathered, catching the Dragons unaware.
St George hooker Nathan Brown appeared to tackle Ridge albeit one-handedly and by the collar. Ridge got up and ran when Brown was expecting him to stop and play the ball. Referee David Manson ruled that Brown did not complete the tackle. Ridge was eventually tackled just a few metres from the line. From dummy-half Nik Kosef then passed the ball to Steve Menzies who stormed his way through Saints' defense of Thompson, Raper, Goldthorpe and Bartrim to score next to the posts, giving Ridge an easy conversion kick. The controversial ruling by referee Manson gave Manly a 14–2 half time lead and broke Saints' resolve. In the process of scoring Menzies injured his groin/hamstring and although he returned for the second half, he was unable to run and was eventually replaced by coach Fulton.
Second Half
In the 53rd minute Manly's Danny Moore scored a try from a Terry Hill pass after Hill drew Saints defenders, Adrian Brunker and Nick Zisti. With Ridge off the field after being concussed in a tackle, Innes converted from 5m off the sideline for the Sea-Eagles to take a 20–2 lead. Five minutes later Dragons' winger Zisti scored a try from a Bartrim cut-out pass. Bartrim then converted from the sideline for a final scoreline of 20–8.
Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles 20 (Tries: Innes, Menzies, Moore; Goals: Ridge 3/3, Innes 1/1) d St. George Dragons 8 (Tries: Zisti; Goals: Bartrim 2/2). Clive Churchill Medal: Geoff Toovey.
