A rampaging Manly Warringah Sea Eagles recorded a thumping 56-10 victory over arch rivals Parramatta Eels at Sunshine Coast Stadium tonight in round 22 of the Telstra Premiership.
The Sea Eagles ran in 10 tries to two after leading 26-4 at half-time to move into fifth spot on 28 points with the Eels.
Winger Reuben Garrick scored 28 points in the win and set a new record for most points in a season for Manly, breaking Matthew Ridge's 1995 record of 257 points.
The match also saw inspirational half-back and captain Daly Cherry-Evans join Coach Des Hasler on 255 games for the Sea Eagles.
An early penalty for the Sea Eagles inside their own 20 metres propelled them forward in the first set of the match, with centre Brad Parker making a dash down the left edge to put pressure on the Parramatta Eels.
The man who made the break moments earlier dived over the first try of the match with three minutes played. The ball came flying into the in-goal with a tricky grubber kick from halfback Daly Cherry-Evans, which didn’t sit well for the Eels players. However, it did sit up well for Parker, grounding the ball centimetres from the dead ball line. Winger Reuben Garrick failed to convert to bring the score to 4-0.
Garrick dived over in the corner for the second try three minutes later with fullback Tom Trbojevic notching up another try assist to find the winger with a stunning over the top cut-out pass. Garrick converted from the sideline to extend the lead to 10-0.
Cherry-Evanwent close to grabbing his fourth 40/20 of the season, with the ball being centimetres away from rolling over the sideline after a stunning kick, only to be stopped by Eels full-back Clinton Gutherson with a last-ditch diving effort.
In the 20th minute, the Sea Eagles struck again, with Cherry-Evans and winger Jason Saab combining to set up Tom Trbojevic for a try. The halfback halted at the line with some good footwork before throwing a long cut-out pass to Saab, who ran inside and outside the defenders before finding himself one-on-one with the fullback to send 'Turbo' over. Garrick converted from in front to make the score 16-0.
Six minutes later, Garrick had his second try, with five-eighth Kieran Foran turning back the clock with an impeccable cut-out pass to get past the two Eels defenders to send his winger over untouched. Garrick's attempt hit the upright for a 20-0 lead.
The Sea Eagles were picking apart the Eels, attacking another overlap down the left edge and finding space to send utility Dylan Walker over for a try in the 28th minute.
On the first tackle, the ball was shifted to the left and ended up in the hands of Garrick who took on and beat Gutherson, before having an array of players in support, eventually passing to Walker who scored under the posts. The winger converted for a 26-0 lead.
With a minute to play in the first half and coming off the back of a tough call, the e Eels scored through centre Tom Opacic after the ball was shifted to his right edge. Gutherson failed to convert the try for a 26-4 scoreline at half-time.
After soaking up some early pressure, the Sea Eagles crossed in the 58th minute through Saab in a well worked team effort. Garrick converted from the sideline for a 32-4 scoreline.
Manly centre Brad Parker was unfortunately taken from the field for a HIA four minutes later after a devastating shoulder charge from Ryan Matterson, who was sent off.
A minute later, the Sea Eagles had another try through 18th man Moses Suli, who came on for the injured Parker. Tom Trbojevic ran hard at the line and managed to get his hand free, popping the ball out to the left edge to find Suli who scored with just his second touch of the ball.
Garrick's conversion saw him break the 1995 record of Matthew Ridge (257) for most points scored in a season by a Manly player.
The Eels were then reduced to 11 men when Marata Niukore was sent to the sin bin for a professional foul. With that advantage, the Sea Eagles scored another try through Suli, his second in three minutes.
The Trbojevic brothers combined in the lead up to the try, with Jake freeing up Tom in space. The fullback ran through a hole to pass to Suli for his third try assist. Garrick nailed the conversion to make the score 44-4.
Manly were running rampant on the depleted Parramatta side, with Walker putting in a lovely grubber kick through the defensive line for second-rower Haumole Olakau’atu to score in the 69th minute. Garrick converted for a 50-4 lead.
The Sea Eagles were toying with them as 'DCE' placed a kick on the second tackle, sitting up perfectly for Saab who was brought down. A penalty against 'Turbo' the next tackle handed the side a new set, resulting in yet another try with seven minutes to play.
Garrick juggled the ball and dived over in the corner for his third try of the night in another spectacular diving effort, with Trbojevic getting one more try assist for the night with another impressive passing effort. The tryscorer was successful in converting his try from the sideline, taking the score to 56-4.
Parramatta grabbed themselves a consolation try with just over a minute to play through centre Waqa Blake. Gutherson converted from the sideline for the 56-10 scoreline.
Tom Trbojevic starred for the side with one try, four try assists, five line break assists, two line breaks, five tackle breaks and running for 187 metres from 20 runs, with his brother Jake topping the tackle count for the side with 32.
The Sea Eagles play the Canberra Raiders in Round 23 of the NRL Telstra Premiership on Friday, August 20.
