Some sheer desperation in defence and a never say die attitude has seen the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles record a gritty 18-16 win over the Sydney Roosters at 4 Pines Park today.
The round 18 match was decided by a Ben Trbojevic try in the 70th minute, sealing the vital two competition points for Manly in front of a sold out crowd of 17, 385.
The Sea Eagles welcomed back from injury Jake Trbojevic, Brad Parker, Ben Trbojevic, with Kelma Tuilagi also returning to the team after getting through his first NSW Cup game last week after a facial fracture.
The lead switched six times in the six try affair as the home side was forced to defend on their own line on multiple occasions, with the most important period coming in the final few minutes where Manly defended their hearts out to keep the Roosters at bay.
A double from inspirational Manly Captain Daly Cherry-Evans helped steer the side to a 12-10 lead at the break with full-back Reuben Garrick’s 100% goal-kicking accuracy with the boot proving to be the difference.
The win sees Manly jump three positions on the NRL Ladder to sit in 11th place and within striking distance, just three competition points behind the eighth placed Warriors.
The Roosters looked to have scored in the seventh minute through centre Corey Allan, only for the bunker to rule a knock-on call on winger Daniel Tupou moments prior, granting the Sea Eagles a lifeline.
Manly had a chance to reply with a try of their own minutes later, only to be denied several times in a matter of moments with some desperate defence from the Roosters.
Prop Toff Sipley threw a lovely offload to five-eighth Josh Schuster, with the latter using his agility to step past a tackle before being dragged down inches away from the tryline.
The Roosters were forced into back-to-back drop-outs in the 16th minute, with the first coming from a phenomenal 60-metre kick from Cherry-Evans capped off by a diving tackle by centre Brad Parker to force Roosters fullback James Tedesco back to the in-goal area. Unfortunately, the visitors were able to get themselves out of the tricky situation as they won the ball back after a strong defensive set.
The tense deadlock was broken after 22 minutes through Roosters winger Junior Pauga with a well-worked try on the right wing. Centre Joseph Manu did well to hold up the ball and drag in the defence before flicking the ball to Pauga for a 4-0 scoreline.
Manly hit back in the best possible way with a try four minutes later through Cherry-Evans in front of the Bob Fulton Stand. Parker made a sensational break down the left edge and offloaded to Garrick after beating three defenders. The fullback chipped the ball over Tedesco’s head for Cherry-Evans to score. Garrick converted for a 6-4 lead.
Tedesco scored in the 31st minute after a well-executed offload from second-rower Nat Butcher deep in Sea Eagles’ half. Halfback Sandon Smith converted for a 10-6 lead to the Roosters.
Cherry-Evans plucked an intercept out of thin air off Luke Keary to score his second try minutes before half-time. Garrick converted for a 12-10 scoreline at half-time.
Manu slipped past a tackle and beat two defenders in the corner to score the Roosters’ third try five minutes into the second half. Smith converted from the sideline to take the score to 16-12.
With 15 minutes of play remaining, the Sea Eagles maintained control of the game with a strong 57% of possession to pair with their 83% completion rate. Hooker Lachlan Croker forced a smart drop-out with a well-placed grubber kick, with the side unable to capitalise in the next set.
Ben Trbojevic scored for the Sea Eagles with just under 10 minutes remaining after running off a great pass from five-eighth Josh Schuster.Garrick nailed the conversion from the sideline for an 18-16 lead.
The final five minutes of play was a thriller, with Manly on the backfoot for the majority of the time. The Roosters were on the attack in the 75th minute and were denied of a chance after a forward pass was ruled on Tupou, halting the momentum temporarily.
The Sea Eagles desperately defended their line with winger Christian Tuipulotu knocking the ball dead in the final five seconds to secure victory.
With a bye next weekend, the Sea Eagles tackle the North Queensland Cowboys at 5.30pm at 4 Pines Park on Saturday, July 15, at 5.30pm.
