A young and spirited Manly Warringah Sea Eagles outfit turned in a gutsy performance in losing 36-22 to the Sydney Roosters at Industree Stadium today in the opening round of the Pre-Season Challenge.
With several of Manly's main men again rested ahead of the season opener against South Sydney in Las Vegas on March 2, prop Toff Sipley took over as captain against a Roosters side fielding many big names.
The strong depth and quality of the Sea Eagles roster this year was clearly evident to see with plenty of young NSW Cup and Jersey Flegg players proving they could handle the big stage.
Similar to last year's Pre-Season Challenge match against Souths, Head Coach Anthony Seibold stepped aside to give Assistant Coach Jim Dymock the chance to coach the side to help further develop his coaching skills.
It gave Seibold the rare opportunity to observe team logistics from the coaches box to the sideline.
The Pre-Season Challenge sees $100,000 in prize money up for grabs, split evenly between clubs and players. Teams earn bonus points for tries, line breaks and offloads. Manly won the inaugural Pre-Season Challenge last year.
The Sea Eagles threw plenty at the Roosters in attack after numerous sets inside their quarter and were finally rewarded with a try to Sipley from dummy half next to the posts for a 6-0 lead after 11 minutes.
After having two tries denied on a bunker call against Jake Arthur and a forward pass call against Raymond Tuaimalo Vaega in as many minutes, the Roosters capitalised quickly with a try to half-back Sam Walker from dummy half for a 6-all scoreline.
The Roosters took a 10-6 lead when new winger Dominic Young crossed out wide in the 23rd minute.
Eight minutes later, Tuaimalo Vaega swooped on a loose pass to race downfield to send centre Clayton Faulalo over. Wakeham converted for a 12-10 lead with the score remaining that way to half-time.
The Roosters regained the lead three minutes after the break after centre Billy Smith caught a Luke Keary bomb to send winger Daniel Tupou over for a 14-12 lead.
A charging run from second-rower Sitili Tupouniua saw him brush past a few tackles to score under the posts for a 20-12 lead after 47 minutes.
A try to Arthur off an initial break the play before from young Lehi Hopoate saw the Sea Eagles fight back to 20-18 with 21 minutes remaining.
The Roosters capitalised on a drop ball from Tuaimalo Vaega for Tupou to score his second try for a 24-18 lead three minutes later.
Some razzle dazzle play from the Sea Eagles saw winger Jaxson Paulo score next to the posts from a kick from fellow winger Cameron Brown. Wakeham missed from close range for the 24-22 scoreline with 10 minutes remaining.
Connor Watson secured victory with a try from dummy half with five minutes remaining for the 30-22 lead.
The Roosters then added one more try to Fetalaiga Pauga with two minutes left for the 36-22 win.
The Sea Eagles now play the Brisbane Broncos at 4 Pines Park in their final Pre-Season Challenge match on Saturday, February 24. Kick-off 5.55pm.
It will be the first time in 10 years that the Broncos have played Manly at Brookvale.
