Manly Warringah Sea Eagles have bounced back from last week’s disappointing result to record a convincing 34-22 win over the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs on Friday night at Accor Stadium.
In front of a crowd of 35,502, the Sea Eagles proved once again just how exciting their football can be as they scored 30 plus points for the 11th time this season.
The Sea Eagles win was marred by injuries to full-back Tom Trbojevic (AC shoulder injury) and winger Jason Saab (ankle).
The crowd was the biggest for a Friday night 6pm game and the highest attended regular season game between the two sides since their round five clash in 2004 (25,771).
Coach Anthony Seibold spoke on how the side performed after last week’s loss, despite the setbacks tonight.
“Yeah, it was a good turnaround, which we needed. I was really happy with how we played, it was a real team performance. I still feel like we got a bit more in us. We were much better then last week which was pleasing,” Seibold said.
“It’s his AC joint (Trbojevic). He’ll definitely miss next week. He’ll be right for week one of the finals.
“He has a high ankle sprain (Saab), they can be quite nasty those ones. We won’t know until we get the scan. So it’s an awkward one."
Prior to the injuries, both were in red-hot form. Saab scored the opening try and Trbojevic followed suit with a try four minutes later. The superstar full-back was celebrating his 150th career game.
Seibold went on to speak about Trbojevic’s setbacks in his career and the options the club has at full-back.
“He’s fought really hard, he’s had many hurdles. He’s really diligent, it was good to get a result for him on his milestone night.” Seibold said about ‘Turbo’
“Lehi has been a really good find for us this year. And Tolu’s three week’s back from his injury, so we got a couple injuries there. He added on our options for full-back."
Despite leaking a try in the opening minute, the Sea Eagles were able to bounce back quickly and scored three tries in the opening 20 minutes enroute to their 24-12 lead at the break.
Two tries in the second half were enough to help seal a much needed 12-point victory and two competition points for the side ahead of their sold out clash against the Sharks next week at 4 Pines Park. Prior to tonight, the Bulldogs hadn’t lost a game at home this season.
The Manly side will be hoping to finish in fifth or sixth place on the ladder to secure a home final in front of their faithful fans.
Bulldogs hooker Reed Mahoney opened the scoring in the first minute after the side capitalised on a penalty late in the set for a 6-0 lead.
After having a try for second-rower Haumole Olakau’atu denied moments earlier, the Sea Eagles hit back in the eighth minute through winger Jason Saab in the corner. A quick shift through the hands of Reuben Garrick and Olakau’atu freed up space for Saab to dive over in the corner to level the scores at 6-all.
In a moment of pure magic, Trbojevic dived over under the posts to score in his 150th game four minutes after their last. A wayward offload from Olakau’atu hit the floor and five-eighth Luke Brooks toed the ball along the ground to find himself in space. After gathering the bouncing ball, Brooks passed infield to ‘Turbo’ who raced away to score and extend the lead to 12-6.
Manly made it three on the trot with a try through Hopoate in the 18th minute. A quick shift through the backline was capped off with a quick pass by centre Tommy Talau to send Hopoate over in the corner untouched for an 18-6 lead.
The Sea Eagles momentum hit the brakes momentarily when Jason Saab was forced from the field with an ankle injury 14 minutes after scoring the first try.
Canterbury capitalised on Manly’s shuffled backline and scored in the 25th minute through winger Josh Addo-Carr in the corner to cut the deficit to 18-12.
Another error from the home side deep in their own half handed Manly their fourth try in the 31st minute through second-rower Karl Lawton.
Brooks was influential in the buildup once again, throwing a short ball to Lawton at the line to help extend his side's lead to 24-12.
With the clock ticking down, the Sea Eagles were lucky not to concede on the stroke of halftime thanks to some compact defence. Tolu Koula, who came on for the injured Saab, made a stunning cover defence tackle on Bulldogs winger Jeral Skelton to prevent the home side from adding any further points in the first half.
Canterbury looked to have had a try in the 43rd minute through second-rower Viliame Kikau, only for the bunker to overrule the play due to an obstruction call in the build-up, granting the Sea Eagles a lifeline.
Off the back of a one-on-one strip from Brooks, the Sea Eagles stamped their authority on the match as Hopoate grabbed his second try in the 48th minute. A smart offload from Garrick left the winger with just the full-back to beat as he scored to extend the lead to 30-12.
Manly’s relentless attack continued as they tore Canterbury’s defence apart to score three minutes later through Garrick. Cherry-Evans threw a pin-point cut-out pass to free up space for Garrick, who weaved his way through the fatigued defenders to score in the corner for a 34-12 scoreline.
After a spectacular game, Trbojevic was unfortunately forced from the field with a knock to the head and an arm injury with 16 minutes to play.
Bulldogs second-rower Jacob Preston crashed through the defence and scored in the corner in the 68th minute to cut the deficit to 34-16.
Canterbury went back-to-back and scored in the final minute through Mahoney to soften the blow for a final score of 34-22.
Sea Eagles 34 (Hopoate 2, Saab, T. Trbojevic, Lawton, Garrick tries, Garrick 5/6 goals) d. Bulldogs 22 (Mahoney 2, Addo-Carr, Preston tries; Burton 2/2, Sexton 1/2 goals)
