The Manly Warringah Sea Eagles have suffered a disappointing 56-0 defeat to the Penrith Panthers in round 6 of the NSW Cup on Friday afternoon at Parker Street Reserve in Penrith.
Match: Sea Eagles v Panthers
Round 6 -
home Team
Sea Eagles
8th Position
away Team
Panthers
5th Position
Venue: Parker Street Reserve, Penrith
The Panthers shot out to a 30-point lead at half-time after scoring a string of tries.
Penrith prop Luron Patea opened the scoring in the 14th minute and winger Asu Kepaoa had a double seven minutes later, as the left edge continued to be attacked.
Panthers' centre David Fale scored in the 31st minute and Daine Laurie scored four minutes before the break to cap off a dominant half as the Sea Eagles struggled to assert themselves.
An early mistake from the Panthers to start the second half invited the Sea Eagles into unfamiliar territory. Despite the opportunity and a handful of set restarts, Manly were unable to capitalise as Penrith’s defence held strong.
The Panthers took full advantage of Manly's missed opportunities and scored their sixth try in the 45th minute as Fale crossed for his second, extending the lead to 36-0.
Manly’s mountain to climb grew even higher when prop Aitasi James was sent to the sin-bin in the 55th minute.
With the numbers in their favour, Penrith went on to score three tries in the 10 minutes that followed before crossing for their tenth in the 68th minute to take their lead to 56 points.
The Sea Eagles’ best chance came in the 75th minute with a shot down the short side. Five-eighth Dean Matterson threw a short ball to Jordan Swann. The centre, with a free run to the line in front of him, wasn’t able to hold onto the ball.
Manly had a one last chance to get points on the board in the final minute of play, throwing a flurry of attempts at Penrith’s line. But similar to the rest of the match, they were unable to hold on to the ball and were shut out in their fourth defeat of the season.
