Manly, along with Parramatta, has been one of the over-achievers of 2017.
Under coach, Trent Barrett, the Sea Eagles were desperate to make the finals. Outside of the Northern Eagles years, the last time Manly failed to make the finals three years in a row was back in 1965, under the coaching of another “outsider”, Russ Pepperill.
As Manly continue to nudge the top four, here are five reasons why they can go all the way this year; and five reasons they may fall short.
When Manly won the competition in 2011, there was talk that Daly Cherry-Evans could be viewed in the same light as Bob Fulton at Brookvale. The world was at his feet. A test regular, and Origin fill-in, Cherry-Evans was the form player of the competition.
Internal friction at the club, a protracted contract saga, and the loss of key players around him saw Cherry-Evans struggle in recent years. In 2017, Cherry-Evans had been one of the best players not just for the Sea Eagles, but in the NRL. At his best, he can turn a game on its head with a 40/20, or a well-timed pass or kick that sets up a crucial try. Manly can’t win the competition without him.
While Tom Trbojevic, rightly, gets most of the media attention for his scintillating try scoring ability, it is his older brother Jake that is arguably more important to the Sea Eagles’ quest for premiership glory. Seemingly entrenched in the New South Wales and Australian squads, Jake’s tireless defensive efforts, and under rated attacking prowess has helped Manly at crucial times throughout the season.
It was only three years ago that Dylan Walker was a key part of the South Sydney side that defeated Canterbury in the Grand Final to secure their first premiership since 1971. Walker, after an ill-fated season at five-eighth, has returned to the centres this year and has been in blistering form. At his best, he can cut an opposing defence to ribbons.
Not since Kieran Foran left Brookvale has Daly Cherry-Evans found a foil at the scrum base. Green, a journeyman player by any definition, brings consistency to the Sea Eagles and allows the star number seven to do his thing. More importantly, Green spent time at the Storm under Craig Bellamy and knows how to get to the big end of season games.
No One Likes Us And We Don’t Care. Manly fans have been chanting the mantra for nearly fifty years. And it works. Remember Brett Stewart’s feud with David Gallop? The Silvertails era? Super League? Manly are at their best when they feel it is them against the world. The drama around their salary cap issues may be enough of a spark to ignite the siege mentality.
Despite all of the positives for Manly going into the business end of the season, there are plenty of reasons why they could be watching at home on Grand Final day.
Manly currently sit in seventh spot. Sure, they’re a win short of third, but they’re also a loss or two away from ninth. Manly have been known to lose matches they should win, and there is still a chance they could be bundled out of the finals race before the finals even begin.
Incredibly, Daly Cherry-Evans is the only surviving member of the 2011 premiership winning side. Jorge Taufua and Brenton Lawrence played in the 2013 Grand Final loss to the Roosters, but the rest have moved on or retired. The aforementioned Walker has Grand Final experience, where he played alongside fill-in hooker Api Koroisau at Souths, while Lewis Brown and Blake Green have been on the losing side on the big day. The well runs dry after that, and Manly may not have enough big game players to take out the title if they get to the first Sunday in October.
A fabulous player for Australia and New South Wales, Trent Barrett is still in his formative years as a club coach and still suffers from the outsider tag at Manly among some sections of their fan base, used to names such as Toovey, Hasler, and Fulton etc holding the clipboard. Barrett has moulded the Sea Eagles into a real chance and must be buoyed by the success of Robinson, Maguire, Green and Flanagan in recent years. Indeed, the last three coaches of losing Grand Final sides have been Bellamy, Bennett and Hasler. But whether Barrett can get his side up when it counts remains a mystery.
In tight finals matches, every point counts. Manly seem unsettled in the goal kicking department, with Matthew Wright doing well at the moment; and Dylan Walker and Daly Cherry-Evans also filling in recently. Up against the accuracy of Cameron Smith or James Maloney, this may be a weakness for the Sea Eagles.
There is an air of inevitability around this season. Are we going through the next two months just to see who Melbourne beat in the Grand Final? Manly and Melbourne have a rivalry that stretches back to the 2007 and 2008 Grand Finals, as well as the infamous Battle of Brookvale in 2011. Times have changed, but Melbourne are still the yardstick of the competition. There will be no 40-0 triumph for Manly this year, but whether they can match the consistency of the Storm remains to be seen.
Matthew Geddes has written 35 books on rugby league, cricket, tennis, wrestling and a number of other sports. More information can be found at www.parallelpartnersbooks.com.au
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