Round 13: Sea Eagles vs Bulldogs

[Tamwelg]

	vs
Sea Eagles		Bulldogs

Fri 6 Jun, 7:40PM Brookvale Oval

Brett Stewart Jorge Taufua Jamie Lyon Steve Matai Peta Hiku Kieran Foran Daly Cherry-Evans Josh Starling Matt Ballin Brenton Lawrence Anthony Watmough Justin Horo Jamie Buhrer   Jesse Sene-Lefao Dunamis Lui Tom Symonds Jason King Jack Littlejohn Geoff Toovey

Fullback Wing Centre Centre Wing Five-eighth Halfback Prop Hooker Prop Second Row Second Row Lock   Interchange Interchange Interchange Interchange Interchange Coach

Sam Perrett Mitch Brown Chase Stanley Timoteo Lafai Krisnan Inu Josh Reynolds Trent Hodkinson Aiden Tolman Michael Ennis James Graham Josh Jackson Tony Williams Greg Eastwood   Dale Finucane Tim Browne David Klemmer Sam Kasiano   Des Hasler

[DIEHARD]

Sea Eagles v Bulldogs
Brookvale Oval, Friday, 7.40 AEST

It's no secret Hollywood's script writers have been out of ideas for ages, with a record number of sequels and dodgy remakes being churned out of La La Land in recent years. But with top billing at the NRL box office, a suburban ground setting and an all-star cast featuring names like Foran, Reynolds, Cherry-Evans, Hodkinson, Lyon, Ennis, Matai and the man dubbed the Brad Pitt of Merseyside – Mr James Graham himself – we reckon this Friday's Brookvale showdown between the top-of-the-table Bulldogs and the high-flying Sea Eagles has all the makings of a winter blockbuster. Heck, if Godzilla can get another run, anything featuring the Oscar-winning 'acting' of Mick Ennis (at least according to Roosters coach Trent Robinson) has got to be worth at least a call-back.

Despite a heavy last-start loss to the Roosters, it's doubtful Des Hasler would've been pulling his hair out over that one, given the final 20-point margin didn't reflect the fight the under-manned Dogs put in for over an hour against the premiers. The Bulldogs still possess the NRL's biggest forward pack, a halves combination freshly injected with the confidence that performing on the game's biggest stage brings, and a backline that can afford to lose an Origin centre in Josh Morris and replace him with Krisnan Inu, a bloke who isn't residing on the same top shelf as Morris, but when at his best is not too far from it.

Similarly, if Geoff Toovey had hair it would've likely remained attached to his scalp even though the shellacking the Sea Eagles copped at the hands of the Broncos at the weekend was their heaviest defeat since the 40-12 beating handed down by Melbourne in the 2012 preliminary final. In the grand scheme of things the 26-point loss north of the border without stars Daly Cherry-Evans, Anthony Watmough and Glenn Stewart means little, though the fact they were so clearly out-enthused by the Broncos after having a bye should have had Toovs cracking the whip down at Narrabeen HQ this week.

In team news, Origin duo of Cherry-Evans and Watmough return for the home side, pushing Jack Littlejohn to 18th man duties and James Hasson out of the side.

The Bulldogs meanwhile welcome back their Origin halves pairing of Josh Reynolds and Trent Hodkinson as well as Tony Williams on the left edge. Chase Stanley slots in at left centre for the injured Morris, with Inu moving out to the wing.

Watch Out Sea Eagles: Dogs' halves Trent Hodkinson and Josh Reynolds will head into this clash with the kind of self-belief Kanye West could only dream of, and why wouldn't they after guiding another side in blue to one of their greatest ever wins over a maroon-clad foe last week? Their combined 16 try assists and 15 line break assists make them the most dangerous playmaking partnership in the competition, while they've more than proven themselves in pressure cooker situations over the course of 2014, having now steered teams in blue, be it sky or royal, to seven wins from nine matches that have been decided by six points or less this year. Sea Eagles fans will need no reminding of their former halfback's prowess with the game in the balance, having watched him boot the Bulldogs to a 32-30 victory in the corresponding encounter last year with six from six off the tee, including a controversial golden point penalty goal for the win.

Watch Out Bulldogs: From topics ranging from cement trucks to investigations, Manly’s clipboard carriers over the years have often added a little spice to post-match press conferences if they’ve felt they didn’t get the rub of the refereeing green, but Toovey’s men have taken a novel approach to easing the strain on both their coach’s blood pressure and hip pocket. The Sea Eagles have twigged that Toovs is less inclined to give an after-game spray if they stay in the whistleblowers' good books, and have now conceded the fewest penalties in the NRL, averaging just 5.5 infractions a game. The Dogs on the other hand are worth almost two penalties more a game at 7.4, and there's no surprise that niggling skipper Mick Ennis has raised the officials' ire the most with nine penalties so far this year. If the Bulldogs give Manly any piggy-backing penalties last year's grand finalists possess more than enough fire power to make them pay, with their left edge of Kieran Foran, whose return from injury was one of their few highlights against the Broncos, Steve Matai (nine tries, six try assists) and Jorge Taufua (seven tries, seven line breaks) particularly potent.

Plays To Watch: Peta Hiku can expect plenty of traffic to come down his right edge after a couple of poor reads led to Broncos tries last weekend, and his cause won't be helped by the return of Tony Williams to his side of the field. Williams, all 120 kilos of him, draws defenders like moths to a hurricane lamp whether he's receiving the ball or running a decoy, and the Dogs will look to exploit the Kiwi winger if he gets any split-second decisions wrong.

The Bulldogs possess two of the most prolific dummy-half runners in the game in skipper Mick Ennis (441 metres) and Sam Perrett (339m), but they'll find any easy yards out of the ruck just that little bit tougher than usual against the Sea Eagles – who have conceded the least amount of yardage to dummy half scoots (1164 m) in the competition.

Where It Will Be Won: With both halves pairings more than capable of engineering match-winning plays in their sleep it's the metre-eaters up front that hold the key in this one. And while you can use stats to prove almost anything, it doesn’t take a rocket surgeon to work out that Manly need to aim up from last week’s effort against the Broncos; where not a single Sea Eagle cracked the ton when it came to covering Suncorp turf. Up against a Bulldogs starting front row of Aiden Tolman (1549m) and James Graham (1447m) that occupies positions one and three when it comes to hit-up metres in the competition, Manly’s forwards will need to be at their best if they’re to match the big Dogs.

The History: Played 134; Sea Eagles 69, Bulldogs 58, drawn 7. The ledger stands at five-apiece from the past 10 clashes between two of the NRL's glamour clubs, and the Bulldogs won't mind travelling what is traditionally a graveyard for visiting sides, having knocked off the home side in three of their past four ventures to Brookvale.

What Are The Odds: Manly are $1.70 favourites with Sportsbet.com.au but more than twice as much money has come for the Dogs who are in from $2.25 to $2.12. But punters favour Bulldogs 1-12 in line betting with more than 50 per cent placed on that option.

Match Officials: Referees – Gerard Sutton & Gavin Morris; Touch Judges – Russell Turner & Jason Walsh; Video Referees – Bernard Sutton & Luke Phillips.

Televised: Channel Nine – Live 7.40 pm (NSW); delayed 9.30pm (Qld).

The Way We See It: This Manly line-up just oozes both class and toughness, a combination that will take them well into the business end of 2014, but right now, at the season's halfway point the Bulldogs seem to have just a wee bit more form coming into this one, particularly with the halves combination humming along nicely. The Sea Eagles are always tough at home, but the Dogs have plenty of experience and bit more grunt up front. Bulldogs by 8 points.

Source: http://www.nrl.com

[Mexican titan]

Been P**sing down in Sydney all day so regrettably this may give an edge to the Dogs forwards. Lets hope not!

[DIEHARD]

Been P**sing down in Sydney all day so regrettably this may give an edge to the Dogs forwards. Lets hope not!

Yea Ive heard its really bad weather in Sydney.

Yea.... think Ill be ordering a hot pizza and enjoying this grudge match.

[DIEHARD]

LATE MAIL: Cherry- Evans, Watmough back

Daly Cherry-Evans and Anthony Watmough will make their return to face the Bulldogs tonight in a much needed boost to the side following their loss to Brisbane last Sunday.

Jason King is the only change on the interchange bench, with James Hasson coming into the side in jumper no. 21.

Manly Sea Eagles

[hatchy84]

Dce injured by kasiano

[TITAN PETE]

Cherry-Evans injury sours Manly win
By Dan Walsh, Staff Writer
NRL.com
9:33pm Fri 06th June, 2014



One side was wearing maroon, the other blue, and Daly Cherry-Evans would've sent a scare through both state camps as he led the Sea Eagles to an impressive 32-10 win over the Bulldogs before leaving the field with a knee injury minutes into the second half.

The Queensland number seven, who had been in doubt all week with a knee injury sustained in the brutal opening Origin encounter, was a class above as he engineered three tries in eight minutes leading into halftime. But he had the entire Sunshine state on tenterhooks when he left the field and didn't return after Sam Kasiano threw his 123 kilo frame at the legs of the Manly half as he kicked downfield.

Early reports suggested Cherry-Evans was kept off resting the same left knee he injured in Origin largely as a precaution and was prepared to enter the fray if the Bulldogs got a sniff of a comeback win, but the news would nonetheless have Maroons coach Mal Meninga concerned given he has already lost first choice halfback Cooper Cronk for the series.

Kasiano was placed on report for the ugly 44th minute incident, which is likely to come under scrutiny from the match review committee given the NRL's dim view of taking out a kicker in the air, while Jorge Taufua was also placed on report for kneeing Sam Perrett as the Sea Eagles took out a hard fought contest in front of a hardy 9,235 supporters.


With the Brookvale pitch resembling a dog's breakfast no quarter was given by either side in the physical opening exchanges, and it was Dogs' winger Mitch Brown who was first to trouble the scorers in the 17th minute, stepping his way through after quick hands from Tim Lafai gave the flank man enough space down the left edge to work his over the stripe from 10 metres out.

But just as the Bulldogs went tit, the Sea Eagles responded with tat in the form of Steve Matai's tenth try of the year. The four-pointer came via a bit of fancy foot skills from Cherry-Evans, who grubbered through the line twice before Krisnan Inu failed to clean up the skidding ball and an unmarked Matai was found to level the scores at 6-all in the 29th minute.

From the ensuing kickoff it was golden boots Cherry-Evans who again had the competition leaders under the pump, forcing a repeat set with a deft punt into the in-goal, and reserve prop Jesse Sene-Lefao followed up with a first-career try to remember, scooping an offload up inches from the turf before crashing over under the sticks to push the Sea Eagles in front for the first time six minutes from the break.

The Brookvale faithful needn't have bothered taking their seats, as they were back on their feet within 90 seconds courtesy of a third try for the half to Peta Hiku, again set up by Cherry-Evans, who broke the line on halfway to send the right-edge combination of Jamie Lyon and Hiku away and push Manly to an 18-6 lead at the oranges.

While the departure of Cherry-Evans threatened to de-rail the Sea Eagles with over half an hour to play, halves partner Kieran Foran stepped into the playmaking void with ease, laying on a 50th minute try for Brett Stewart, whose touchdown inches inside the touch-in-goal sent the home side out to a 26-6 lead.

The Bulldogs struck back to keep themselves within unlikely striking distance through a try in the right corner to Inu, but a second try to Stewart, again from the boot of Foran put the ice on an impressive win for the Sea Eagles that sees them draw level with the Bulldogs on 18 points at the top of the competition ladder.

Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles 32 (B Stewart 2, S Matai, J Sene-Lefao, P Hiku, tries; J Lyon 6 goals) defeated Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 10 (M Brown, K Inu tries; T Hodkinson 1 goal) at Brookvale Oval. Crowd: 9,235

- - - Updated - - -

DCE confident knee won't end Origin hopes
By Dan Walsh, Staff Writer
NRL.com
10:55pm Fri 06th June, 2014


Daly Cherry-Evans has set Queensland hearts at ease, confident the knee injury he aggravated in Manly's impressive 32-10 defeat of the Bulldogs will not rule him out of Origin II in twelve days' time.

The Sea Eagles halfback left the field four minutes into the second half after he was taken out in the air by Bulldogs prop Sam Kasiano. He will be sent for scans after he spent the remainder of the match icing the same left knee that he injured in the brutal series opener, which also ruled him out of last week's loss to the Broncos.

But after the match Cherry-Evans was positive about his chances of being fit to fill the Maroons' No.7 jumper as Mal Meninga's men aim to square the series at ANZ Stadium.

"I'm confident it'll be right," Cherry-Evans said.

"It took a bit of a bump but I think with a bit of recovery and a few days it'll be good.

"I'll rest up and take it easy, and should be sweet."


Manly coach Geoff Toovey was similarly positive about his star halfback's prognosis, which threatened to sour what was otherwise a satisfying night for the Sea Eagles as they returned to the winner's circle in emphatic fashion.

"[Cherry-Evans] hasn't done any more damage but he's just inflamed it a little bit more and it's a little bit sorer than it was pre-match," said Toovey.

"But there's no damage or anything, so hopefully it will settle down in a few days and he'll be right to play.

"Our doctor's have assessed it and our physios have assessed it and they said there's no more damage."

The Manly coach was adamant the challenge from Kasiano, which was placed on report, was illegal, but refused to comment further on the ugly 44th minute incident.

Toovey also confirmed there was little concern for captain Jamie Lyon, who left the field late in the match with a hamstring strain that should not see him miss any game time for the Sea Eagles.

The five tries to two victory brings Manly level with the Bulldogs on 18 competition points at the top of the ladder, though after the match Toovey said he wasn't completely happy with the outcome, claiming the Bulldogs had illegally slowed down the ruck without sanction from referees Gerard Sutton and Gavin Morris.

"(NRL Referee's boss) Tony Archer's got some work to do," said Toovey.

"You talk about the ruck, they just wrestled the hell out of us and no-one did anything about it.

"It's something that they said they were going to clean up during the year, but tonight I thought it was particularly slow."

Manly will now enjoy their second bye in the space of a month before taking on the Sharks in Round 15, with NSW reserve Anthony Watmough and Cherry-Evans again under the pump to return just 72 hours after an Origin clash.

[Mexican titan]

Of course I am biased but I agree the Dogs were really trying to slow the play down last night. But a good win and now it's over to the Titans to make my weekend complete!