A brave Sydney Roosters outfit were unable to overcome the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles in a see-sawing battle at 4 Pines Park on Sunday, falling 18-16 in front of 17,385 fans.
Joseph Manu was marvellous in attack, scoring a try and setting up another, but it was the Tricolours' defence that kept them in the game, as the forward pack rose to shut down a number of plays in the second half.
Match: Sea Eagles v Roosters
Round 18 -
home Team
Sea Eagles
10th Position
away Team
Roosters
12th Position
Venue: 4 Pines Park, Sydney
A strong defensive set from the Tricolours kept the hosts in their defensive 30 to regain possession close to halfway in the opening 10 minutes. On the fifth tackle, Luke Keary chipped the ball high into the corner aiming to connect with Daniel Tupou.
The Tongan high-flyer batted the ball back to Corey Allan, who snatched it from the turf and crashed over, only to have the try denied by the Bunker after review, deeming Tupou's touch knocked the ball forward.
Fiercely fighting to defend their line, the Roosters stood tall after conceding two goal line drop-outs and two set restarts. A brilliant tackle from Nat Butcher and James Tedesco denied Josh Schuster the opening try, with Joseph Manu's involvement one set later interrupting the attacking flow and alleviating pressure for the visitors.
On the resuming set, the Tricolours piggybacked upfield through a penalty for offside, using the opportunity to claim points with milestone man Manu setting up Junior Pauga with a dazzling flick-pass in the corner.
Manu Flick Sets Up Pauga
Reuben Garrick kicked the ball out on the full on the restart, granting the Roosters another opportunity in their attacking half, but they were unable to generate points.
The Sea Eagles fullback sought redemption with his next touch of the ball, placing a chip kick over the defence to find Daly Cherry-Evans, who won the foot race to collect the ball and crash down in-goal. Garrick kicked the conversion, giving the hosts a two-point lead in the 28th minute.
Three minutes later the Roosters' Skipper took matters into his own hands, finishing off a beautiful play by Keary that sent Butcher through the defence, with the backrower flicking the ball inside to his fullback. Sandon Smith slotted the conversion, putting the Tricolours ahead by four.
Flick Passes Aplenty
The Sea Eagles Captain found his second try of the half three minutes before the break, latching onto an intercept to coast over under the uprights. Garrick made no mistake from in-front, sending the hosts to the sheds with a two-point lead.
Young Smith emulated the playmaking skills of a veteran to send Manu a cut-out ball on the right edge in the 45th minute. The Golden Boot winner evaded Manly's defence, bumping off Schuster to roll over and ground the ball on the stripe. Smith nailed the conversion from the sideline, reclaiming the lead for the visitors.
A Milestone Try for Manu
The Bondi Wall did not break after the Sea Eagles maintained a block of possession within 10 metres of the try line, with the forward pack stepping up to hold Manly back from the stripe.
Desperate Defence from the Roosters
Daniel Tupou halted Jason Saab, forcing his opposing no.2 into touch as the winger flew down the sideline in the 46th minute. But the Sea Eagles continued to make the most of infringements from the Roosters to stay close to their try line.
A superb short ball from Schuster broke the stalemate, sending Ben Trbojevic over in the 70th minute to steal the lead back. Garrick's conversion sailed through the uprights to make the margin two.
Scramble play from the Roosters on the last set of the game failed to find points, with Manly hanging on to claim the two competition points at home.
Sydney Roosters 16 (Junior Pauga, James Tedesco, Joseph Manu tries, Sandon Smith 2 goals) Manly Warringah Sea Eagles 18 (Daly Cherry-Evans 2, Ben Trbojevic tries, Rueben Garrick 3 goals)
