Andrew Pelechaty previews Manly Warringah’s ”home” Magic Round clash against Brisbane …
MATCHDAY NEWS
MATCHDAY SCHEDULE
Manly Warringah Sea Eagles Vs Brisbane Broncos
Venue: Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane.
Date: Friday May 13, 8:05pm
MATCHDAY TEAM NEWS
Related: NRL Team List Tuesday
Embed from Getty ImagesSea Eagles: Tom Trbojevic 2. Christian Tuipulotu 3. Ben Trbojevic 4. Tolutau Koula 5. Reuben Garrick 6. Kieran Foran 7. Daly Cherry-Evans 8. Josh Aloiai 9. Lachlan Croker 10. Sean Keppie 11. Haumole Olakau’atu 12. Ethan Bullemor 13. Jake Trbojevic 14. Dylan Walker 15. Andrew Davey 16. Martin Taupau 17. Toafofoa Sipley 18. Kurt De Luis 19. Morgan Harper 20. Kaeo Weekes 21. James Roumanos 22. Josh Schuster 23. Jamie Humphreys 24. Jacob Sykes
Manly Warringah rebounded from their Souths loss with a comfortable 36-22 win over a gallant Wests Tigers. On a beautiful autumn Saturday afternoon, the Sea Eagles scored seven tries at a packed Brookvale Oval. The three Trbojevic brothers played (Tommy, Jake, Ben), with Ben scoring his first two NRL tries while Turbo ran for 230 metres.
Manly had Wests at arm’s length for most of the game, leading 14-0 at half-time. The Tigers got within six with 26 minutes left before tries to Josh Aloiai, Ben Trbojevic (his second), and Reuben Garrick put the Tigers away.
Haumole Olakau’atu returns to the side after missing last week due to illness. Andrew Davey is the new man on the bench after overcoming a shoulder injury. Josh Schuster (battling a calf injury) is included in the extended squad but is unlikely to play this week.
Embed from Getty ImagesBroncos: 1. Te Maire Martin 2. Corey Oates 3. Kotoni Staggs 4. Herbie Farnworth 5. Selwyn Cobbo 6. Tyson Gamble 7. Adam Reynolds 8. Corey Jensen 9. Billy Walters 10. Payne Haas 11. Kurt Capewell 12. Jordan Riki 13. Patrick Carrigan 14. Cory Paix 15. Kobe Hetherington 16. Thomas Flegler 17. Keenan Palasia 18. Brenko Lee 19. TC Robati 20. Rhys Kennedy 21. Ezra Mam 22. Jordan Pereira 23. Ryan James 24. Jake Turpin
Brisbane showed they could be a top eight threat with a huge win over Souths at Homebush.
After beating Cronulla-Sutherland last round, Brisbane outscored last year’s grand finalists five tries to two.
Adam Reynolds had a night out against his former club, scoring 16 points (a try and six goals) as the Broncos accelerated from a 12-6 half-time lead. Selwyn Cobbo scored two tries, including a 95-metre solo run from an intercept.
Payne Haas (shoulder) and Kurt Capewell (neck) are back, with Patrick Carrigan moving to lock, Kobe Hetherington to the bench and TC Robati to the reserves.
Referee: Grant Atkins
MATCHDAY PREVIEW
Aside from the Melbourne v Penrith blockbuster, this Black Friday clash could be one of most intriguing of Magic Round. While Brisbane are playing at Lang Park, it’s technically an away game for them.
Both sides are 5-4 and in the eight, with only points differential separating them.
Manly have navigated the few weeks without Turbo with minimal damage, putting to bed the “no Turbo, no Manly theory” (at least for a little while). While they haven’t reached their destructive peak from 2021, Manly would be pretty happy with their ladder position, with huge games against the dangerous-but-erratic Parramatta and the near-invincible Melbourne.
Brisbane have arguably been the biggest surprise of 2022 (aside from their Queensland cousins the Cowboys). The Broncos’ recent form includes three wins in a row (against Canterbury-Bankstown, Cronulla-Sutherland, and South Sydney) and competitive losses against Penrith and the Sydney Roosters.
Adam Reynolds has been worth every red cent for Brisbane, and boy, didn’t he enjoy scoring against Souths last weekend?
This game could go either way, with the “away” side Brisbane enjoying a 3-2 record at Lang Park so far. It may take some individual magic from Turbo or Reynolds to turn this one. It definitely won’t be a repeat of last year’s Magic Round farce, when the “head contact” crackdown left Brisbane with just 11 players at one stage as Manly feasted on them 50-6.
Embed from Getty ImagesINTERESTING FACT
Broncos fans will have fond memories of the first clash between them and Manly in 1988. The Sea Eagles were defending premiers, but an already Origin-heavy Broncos side smashed them 44-10 at Lang Park. It didn’t take long for Brisbane to realise their potential: they won the Panasonic Cup in 1989, made the preliminary final in 1990 and won their first premiership in 1992.
Brisbane and Manly also played on the opening night of the new NRL in 1998. This was a Shednado of a match-up, with Brisbane coming off the Super League double (Telstra Premiership and World Club Championship), while Manly had played in the last three ARL grand finals. Played at the Queensland Sports and Athletic Stadium, Brisbane won 22-6.
MATCHDAY PREDICTION
Sea Eagles by four.
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