Dylan Jhugroo previews the Magic Round between the Manly Sea Eagles and the Brisbane Broncos.
MATCHDAY NEWS
MATCHDAY SCHEDULE
Sea Eagles vs Broncos
Venue: Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Date: Friday May 5, 8:05pm
MATCHDAY TEAM NEWS
Sea Eagles: 1. Tom Trbojevic 2. Jason Saab 3. Brad Parker 4. Tolutau Koula 5. Reuben Garrick 6. Cooper Johns 7. Daly Cherry-Evans 8. Taniela Paseka 9. Lachlan Croker 10. Sean Keppie 11. Haumole Olakau’atu 12. Kelma Tuilagi 13. Josh Aloiai 14. Karl Lawton 15. Ben Trbojevic 16. Ethan Bullemor 17. Aaron Woods 18. Samuela Fainu 19. Kaeo Weekes 20. Ray Tuaimalo-Vaega 21. Christian Tuipulotu 22. Ben Condon
Broncos: 1. Reece Walsh 2. Jesse Arthars 3. Kotoni Staggs 4. Herbie Farnworth 5. Selwyn Cobbo 6. Ezra Mam 7. Adam Reynolds 8. Thomas Flegler 9. Billy Walters 10. Payne Haas 11. Kurt Capewell 12. Jordan Riki 13. Patrick Carrigan 14. Cory Paix 15. Corey Jensen 16. Keenan Palasia 17. Martin Taupau 18. Deine Mariner 19. Xavier Willison 20. Jock Madden 21. Delouise Hoeter 22. Kobe Hetherington
Referee: Gerard Sutton
Embed from Getty ImagesMATCHDAY PREVIEW
“Last play here for the Broncos. Reynolds… just dinks it over the top for himself and reels it in… and he’ll score! Oh, he’s a magician! In Magic Round showing all the tricks: Adam Reynolds”.
Manly Sea Eagles supporters need no reminding of what transpired on the first night of Magic Round 2022. An Adam Reynolds masterclass saw the then Des Hasler-coached side dismantled 38-0 in front of over 40,000 people. They say lightning doesn’t strike twice in the same place, but that may not apply to Suncorp Stadium, as the absences of Jake Trbojevic, Morgan Harper and Toafofoa Sipley make this a massive task for the Manly side. Tom Trbojevic is in a doubt himself after sitting out last week’s loss to the Titans and is considered a day-to-day prospect. Tolutau Koula is a welcome return for Seibold’s men, but after a tough week in the headlines for the club, they’ll have to be at their very best to get a result from this game.
Brisbane meanwhile is coming off a disappointing loss of their own, going down 32-6 to a red hot South Sydney side last week. The Broncos do have the luxury of welcoming back both Payne Haas and Ezra Mam, who are two players that completely change the way the Broncos are able to play. Look for Haas particularly to come out with a real point to prove on his return, allowing Reynolds, Mam, and Walsh to create opportunities off the back of his efforts.
KEY MATCHUP: There are some fixtures where this section simply picks itself, and this is one of those fixtures. Halfbacks Daly Cherry-Evans and Adam Reynolds have over 550 games of experience between them and will be the two men looking to dictate the course of the fixture all night.
The two veterans have played 20 NRL games against each other, which is more than either have played against any other halfback. Reynolds got over the top on twelve of those occasions, with DCE claiming seven, and one ending in a draw. Whoever gets the win on Friday night, one of these men will have had their hands all over it.
LAST TEN MATCHES
Manly 4, Brisbane 6
MATCHDAY PREDICTION
Brisbane by 18 points
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