Brad Inger reviews the New Zealand Warrior’s clash with the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles. Here’s how the match went.
MATCH TIMELINE
| Minute | Scoring Play | Score |
| 3rd | Try Ruben Garrick (Sea Eagles) | Sea Eagles 4-0 |
| 4th | Goal Ruben Garrick (Sea Eagles) | Sea Eagles 6-0 |
| 7th | Try Corey Waddell (Sea Eagles) | Sea Eagles 10-0 |
| 14th | Try Kodi Nikorima (Warriors) | Sea Eagles 10-4 |
| 15th | Goal Chanel Harris-Tavita (Warriors) | Sea Eagles 10-6 |
| 17th | Try Eliesa Katoa (Warriors) | 10 All |
| 18th | Goal Chanel Harris-Tavita (Warriors) | Warriors 12-10 |
| 21st | Try Adam Keighran (Warriors) | Warriors 16-10 |
| 24th | Try Patrick Herbert (Warriors) | Warriors 20-10 |
| 30th | Try Eliesa Katoa (Warriors) | Warriors 24-10 |
| 31st | Goal Chanel Harris-Tavita (Warriors) | Warriors 26-10 |
| 38th | Try Abbas Miski (Sea Eagles) | Warriors 26-14 |
| 40th | Try Abbas Miski (Sea Eagles) | Warriors 26-18 |
| 54th | Try Adam Keighran (Warriors) | Warriors 30-18 |
| 64th | Try Adam Keighran (Warriors) | Warriors 34-18 |
| 65th | Goal Chanel Harris-Tavita (Warriors) | Warriors 36-18 |
| 69th | Try Taniela Paseka (Sea Eagles) | Warriors 36-22 |
| 70th | Goal Rueben Garrick (Sea Eagles) | Warriors 36-24 |
| 73rd | Try Patrick Herbert (Warriors) | Warriors 40-24 |
| 77th | Try Brad Parker (Sea Eagles) | Warriors 40-28 |
MATCH SUMMARY
1st Half
After clapping the Warriors onto the park, the Sea Eagles took little time to get themselves on the scoreboard. On the back of several six again calls, Manly stormed down the field, and a huge cutout pass from Daly Cherry-Evans saw Rueben Garrick go over untouched in the corner. A knock-on by Peta Hiku at the end of the next set handed the Sea Eagles a set deep in the Warriors half and a few plays later they were over again, with Corey Waddell making easy work of some lacklustre Warriors goal-line defence to barge over to stretch their lead out to 10-0. In their first attacking set in Manly’s half, the Warriors got themselves on the scoreboard with a bit of luck when Cherry-Evans and Tevita Funa had a breakdown in communication and allowed Chanel Harris-Tavita’s kick to go to ground for Kodi Nikorima to dive on. Manly’s woes continued with Cherry-Evans kickoff going out on the full and handing the Warriors the ball at halfway. The New Zealand side wasted no time with Eliesa Katoa rampaging his way over the line after a Nikorima short ball out him into space. This swung momentum as the Warriors scored back to back tries through Adam Keighran and Patrick Herbert to push their lead out to 10. Manly’s defence started to show a bit more resilience, but the Warriors were at it once again with Katoa scoring his second try of the day diving on a Harris-Tavita grubber to keep the points ticking over. A 40/20 from Cherry-Evans looked to get Manly back into the match, but their bad luck continued with Abbas Miski dropping the ball over the sideline. Miski would not be denied however as he snatched a well-timed bounce from a Cherry-Evans grubber to run 50 metres to score in the corner to reduce the Warriors lead to 12 as the sides went into the sheds at the break.
2nd Half
The Warriors had a second-half start to forget with Adam Pompey knocking on the kickoff. Manly pounced on the chance and handed Miski his second try of the match from a quick cutout pass from Lachlan Croker. Both sides settled into a rhythm, trading sets in the middle of the park until the Warriors received a penalty for a late hit on Harris-Tavita handed the New Zealand side a set on Manly’s 10-meter line. They were unable to turn that chance into points, but they did enough to earn a repeat set which they did score off after Herbert tapped back a corner kick for Keighran to catch and score his second for the day. New Zealand kept the pressure on Manly, forcing them to play from deep within their own half and they struggled to make any dents in the Warriors line. A few sets later Keighran found himself on the scoresheet for the third time after breaking the line after throwing a dummy and sidestepping the fullback to push the Warriors lead out to 18. Manly showed some spirit and tried to fight back with a short kickoff and managed to get themselves across the try line via their massive front-rower Taniela Paseka to reduce the Warriors lead to 12 but it just wasn’t the Sea Eagles night as the Warriors countered with a try of their own after Herbert caught a Harris-Tavita cross kick for the Warriors final try of the season, Adam Blair who announced his retirement during the week, attempted the conversion but it sailed to the left of the uprights. Another short kickoff saw Manly cross for their sixth try of the match when Brad Parker scored down the left edge for a consultation try as the 2020 season comes to an end for both sides with the Warriors coming away with a much deserved 40-28 victory.
GAME HIGHLIGHT
My moment of the match was Eliesa Katoa’s first try which levelled the scores in the early stages of the game. Katoa came into 2020 with minimal rugby league experience had has been one of the shining lights for the New Zealand side. His campaign was plagued with injuries, but he is still a contender for rookie of the year. Warriors fans confidence for 2021 will be growing with the performances of Katoa and the rest of this side. The Warriors will just need to ensure that this mental toughness they have developed this year sticks around after their coach Todd Payten leaves for his new role with the Cowboys.
SQUADS
New Zealand Warriors: 1. Peta Hiku, 2. Adam Pompey, 3. Adam Keighran, 4. Hayze Perham, 5. Patrick Herbert, 6. Kodi Nikorima, 7. Chanel Harris-Tavita, 8. Lachlan Burr, 9. Karl Lawton, 12. Tohu Harris, 10. Isaiah Papali’i, 11. Eliesa Katoa, 13. Jazz Tevaga, 14. Wayde Egan, 15. Adam Blair, 16. Jack Murchie, 17. Jamayne Taunoa-Brown
Manly Warringah Sea Eagles: 1. Tevita Funa, 2. Abbas Miski, 3. Brad Parker, 4. Morgan Harper, 5. Reuben Garrick, 6. Lachlan Croker, 7. Daly Cherry-Evans, 8. Taniela Paseka, 9. Danny Levi, 10. Martin Taupau, 11. Corey Waddell, 12. Curtis Sironen, 13. Jake Trbojevic, 14. Albert Hopoate, 15. Morgan Boyle, 16. Sean Keppie, 17. Haumole Olakau’atu
