NRL 2022: Sea Eagles survive brave Gold Coast fightback to grab another win without Tom Trbojevic

Manly continue to make the most of life without Tom Trbojevic, but a second half collapse threatened to undo all their great early work as Gold Coast nearly pulled off an unlikely comeback.

Kieran Foran turned back the years to score a great solo try.

They rode their luck with a couple of controversial calls last week, so it was somewhat ironic that a desperate captain’s challenge cruelled Gold Coast’s comeback bid as they went down 26-18 to the Sea Eagles.

The Sea Eagles had jumped out to a 24-4 lead when veteran Kieran Foran turned back the clock with a scything solo try just before half-time, but the break in play seemingly woke the visitors from their slumber.

They hit back 10 minutes into the second half when former Sea Eagle Brian Kelly crossed in the left corner and were then in with a real sniff when David Fifita entered beast mode to storm his way through on the right edge.

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Kieran Foran turned back the years to score a great solo try.

When Tino Fa’asuamaleaui broke through the middle to score, the Titans were within six points with 14 minutes to go and could have been level had it not been for a few missed conversions by Toby Sexton.

But they couldn’t muster another meaningful attack after that, with a penalty from close range ultimately ending the game when the bunker overruled a knock-on call to gift the Sea Eagles two points and the two competition points.

“The first half was very controlled and we did the things we had to,” coach Des Hasler said.

“We took our foot off the pedal a little bit…to get the two points is all that matters. No one is going to remember anything else.”

GARRICK EARNS HIS WINGS

Manly held their breath as they watched another fullback limping in the background. Just two weeks after losing Tom Trbojevic to a knee injury, Reuben Garrick struggled through the second half but completed the game.

The Manly faithful are used to their no.1 stealing their show and while Garrick won’t command the same headlines as Trbojevic, he is shaping up as a vital cog to the Sea Eagles’ premiership hopes.

So bad was his leg that he failed to attempt a penalty conversion in the dying stages.

“It happened in the first half,” Garrick said. “I had a bad cork which impacted the range of movement in my leg. It seized up in the back end of the game. I told him to take over for the last one there.

“You know how many kilometres you do at fullback as it is let alone limping around…I’m just glad we got the win.”

The Sea Eagles are hoping young gun Josh Schuster is right to play his first game of the season against the Sharks on Thursday night.

Reuben Garrick has been a revelation at fullback in Tom Trbojevic’s absence.

HAU GOOD

Haumole Olakau’atu must have listened to Miley Cyrus before the game because he came in like a wrecking ball.

The barnstorming back-rower terrorised the Titans with two first-half tries and could have easily had a couple more.

He’s now scored in three straight games and has become one of Daly Cherry-Evans’ most reliable players on the right edge.

Olakau’atu must be on Tonga’s radar for this year’s World Cup after he finished the game with 121 metres and a stack of tackle busts, but he wasn’t able to see out the 80 minutes because of cramps.

“He’s awesome to have next to. He’s only going to get better,” skipper Daly Cherry-Evans said.

“The standard he’s set at the moment is pretty good.”

Haumole Olakau'atu was one of the stars of the show.

TITANS SINKING QUICKLY

What is wrong with the Titans?

They’ve won just two of their first six games and looked way off the pace in the first 40 minutes.

It’s a major concern for them given it’s exactly what happened last week when they gave the Eels a huge start and only looked good when the game was beyond reach.

“We’ve got to start better as a team,” Fa’asuamaleaui said.

“We’ve got to be patient and stay in that grind.”

Even their good moments were quickly undone. Brimson and Jamayne Isaako combined for a couple of incredible try-saving tackles, but they counted for nothing because Manly was able to score later in both sets.

At least David Fifita returned to his best with a couple of destructive carries that saw him score one unstoppable four-pointer and set another one up for Isaako.

Originally published as NRL 2022: Sea Eagles survive brave Gold Coast fightback to grab another win without Tom Trbojevic