NRL Round 18 2024: Manly Sea Eagles win 21-20 over Cowboys in golden point
No player in the NRL has kicked more golden point winning field goals than Daly Cherry-Evans, and the Manly skipper produced another clutch victory, as the Sea Eagles survived a Cowboys shootout.
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Daly Cherry-Evans stunned North Queensland with a golden point field goal to claim 21-20 victory in Townsville as Tom Trbojevic made his NRL return just in time to bail out the Blues.
It was the Sea Eagles skipper who stood tall when it counted, slotting his second attempt after the Cowboys missed five field goal attempts to go ahead.
Trbojevic had a wholly understated performance but got through 80 minutes unscathed despite being targeted in attack and making more tackles (25) than any other back in the game besides Luke Brooks (33).
The Cowboys got off to a horrible start again, conceding down the right edge of the field within five minutes. At 14 points per game, they concede more first-half points than any other team.
The home side wasted a number of opportunities to hit the lead in the first half, bombing three certain tries with poor execution, but it looked like they were coming home with a wet sail until Cherry-Evans dealt the killing blow.
IS TURBO TOM MADGE’S MAN?
Tom Trbojevic made his long-awaited return from the hamstring injury he picked up in round 10 and instantly put his case forward for NSW selection.
Trbojevic started at left centre but roamed the field in attack, popping up at the opportune moment to inject his speed and ball-playing into the game.
It was a relatively subdued showing from the 27-year-old superstar, but just getting through the 80 minutes unscathed might be enough to get the nod on Sunday evening.
With Latrell Mitchell now ruled out of Origin III with a foot injury, Trbojevic has surely put his nose ahead of Bradman Best and Joseph-Aukuso Sua’ali’i as the frontrunner to join Blues camp.
Trbojevic finished with three tackle breaks from 11 runs while making 25 tackles without a miss.
FRANTIC FINISH
Scores were locked at 18-all for most of the second half until Jeremiah Nanai got a hand in Toafofoa Sipley’s play-the-ball right in front of the posts, gifting the visitors the decisive two points.
But the Cowboys weren’t finished, levelling the scores again with a Scott Drinkwater two-point field goal before both teams missed prime opportunities to hit the front with failed field goals.
One missed field goal from Cherry-Evans, three from Townsend and two from Valentine Holmes had fans pulling their hair out in frustration as the game went to extra time.
SUPER SAAB
A try-scoring double from Jason Saab gave Manly the advantage at halftime before the towering right winger completed his hat-trick just after the break.
When the 199cm speed machine got into space he was almost impossible to contain and his combination with his inside men Reuben Garrick and Toluta’u Koula was fantastic.
Saab has now scored seven tries in 10 games this season, but unfortunately for Manly fans he came off with a right leg injury late in the contest.
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