Manly’s torturous week hits new low following 42-34 loss to Titans in front of Brookvale faithful
AFTER a week when it was revealed Trent Barrett wanted out of his contract, Manly’s $10 million man Daly Cherry-Evans lit the fuse for his own showdown with club bosses following a 42-34 loss to the Titans.
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IF you thought Trent Barrett was the only person fed up with what’s going on at Manly, think again.
After a week when it was revealed Barrett wanted out of the remaining two years of his coaching contract, the Sea Eagles’ $10 million man Daly Cherry-Evans on Friday night lit the fuse for his own showdown with club bosses.
In the wake of an embarrassing 42-34 loss to Gold Coast that pushed the so-called Silvertails a dangerous step closer to the club’s first ever wooden spoon, captain Cherry-Evans struggled to contain his contempt for what is going on behind the scenes.
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Cherry-Evans staked his future on Manly when signing a rich eight-year deal after his infamous backflip on the Gold Coast.
But with another four years still to run on that contract, the usually diplomatic 29-year-old conceded after the loss: “I have some pretty strong opinions on what is happening.
“But now is not the right time to talk about it.
“Certainly when it is a lot clearer I will be more than happy to speak about it to be honest.”
The thinly veiled threat followed an embarrassing second half collapse, after the Sea Eagles surrendered a 16-point lead to let in 32 unanswered points in just a tick over 40 minutes.
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Only a paltry 6,382 turned up for the final home game of the season at Brookvale.
But as the Titans piled on try after try in the second half, the crowd got smaller and smaller, with many walking out with a quarter of the match still to play.
Asked if the headlines of the week impacted on the players, Cherry-Evans cut off his coach: “Only a player can answer that to be honest and it doesn’t affect you.
“It honestly doesn’t.
“We are paid to do a job and at the end of the day, when you cross the white line, any player knows it’s business.
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“It doesn’t matter what is happening, you go out there and do a job the best you can.
“Headlines don’t make you miss tackles.
“It is just poor footy.”
Barrett admitted: “You’d like to think not but it is obviously headlines or attention around that you don’t need.
“We are probably not the only club going through it at the moment.
“You have still got to turn up.
“You have still got to perform.”
Asked how Manly digs itself out of the hole it is in, Barrett left little to the imagination: “You are going to have to ask the administration about that as well.
“From a coaching point of view, I will keep doing everything I can to ensure the players keep turning up.
“That is my responsibility.
“We are in a difficult spot at the moment, no doubting that.
“But it is not one bloke who can get you out of it.
“There is a lot of things that have to be going right.
“A lot of departments have to be ticking along well and everyone has to be on the same page to get out of it.”
For the Titans, boom youngster AJ Brimson and Kane Elgey had terrific games, while the Trbojevic brothers, Tom and Jake, did their best for the home team.
Tom finished with a hat-trick and set up two tries to Jake. But it would have been a hollow feeling for two young men who have grown up dreaming to be a part of this club that was once famously known as the “Silvertails”.
While the victory all but assured the Titans won’t be collecting the wooden spoon this year, the Sea Eagles are back in dangerous territory.
They have remaining matches against Wests Tigers and Brisbane and are currently only one win ahead of Canterbury, Parramatta and North Queensland, who each have a game to play this round.
GOLD COAST 42 (A Brimson 2 A Don M Rein P Sami J Stockwell A Taylor tries A Taylor 7 goals) bt MANLY 34 (T Trbojevic 3 J Trbojevic 2 J Thompson tries D Cherry-Evans 5 goals) at Lottoland. Referee: Gavin Reynolds, Chris Butler, Jon Stone. Crowd: 6,382.