Sea Eagles turn on Turbos to towel Dragons 34-14 at Brookvale
A fit and firing Tom Trbojevic has torn apart the Dragons at Brookevale Oval, with the Sea Eagles turning on a stunning performance in front of the Manly faithful.
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Manly superstar Tom Trbojevic ran for a stunning 333m on Sunday to give the state of NSW renewed hope. And don’t we need it.
In a stunning performance at Brookvale Oval, Tommy Turbo was at his sparkling best, also making 11 tackle busts.
Trbojevic’s effort might just wrestle back some lost momentum for NSW. He is as good as it gets when in full stride and his return to form could not have come at a better time for the Blues.
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“It was awesome, I haven’t played a lot of footy this year,” said Trbojevic, who wanted to thank the footballer whisperer, Joe Wehbe.
“I have been seeing a lot of him lately. He has helped me be myself on the field and play footy freely.
“He is one of the most honest guys you will ever meet. He comes from a great place and is a great person.”
After an apprehensive return from a hamstring injury last week against North Queensland, Trbojevic set Brookie alight in Manly’s 34-14 belting of hapless St George Illawarra.
He set up two tries with scintillating runs and scored one himself, a 75m solo effort near fulltime which would have erased any concerns over his newly healed hamstring.
“He has that ability to find points and score points,” Manly coach Des Hasler said. “He brings confidence and turns those half chances into points.”
MAGNIFICENT EAGLES
Given the Sea Eagles’ modest roster, Hasler would have to be an early candidate for Dally M coach of the year.
They might call him the mad professor but he is extracting just about every ounce of talent he can from his players.
Manly scored 34 unanswered points to claim their eighth win of the season. And if Hasler can guide them to the finals, it will up there with his finest achievements as a coach.
“I liked the way we went on with it,” Hasler said. “There are some good signs.
“We’re slowly scraping away but we’re not near the top three — Souths, Roosters and Melbourne.
“Hopefully by the end of the season we might catch them.”
WOEFUL DRAGONS
There is something missing. The Dragons have lost six of their past seven matches and they were awful on Sunday.
“Not good enough,” Dragons coach Paul McGregor said.
The Dragons look powerful at times but can’t get the job done. Injuries to key players such as James Graham, Tim Lafai and Gareth Widdop, while also having Jack de Belin suspended indefinitely, have taken a toll.
But five wins from 13 games has them facing the prospect of another disappointing season.
Hooker and skipper Cameron McInnes was badly concussed in the 22nd minute and did not return.
BLACK ARMBANDS
Manly wore black armbands on Sunday in honour of the young cousin of Manly winger Reuben Garrick.
Ten-year-old Kye Yates, from Kiama, was killed in a quad bike accident last week. His funeral was last Thursday.
Garrick scored Manly’s first try in the 26th minute via a kick from Daly Cherry-Evans, and also kicked five goals.
PLAYFUL PRESSER
Hasler brought a young fan with Down syndrome into the press conference and told him to sit quietly in the corner.
The excited youngster, Damian Imbruglia, couldn’t help himself and started asking questions, which Hasler politely answered.
Damian then jumped up and sat in front of the cameras — in Hasler’s chair — as he told the media how he wanted Manly to continue improving. It was a lovely touch.
“He’s our assistant coach,” Hasler said.
MANLY 34 (C Cust M Fainu R Garrick J Gosiewski T Trbojevic D Walker tries R Garrick 5 goals) bt ST GEORGE ILLAWARRA 14 (E Aitken B Hunt tries C Norman 3 goals) at Lottoland. Referee: Chris Sutton, Phil Henderson. Crowd:8,468