Patched-up Manly earn Des Hasler’s praise against Canberra
Des Hasler lauded his patched-up Manly side after they beat Canberra at Campbelltown Stadium.
The Sea Eagles were dropping like flies. Dylan Walker limped off with a foot problem in the second minute. Brad Parker made his exit after a head knock not long after. Early in the second half, Tom Trbojevic – having been the architect of Canberra’s demise – was forced from the field with a hamstring injury on the same leg that sidelined him for a large chunk of last season.
As he limped off, Manly fans no doubt let out a collective sigh. Trbojevic had been toying with the Raiders, tormenting centre Curtis Scott with every touch.
He scored one try and set up another for Tevita Funa. Canberra had no answer. A dodgy hamstring did what the Raiders defence couldn’t on Sunday afternoon and stop the Manly fullback.
When he limped off, the only thing more chopped up than the Manly side was the surface at Campbelltown Stadium. Given the injury toll, Canberra would have backed their chances of finishing over the top of a tiring Manly.
They were wrong. So wrong.
“It is one of the best wins I have seen in a maroon and white jersey,” Manly coach Des Hasler said after his side’s 14-6 win.
“We had backrowers playing centre, backrowers playing five-eighth. It was one of those games where you lose three players and you hang in there and hang in there.
“I think those two points will be very valuable towards the later part (of the year). It is always great to get the win and the circumstances we did it, there was plenty of guts shown.
“We hung in there for each other.”
Trbojevic had put Manly on the front foot in only the 14th minute when he speared through himself to score. Three minutes before halftime, he laid on the try for Funa. Trbojevic was running rampant, making hay from the defensive fallibilities of Canberra centre Curtis Scott.
“He is a wonderful player but we made some pretty poor choices there to be honest,” Canberra coach Ricky Stuart said.
“It was an easy side to identify to target after the first few times.”
When Trbojevic made his exit, the scoring dried up for Manly and it was time for their defence to come to the fore.
Curtis Sironen came up with some crucial plays including a try-saving tackle on Jordan Rapana. Lachlan Croker stepped in for Walker and stepped up.
Canberra’s attack couldn’t breach the maroon and white line. Stuart admitted afterwards that there are concerns with that aspect of his side’s play, their attack having only just broached the 100-point barrier.
To put that into context, Sydney Roosters have scored 175 points in 2020. The Cowboys and Wests Tigers – two sides outside the top eight – have more than 140.
Now, Stuart insists, is not the time to panic. Some minor tweaks should be enough to reignite a side that was and still is ranked among the premiership favourites.
“Stats aren’t lying there,” Stuart said.
“We are struggling with attack. We can see what our issues are. We won’t have a lot of time before next week’s game.
“We have to fix it quickly. It is certainly not time to be throwing everyone out and starting over again. We are not far away. It can be fixed quickly.
“We have set a standard that as a coach you want to be at every week. It is not going to happen. I am not going to panic and be changing the whole shop around.
“We’re definitely not at the level of those two teams (Sydney Roosters and Parramatta) who played last night and we have one of them (the Eels) next week.
“We made a job a lot harder than what it should have been tonight. That is not taking away from the heart and courage Manly displayed in that tough scenario they faced.”
Stuart hit the nail on the head there. Hasler has been around Sydney’s northern beaches for a long time and when he says he can’t remember many better wins, that is saying something.
The challenge for Manly is to back it up given Trbojevic and Walker are likely to be out for extended periods. They should get Marty Taupau back from injury but Trbojevic in particular is their talisman, one of the best fullbacks in the competition on his day.
“He’ll get a scan tomorrow and know more about the outcome,” Hasler said.
“Not too concerned. He is just disappointed. He loves playing footy. That will be the hardest part.”
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