Roosters crow as come-from-behind win breaks decade-long grand final drought

IT was the most brutal, controversial and thrilling grand final of the past decade.

Roosters

IT was the most brutal, controversial and thrilling grand final of the past decade. And ultimately, it was a richly deserved win for the Sydney Roosters.

The Bondi-based club came from behind to beat fellow glamour club Manly 26-18, clinching its first premiership in 11 years, and cementing the superstar reputation of the NRL's most famous - or perhaps infamous - player, Sonny Bill Williams.

Williams, who returned to the NRL this year after sensationally walking out on the game in the middle of the 2008 season for stints in rugby union and the boxing ring, turned in a starring role in the Roosters' victory.

In front of a near-capacity crowd of 81,491 at Sydney's ANZ Stadium, the Roosters, one of the code's foundation clubs, won their 13th premiership but not before being pushed by a gallant Manly side.

After trailing 8-6 at half-time, Manly came out firing after the break. Just three minutes into the second half, Sea Eagles skipper Jamie Lyon was awarded a controversial penalty try when Roosters bench player Mitch Aubusson tackled him without the ball when he looked certain to score.

It was a brave call from both the on-field referee and video referee to award the penalty try, with Roosters players protesting that there could be no guarantee that Lyon would have picked up the ball cleanly and carried it across the line. The incident rattled the Roosters, with Manly crossing again five minutes later when centre Steve Matai strolled through some poor defence.

Suddenly, Manly was up 18-8 and looking unstoppable with 30 minutes to go.

However, this match was never going to be a one-sided blow-out.

Most experts had been expecting one of the best grand finals in years, and so it came to be.

First the Roosters responded with a try to prop Aiden Guerra, and a few minutes later centre Shaun Kenny-Dowall was on the end of a wonderful team move started by Williams.

But if the Roosters had been aggrieved by the penalty try decision minutes earlier, they possibly benefited from what looked like a forward pass in the lead-up to the Kenny-Dowall try.

In the end it didn't matter, with Roosters centre Michael Jennings touching down just centimetres inside the dead-ball line with eight minutes to go.

The subsequent conversion made it 26-18, and it was a gap that Manly could not close.

The victory represents a remarkable achievement for 36-year-old coach Trent Robinson, who can boast a premiership in his debut season as head coach.

Despite being on the losing side, Manly halfback Daly Cherry-Evans won the Clive Churchill medal for best on ground.