Senior Pathways Wrap Round 11: Bulldogs Edged Out by Sea Eagles

by Ellery Behan, NSWRL.com.au

The Manly Warringah Sea Eagles have snapped their four-game losing streak with a determined 18-16 comeback over the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, who they held to under 30 points for the first time since Round 5.

The Bulldogs got off to a blazing start, advancing upfield off a high-tackle penalty and finding first points with a slick left-side move as Drew Hutchison played a short ball to Louis Grossemy who broke through and stepped inside to beat the fullback. Cassius Tia slotted the conversion from beside the uprights to put Canterbury-Bankstown ahead by six.

The following ten minutes saw plenty of end-to-end football with both sides willing to chance their arm out wide, but it was the discipline of the Bulldogs that put them in position to score. A chaotic left-edge shift saw offload after offload from the Blue and White before a long spiral pass from Danny Gabrael to Cassius Tia exposed Manly’s undermanned middle-third, as the halfback tiptoed through the line and dived over untouched for his third try in two outings. He converted with ease to double his side’s advantage at 12-nil.

A Bulldogs error on the set after kick-off handed possession back to Manly, giving them the chance to start chipping away at the deficit. The halves linked up to do exactly that, with Brandon Wakeham finding Jake Arthur on the left who threw a perfect cut-out ball to Raymond Tuaimalo Vaega, bumping off two defenders to score in the corner.

Canterbury’s indiscretions were mirrored by Manly at the southern end, with the home side coughing up the ball on the second tackle after kick-off and the Bulldogs striking yet again as they shifted left to Cooper Toy, who ferociously fought off three defenders on his way to the line, scoring his third try from as many matches this season in The Knock-On Effect NSW Cup (16-4).

The home side drew first blood in the second stanza, finding themselves upfield with the ball after two consecutive set restarts. Shifting the ball to the left where they had success in the first half, Wakeham fired a short ball to a charging Semisi Kioa who exploded through the line and stepped inside the fullback to reduce the Sea Eagles’ deficit to eight.

It wasn’t long before Manly were in again, working it back to their left as Canterbury-Bankstown’s tired forwards failed to put enough pressure on Wakeham one out from the ruck. It gave Wakeham plenty of time to delay his pass and draw in the outside defenders to send Clayton Faulalo on his way through the line, reducing the visitors’ lead to four.

With the Bulldogs’ handling errors starving them of possession, Manly took advantage and levelled the scores for the first time since falling behind as Arthur assisted his 14th try in eight games by lofting a pass to winger Charlie Thompson who dived over in the corner. A penalty in front of the uprights just minutes later allowed Aaron Schoupp to give his side their first lead of the match, which saw them out to full-time as they notched up an 18-16 victory.

Talking Points

• After an ill-disciplined opening which saw them give away a penalty, six-again, make four errors and trail 12-0, Manly Warringah held the visitors scoreless in the second half as they piled on three tries to claim victory.
• Having a tough afternoon off the boot, it was former Bulldog Aaron Schoupp who iced the game for Manly as he kicked a penalty goal from in front to put his side ahead 18-16 after missing his four conversion attempts.
• The game was a tale of two halves, with Manly’s ill-discipline leaving them with a 12-point deficit at half-time, and Canterbury-Bankstown’s inability to complete their sets in the second half, that allowed the Sea Eagles to score 14 unanswered points.
• Manly captain Jake Arthur starred for the Sea Eagles in the comeback, assisting two crucial tries and gaining plenty of ground off the boot to keep his side in the arm-wrestle.

Key Moment

Having battled their way back into the contest after looking worse for wear at the break, Manly probed at Canterbury-Bankstown’s defensive line in search for the try that would level the scores. Despite their successes on the left edge, captain Jake Arthur called for the ball on the right and floated a cut-out ball to winger Charlie Thompson who set sail for the southwestern corner and locked the game up at 16-all. Schoupp’s conversion attempt went across the face, but despite the miss Schoupp kicked a penalty goal shortly after to give Manly the lead which saw them through to victory.

 What’s Next?

Both sides will be on the road next week, as the Sea Eagles travel to CommBank Stadium to take on Parramatta Eels, and the Bulldogs fly to Auckland as they lock horns with the high-flying Warriors.

The Bulldogs will head to New Zealand in Round 12 to face the Warriors on Sunday afternoon before enjoying a well-deserved rest in Round 13 with the bye.