Sea Eagles Rock as Eels Reach new Low
SYDNEY-Two things became abundantly clear as injury-hit ladder leaders Manly gutsed out a 28-10 NRL win over Parramatta at Brookvale Oval.
One is that the Eels are so far out of finals contention they may as well talk to their travel agents tomorrow about an end of season trip for September.
The second is that while Manly are the form side of the competition, they will need Matt Orford back on deck to go all the way.
While the 18-point win looked comfortable on the scoreboard, it was more a case of guts and grit overcoming an opponent devoid of confidence with Manly running away with it after the break to record a six tries to two win.
The Sea Eagles were always going to struggle when Orford failed a pre-game fitness test on his thigh, while the 18th minute loss of their only other recognised playmaker in Jamie Lyon with a knee injury made it near on mission impossible.
It fell to 25-year-old lower grade halfback Jeff Robson to get them home, Robson playing just his fifth game in the top grade and first since 2004.
His four previous games had all ended in defeat and it was easy to see why over the opening half hour.
Robson and hence the Sea Eagles, looked lost, and it was only a Refs Calls decision against Chad Robinson that denied the Eels a 12-0 lead after Mark Riddell's opening four-pointer.
The Sea Eagles shuffled things around with Brett Stewart and veteran backrower Steve Menzies taking a bigger slice of the playmaking duties.
It wasn't fluid, but the Sea Eagles found their way, Matt Ballin diving over from dummy half before David Williams took advantage of a poor Joel Reddy pass to score just seconds before halftime.
Parramatta's reply was instant after the break with future Sea Eagle Tony Williams making it 10-all before a crucial penalty against Reddy as he tussled for the ball with Stewart turned the match.
Not only did it put a stop to a dangerous Parramatta attacking raid, it put the Sea Eagles in the Eels danger zone, Anthony Watmough crashing through some feeble defence a few plays later to give the home side a lead they would never relinquish.
From there it was as if Manly forgot Orford and Lyon weren't out there as David Williams crossed for his second before Steve Matai matched him with a double of his own as the Sea Eagles toyed with Parramatta.
The win was tempered by Lyon's medial ligament strain which threatens to sideline the former international for a few weeks while prop Jason King could be out for longer after injuring his left ankle.
______________
Tigers Burst Bunnies' Bubble
SYDNEY-The bubble burst on South Sydney's late season charge as Wests Tigers put their NRL campaign back on the rails with an emphatic 36-12 win at ANZ Stadium.
Sparked by a lively performance from star pivot Benji Marshall, the Tigers turned on the razzle dazzle to run out seven tries to two winners, bringing an end to their four game losing streak.
Despite the finals still being a mathematical possibility, September action now looks out of reach for the resurgent Bunnies who would need to win six of their last seven games to finish in the top eight.
A three-try burst either side of the halftime break handed the Tigers a comfortable 20-6 lead after 50 minutes, but Souths refused to give up and looked capable of mounting a comeback when prop Roy Asotasi slammed the ball down under the posts with 15 minutes remaining.
But as it had done all game, poor ball control cost the Rabbitohs and a John Morris chip kick for Beau Ryan's second try sealed victory for the Tigers.
Chris Lawrence and Taniela Tuiaki completed their try doubles later and the Tigers moved just one point behind eighth-placed Penrith on the NRL ladder.
Marshall was back at his brilliant best as he grubbered behind the line for a Tuiaki try after nine minutes before the Tigers lost fullback Tim Moltzen to the sin bin for what referee Jason Robinson deemed a professional foul as he held on too long in the tackle after a Chris Sandow break.
Souths took advantage of his absence to lock it up via Jamie Simpson, and the Bunnies looked like putting more points on the board as they bombarded the visitors' line.
But the Tigers' goaline defence proved effective with Isaac Luke held up over the line by Bryce Gibbs before they went 100 metres downfield to take a six-point lead into the break when Ryan went over for his first.
A brilliant set play from the scrum involving Robbie Farah, who interchanged between halfback and hooker throughout the game, sent Lawrence on his way before Farah did it himself as he capitalised on some exhilarating football to duck over for a 20-6 lead.
_____________
Gallop Says Western Sydney a 'Battleground'
SYDNEY-David Gallop today described western Sydney as a "battleground" as the NRL Chief Executive answered criticism stemming from the AFL's push into the area.
AFL Chief Andrew Demetriou made a high-profile visit to Blacktown on Wednesday to discuss how the new western Sydney team which makes its debut in 2012 will use Blacktown as its training base.
Blacktown mayor Leo Kelly made headlines by accusing the NRL of "sitting on their hands".
But Gallop fired back today that Kelly "confuses things".
Gallop said rugby league had been popular and prominent in western Sydney for generations and the NRL was spreading its investment evenly across the area.
"The mayor confuses things to some extent," Gallop said today when quizzed on ABC-TV's Offsiders program.
"We're in a very different position in western Sydney than the AFL. We have got 20,000 kids playing rugby league across all of western Sydney.
"We have decided to put an academy in western Sydney but we are going to have it at Penrith, not at Blacktown.
"Contrast that to the AFL. They are coming into new territory. They have got to do some things to kickstart what they want to do in western Sydney.
"We are trying to spend our money across the whole area in an even way.
"Our game has been in western Sydney for generations. I think the mayor perhaps needs to recognise that we are part of the fabric of the community out there.
"But we aren't in a position to inject millions of dollars into one place in western Sydney.
"It's a battleground if you like and the battle is for the hearts and minds of seven-year-old kids and their parents.
"That's ultimately what we're all about.
"If we can get our share of seven-year-olds playing our game, we rely very much on grassroots volunteers and there are thousands of them out in western Sydney.
"That's the sort of loyalty that money doesn't buy you overnight."
Gallop bumped into Demetriou at an Olympic function in Sydney.
"We talked about a range of things, obviously western Sydney and the Gold Coast (to join the AFL in 2011)," Gallop said.
Gallop said the NRL's latest move into the Gold Coast market with the Titans, who made their debut last year, has been "incredibly successful for us".
"The local people got in there. The facility is magnificent," he said.
"I'm obviously watching with interest how the AFL tackle coming into the Gold Coast and western Sydney.
"He knows they've got big challenges. How they deal with the draft, how they get local community support.
"It's not an easy road, these news franchises."
_______________
NRL Collated Results and Standings-Round 19
Manly Sea Eagles 28 – Parramatta Eels 10
MANLY 28 (S Matai 2 D Williams 2 M Ballin A Watmough tries D Williams 2 goals) bt PARRAMATTA 10 (M Riddell T Williams tries K Inu goal) at Brookvale Oval. Referee: S Hayne. Crowd: 18,970.
Brisbane Broncos 32 – North Queensland Cowboys 18
BRISBANE 32 (D Kemp 2 S Thaiday 2 D Boyd K Manihera tries M Ennis 4 goals) bt NORTH QUEENSLAND 18 (S Southern S Tronc J Williams tries J Williams 3 goals) at Dairy Farmers Stdm. Referee: B Cummins. Crowd: 22,048.
Penrith Panther 36 – Gold Coast Titans 22
PENRITH 36 (M Gordon 2 F Pritchard 2 M Jennings R Wesser tries M Gordon 6 goals) bt GOLD COAST 22 (M Hodgson A Laffranchi L O'Dwyer J Rapana tries M Rogers 3 goals) at Skilled Park. Referee: M Cecchin. Crowd: 17,759.
Cronulla Sharks 16 – Newcastle Knights 13
CRONULLA 16 (F Anderson D Simmons tries L Covell 4 goals) bt NEWCASTLE 13 (Z Taia A Uate tries K Gidley 2 goals J Mullen field goal) at Toyota Park. Referee: T Archer. Crowd: 10,112.
New Zealand Warriors 40 – Sydney Bulldogs 22
NZ WARRIORS 40 (M Solomona 3 S Fai L Hohaia A Kirk S Price S Rapira tries L Hohaia 4 goals) bt BULLDOGS 22 (H El Masri 2 R Maitua H Nanai tries H El Masri 3 goals) at ANZ Stadium. Referee: T De Las Heras. Crowd: 12,973.
Canberra Raiders 34 – Sydney Roosters 12
CANBERRA 34 (M Chalk 2 J Monaghan 2 T Campese A Purtell tries T Carney 5 goals) bt SYDNEY ROOSTERS 12 (B Anasta A Roberts tries C Fitzgibbon 2 goals) at Canberra Stadium. Referee: J Maxwell. Crowd: 13,100.
Wests Tigers 36 – South Sydney Rabbitohs 12
WESTS TIGERS 36 (C Lawrence 2 B Ryan 2 T Tuiaki 2 R Farah tries B Marshall 4 goals) bt SOUTH SYDNEY 12 (R Asotasi J Simpson tries I Luke 2 goals) at ANZ Stadium. Referee: J Robinson. Crowd: 21,818.
LADDER P W D L B PF PA Pts
1. Manly 17 13 0 4 2 451 213 30
2. Cronulla 17 12 0 5 2 314 294 28
3. Melbourne 16 11 0 5 2 364 227 26
4. Sydney Roosters 17 11 0 6 2 383 316 26
5. Brisbane 17 9 1 7 2 391 349 23
6. St George Illawarra 16 9 0 7 2 339 271 22
7. Gold Coast 17 9 0 8 2 387 363 22
8. Penrith 17 8 1 8 2 364 365 21
9. Canberra 17 8 0 9 2 374 378 20
10. Wests Tigers 17 8 0 9 2 382 390 20
11. NZ Warriors 17 8 0 9 2 368 467 20
12. Newcastle 17 7 0 10 2 338 348 18
13. Parramatta 17 7 0 10 2 359 395 18
14. South Sydney 17 6 0 11 2 320 447 16
15. Bulldogs 17 5 0 12 2 333 494 14
16. North Queensland 17 3 0 14 2 326 476 10
Playing Monday – Melbourne Storm v St George Illawarra Dragons
Top point scorers (tries, goals, field goals, points):
Luke Covell (Cronulla) 9 48 - 132
Luke Burt (Parramatta) 7 51 1 131
Brett Hodgson (Tigers) 7 51 - 130
Matt Orford (Manly) 2 57 1 123
Jamie Soward (StGeo Illa) 4 46 1 109
Michael Ennis (Brisbane) 6 41 - 106
Hazem El Masri (Bulldogs) 6 40 - 104
Kurt Gidley (Newcastle) 7 37 - 102
Scott Prince (Gold Coast) 4 41 1 99
Todd Carney (Canberra) 4 40 2 98
Cameron Smith (Melbourne) 1 47 - 98
Top try scorers:
Denan Kemp (Brisbane) 12
Jason Nightingale (StGeo Illa) 12
Shaun Kenny-Dowall (Roosters) 12
Adrian Purtell (Canberra) 11
Brett Stewart (Manly) 11
Billy Slater (Melbourne) 10
Greg Inglis (Melbourne) 10
Michael Robertson (Manly) 10
Joel Reddy (Parramatta) 10
Luke Covell (Cronulla) 9
Michael Jennings (Penrith) 9
Joel Monaghan (Canberra) 9
Brad Tighe (Penrith) 9
Braith Anasta (Roosters) 9
Chris Lawrence (Tigers) 9
Colin Best (Canberra) 9
Anthony Laffranchi (Gold Coast) 9
