Sea Eagles 18 – Dragons 20
It was a very disappointing night for Manly. They got off to the worst possible start with Jake Trbojevic being ruled out inside the first 10 minutes with a category 1 HIA, and that set the tone for the rest of the night. The first half was poor, with a completion rate of 58%. Ill-discipline on both sides of the ball made it hard for them to get into the game. It was a very un-Haumole Olakau’atu-like performance — too many errors and some sloppy passing. Mate, you’re a beast. Run first, pass later.
They did manage to find some rhythm in the second half, largely off the back of Lehi Hopoate, who was easily the best on ground by a country mile. He had a hand in both of Manly’s tries, ran for 270 metres and broke seven tackles. Unfortunately, it still wasn’t enough to get them over the line. Overall, it was another disappointing loss for Manly.
As for the Dragons, it was a very typical performance from them — looked sharp in patches during the first half, but faded badly in the second. Thankfully, they rallied late and got the job done.
Damien Cook had his best 40 minutes of the year in the first half. His running game was on, and he got the Dragons on the front foot. Toby Couchman is quickly becoming one of my favourite players — the kid’s an actual freak. Played 70 minutes in the middle, punched well above his weight with 140 running metres, a line break, two offloads, and a massive 56 tackles with just one miss. The Dragons have found themselves a genuine gem.
There’s still plenty for the Dragons to work on — especially the inability to put together a full 80-minute performance — but at the end of the day, two points is two points.
Jack’s Dally M points:
3 – Lehi Hopoate
2 – Toby Couchman
1 – Damien Cook
Aaron’s Dally M points:
3 – Lehi Hopoate
2 – Toby Couchman
1 – Moses Suli
Let me know in the comments who your man of the match was.
