Sea Eagles v Roosters Preview

[gong_eagle]

Oh Sea Eagle, Sea Eagle… wherefore art thou Sea Eagle?

Deny thy last fortnight and refuse to lie down.

You must beat those from the east, and return to the sun that is the winner’s circle… or we shall believe the wheel doth fall off.

What has happened to the Manly side that won 10 of their opening 11 games this year?

Where is that ruthless defence we couldn’t help but admire?

The time has come for Des Hasler’s boys to muscle up once more and show us their lofty second place on the NRL ladder is deserved after back-to-back losses to teams outside the top eight in the Bulldogs and Dragons.

Thankfully for the northern beaches outfit, they have a chance to play themselves back into some form against a Roosters side coming off a hammering last Monday night.

It’s hard enough to back up after Monday night football but to do so without your regular halfback against a side with an enviable home record like Manly’s makes life tough for the Roosters.

Mitchell Pearce has a back complaint that will sideline him for six weeks and with Anthony Minichiello still struggling with his own back concern the Roosters are thin on the ground.

But they are hoping to have Braith Anasta back from injury, which is a huge boost.

Watch out Sea Eagles: The Roosters have struggled pretty much all year but they do lead the NRL in one positive statistic – scoring tries from turnovers.

With six four-pointers coming directly from a change of possession, the Roosters know how to counter attack so the Manly side will need to be awake should they fumble the ball.

Watch out Roosters: When you’re against the wall you go back to what works best and for Manly it’s scoring tries from kicks.

With 18 tries claimed from the boot this year the Sea Eagles are equal first in the category and considering the Roosters have conceded 11 in this fashion Orford and co. will look to increase the numbers.

Where it will be won: Attitude. The Sea Eagles need their heads screwed on for this one.

Sure it’s a game they should win and win comfortably but their form has been off the past month, grabbing only one win in a low-scoring affair against Souths.

Hasler needs to ensure they front up ready to be ruthless.

Start with the basics and then if they are getting on top he’ll want them to go in for the kill, much like the Bulldogs did to Chris Anderson’s troops last Monday.

If they come in with any complacency at all or return to negative thoughts should the Roosters get away to an early lead, the Sea Eagles faithful might just be chanting Ben Kennedy’s name after it was revealed he has signed on for $3 in case needed.

The History: Played 110; Sea Eagles 71, Roosters 37, drawn 2.

Manly certainly have the head-to-head edge between the two sides over a long history and they won 30-8 back in round three of this year.

Conclusion: It’s a game Manly should win… but then again so was last week’s.

The Manly side outpoint the Roosters in almost every statistical area but stats don’t win games, the players on the day do and they need to be ready to rumble come Saturday night.

The home side will be much better for the return of the Origin players in Brett Stewart, Steve Bell and Brent Kite, while Jamie Lyon could still be a late inclusion if he gets over his hamstring problem.

The Roosters still have slim finals hopes but know another win is needed very soon for this to occur.

It will be interesting to see how Craig Wing goes in his return to the halves, where he is likely to play for Souths next year. If the Sea Eagles don’t win this one, the word slump will be out in full force.

Match officials: Referee – Gavin Badger; Sideline Officials – Peter Kirby & David Abood; Video ref – Bill Harrigan.

Televised: Foxsports 3 – Delayed 9.30pm.

* Statistics: NRL Stats.