Manly Warringah Sea Eagles suffered a 46-10 loss to competition leaders Sydney Roosters at Brookvale Oval tonight in round 25 of the Telstra Premiership.
With their season on the line with a must win game, the Sea Eagles made one change to the team with Jayden Hodges coming in at hooker for James Hasson.
On a night when a touch of Hollywood came to Brookie in the form of actor and Manly fan Hugh Jackman, the Sea Eagles just ran into a very slick Roosters outfit with their wingers Brendan Elliot and Daniel Tupou grabbing three tries each.
The Roosters opened the scoring in the ninth minute through winger Brendan Elliot for a 4-0 lead.
Elliot grabbed his second try eight minutes later for an 8-0 lead. Five-eighth James Maloney converted for a 10-0 lead after 19 minutes.
The Roosters went to a 14-0 lead when second-rower Aidan Guerra swooped on a Maloney grubber kick to score near the posts. Maloney converted for a 16-0 lead after 27 minutes.
The Sea Eagles built some pressure late in the first half through some smart kicks inside the Roosters’ quarter. The video ref was called on in the 36th minute to rule whether captain and centre Jamie Lyon managed to get the ball with his right hand before going into touch. The try was awarded to leave the Sea Eagles trailing 16-4.
Lyon converted his own try from the sideline for a 16-6 scoreline.
The Sea Eagles had one final shot just before half-time but could not convert it into points to leave the home side trailing by 10 at the break.
2nd Half
The good work the Sea Eagles did late in the first half to get back into the game fell by the wayside when Elliot scored his third try two minutes after the break. Maloney converted for a 22-6 lead.
From there, the Roosters just went into overdrive with two tries to Tupou for a 34-6 lead before Tom Symonds crossed for the Sea Eagles for a 34-10 scoreline.
Tupou then grabbed his third try and with Maloney’s conversion, the Roosters led 40-10.
Roosters forward Isaac Lui then scored a superb try when he used his strength to slam the ball down for a try. Maloney converted for a 46-10 scoreline.
The loss leaves the Sea Eagles on 24 points, two points behind St George-Illawarra Dragons but 63 points behind on for and against difference.
