A second half collapse has seen the Sea Eagles slump to a 24-20 defeat to the North Sydney Bears in round 13 of the NSW Cup tonight in the curtain raiser to the NRL at 4 Pines Park.
Manly held an 18-4 lead at half-time after a strong start to the match. Unfortunately they were unable to maintain the same attacking prowess in the second half, conceding 20 points and only adding two points to their tally to fall to their seventh loss of the season.
Both teams came into the match with the same record of four wins, seven losses and one bye, with a win hoping to reignite the season.
Match: Sea Eagles v Bears
Round 13 -
home Team
Sea Eagles
11th Position
away Team
Bears
9th Position
Venue: 4 Pines Park, Sydney
The Sea Eagles now face a tough draw of three straight away games, taking on the Knights, Magpies and the Rabbitohs in the coming weeks.
Manly opened the scoring after six minutes with a try next to the posts to Toafofoa Sipley off the back of a barging run for a 6-0 lead.
The Sea Eagles had a player sent to the sin-bin for a second straight week, with winger Raymond Tuaimalo Vaega spending ten minutes on the sideline for a high tackle in the ninth minute.
Manly persevered with 12 men and were deep in their opposition’s territory for four straight sets. Despite the opportunity, they were unable to capitalise.
North Sydney hit back with a long-range try to half-back Jesse Marschke in the 23rd minute to cut the deficit to 6-4.
Momentum shifted back in favour of the home side as the Sea Eagles scored two tries in a five-minute period.
A chip kick over the defence by Brandon Wakeham sat up perfectly in the in-goal area for Michael Chee Kam, who grounded the ball for a try in the 30th minute.
Five minutes later and it was Wakeham again with the final touch to help put more points on the board. The five-eighth ran at the line and freed up space for his halves partner, Joey Walsh, to go over untouched for an 18-4 lead at half-time.
Two quick tries in a three-minute period to start the second half saw the Bears leap back into contention.
A quick shift to the right edge in the 44th minute saw Coby Thomas score. Another long-range effort from the halfway mark saw Tuipulotu Katoa score in the opposite corner for an 18-12 scoreline.
Manly were awarded a penalty deep in their opponent’s territory in the 51st minute and chose to take the penalty goal attempt, which Wakeham successfully converted, providing a two-point buffer at 20-12.
The Bears took advantage of a Manly mistake and scored a raceway try through Israel Ogden to cut the deficit to 20-18 in the 56th minute.
North Sydney broke the hearts of the Manly faithful with a try next to the posts to Jayden Yates with six minutes to play, giving his side a 24-20 lead.
A late scuffle in the match saw both teams had a player sin-binned in the 79th minute, with Navren Willett of the Sea Eagles and Trey Brown of the Bears finishing the match off the field. It was too little, too late, with the visitors walking away with the four-point victory.
The Sea Eagles head to Newcastle to take on the Knights in round 14 of the NSW Cup, kicking off at 5:20pm on Thursday June 5 at McDonald Jones Stadium.
