A first in five years for Junior Reps

For the first time in five years, Manly Warringah Sea Eagles have made the finals in both the Harold Matthews Cup (U17s) and the SG Ball Cup (U19s) competitions in the same season.

It’s a tremendous achievement for the Sea Eagles pathways program and augers well for the Club’s elite development in the next few years.

The last time both teams qualified for the play-offs was in 2021, when Lehi Hopoate was fullback in Harold Matthews and Tolu Koula was a strike centre in SG Ball.

The Under 17s team in 2021 was captained by Josh Feledy who played his junior footy alongside Hopoate at the Beacon Hill Bears. The team finished as undefeated premiers beating the Parramatta Eels in the Grand Final to claim Manly’s second Harold Matthews Cup title.

The Sea Eagles Under 19s team that same season were beaten by eventual premiers Canberra Raiders in the semi-finals, after finishing second on the ladder.

As we know Koula has since progressed to become one the NRL’s elite centres, recently signing a multi-year contract with Manly.

Hopoate’s progress has also been rapid, the 21-year-old scoring 19 tries in his 40 appearances since making his NRL debut with Manly in 2024.

For Feledy, playing first grade for his local club has taken a little longer, but it’s been well worth the wait.

It was only last Thursday when Feledy became Sea Eagle #670 when called off the bench in Manly’s 52-18 win over the Dolphins.

It was at 4 Pines Park a few years ago when Feledy made his NRL debut, but it was playing against Manly not with them. 

Playing for the Wests Tigers Feledy was on the end of a heavy loss at Brookvale in what was the first of his three NRL games for the joint-venture club before returning to the Sea Eagles this season.

"I was really proud to represent Manly in the junior reps and to win that Harold Matthews premiership was awesome, particularly doing it with Hoppa," said Feledy.

"Then to finally play first grade with Manly last week was so special. I used to watch Tom and Jake as a kid and that's all I wanted to do, was play for Manly.

"My journey sort of took a different path, but to come back and make my club debut for Manly, that's been my childhood dream."

Significantly, this year’s rep squads at Manly are heavily stacked with local juniors, who, like the Trbojevic brothers, Hopoate, and Feledy, are dreaming of playing NRL for the Sea Eagles.

Pathways and Development Manager, Blake Cavallaro, says the results are pleasing to see.

“Around 80% of our Harold Matthews squad and 60% of our SG Ball squad are local juniors who have progressed through the system playing at this level,” said Cavallaro.

“Regardless of results, that in itself is a successful outcome for our pathways program.

Blake Cavallaro Junior Pathways & Development Manager

“It’s really pleasing to see this come to fruition as we further strengthen the player development framework we’re creating here at Manly."

With the Sea Eagles again qualifying for the finals in both ‘Matts’ and ‘Ball’, the future does look bright.

And while it might take some a little longer than others to wear the maroon and white in first grade at Manly, there appears to be quite a few in the pipeline.

WEEK 1 FINALS

Harold Matthews Cup