Victory was a long time coming for the Sea Eagles.
After three-straight losses,each by six points or less,Manly were finally able to secure a 26-20 win over the Melbourne Storm. The Battle of Brookvale continues.
Manly Sea Eagles host the Melbourne Storm in Indigenous Round of the 2024 NRL Premiership at 4 Pines Park,Sydney.
Coach Anthony Seibold said the team were overdue for a win.
“It was a real tough win,the Storm are a good side,have been for a long time for a reason,so we knew we’d have to fight really hard and I thought Chez[Daly Cherry-Evans] and Jake[Trbojevic] led the boys really well,” he said.
“Really proud,we probably weren’t too far away last week against the Broncos,so to come back home and beat the Storm there was a lot to like about the performance.”
Defence has been Manly’s downfall all year,but Seibold said it was their goal-line defence in the dying minutes of the game that helped them escape with a six-point victory.
Lehi Hopoate of the Sea Eagles is tackled by Nelson Asofa-Solomona of the Storm.Getty Images
“I was a bit more nervous then,I’ve got to say,and I thought we actually did a really good job,defending our try line. Storm had all the field position and they had a heap of possession there at the end,” he said.
“We probably needed that. There’s been a couple of close games that we haven’t unfortunately been able to get the result,so it gives us a bit of confidence and we go into a bye. I think we were looking for the bye as well. It’s been a pretty tough three months of footy.”
Storm coach Craig Bellamy had a lengthy chat to his team after the game,and said the poor completion rate and lack of possession lost them the match.
“I just thought our start[from] both halves was poor,especially to start the game. We went 25 minutes and we completed not even 50 per cent,so that put a lot of pressure,” Bellamy said.
“You can’t start games like that and expect to win them at this level.”