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The Manly Sea Eagles will be looking to get their 2014 NRL finals campaign off to a blistering start against the South Sydney Rabbitohs at Allianz Stadium this Friday, after having their minor premiership aspirations scuppered by an impressive Cowboys outfit last Saturday night.
Manly’s 30-16 loss to the Cowboys in the final round of the regular season on Saturday night was unimpressive from the men in maroon and white, being soundly run off the park by halves Johnathan Thurston and Robert Lui, who left the Sea Eagles looking dead on their feet.
It summed up a horrid recent trot for Manly, who have lost three of their last five games – a troubling statistic for a side that was right out in front with just six rounds to go.
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In a match of a very different calibre (but with a similar result for the finalist in question), The Roosters snatched victory (and the Minor Premiership) in a tense match against their old foes from South Sydney.
The Rabbitohs put together a strong showing in the finish, but eventually succumbed to the brilliance of Mitchell Pearce and the boot of James Maloney, whose two extra goals were the difference in a 22-18 finish.
However The Rabbitohs will be buoyed by the running performance of superstar Greg Inglis, who clocked 234 metres in a typically inspiring showing. What is less inspiring was the fact he was run down by Mitchell Pearce, with the recent news being broken that the big fullback is struggling with leg issues, which is restricting his training and sprinting in-game.
Souths will still look to Inglis, and his equally inspiring forward counterpart Sam Burgess to knock over Manly, a side packed with quality in all areas of the field.
However, workhorse Jamie Buhrer, who was dealt a cruel ACL injury against Penrith, and with Glenn Stewart never to pull on a Manly jersey again, the Sea Eagles’ premiership hopes have been further dashed with 80-minute man Matt Ballin suffering a broken leg. Geoff Toovey will be sweating on the fitness of fullback and strike weapon Brett Stewart, who sat on the pine against the Cowboys, nursing an ankle injury.
He’s expected to return, and has been named to start. Along with Tom Symonds, he is a welcome addition.
The Rabbitohs on the other hand are relatively injury-free, with the only concern a persistent wrist injury to centre Beau Champion which has kept him sidelined for much of the season.
They also get halfback Adam Reynolds back from suspension, which is a massive bonus for the Rabbits, which means John Sutton goes to the back row, forcing Chris McQueen to the bench.
| Winner | Score | Venue | Round | Season |
| South Sydney | 23-4 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Round 22 | 2014 |
| Manly | 14-12 | Central Coast Stadium | Round 2 | 2014 |
| Manly | 30-20 | ANZ Stadium | Finals Week 3 | 2013 |
| South Sydney | 22-10 | Central Coast Stadium | Round 23 | 2013 |
| South Sydney | 20-12 | Brookvale Oval | Round 7 | 2013 |
The Sea Eagles lost three of their last five regular season games, whereas the Rabbitohs have lost two, one of them against eventual minor premiers the Roosters last week.
These long-time rivals have a storied history going back over 67 years. The overall record stands at 74 to 60 in favour of Manly, but Souths hold the wood over Manly more recently. However, Manly famously put a fancied Souths side out of the finals last year, 30-20 at ANZ Stadium.
The last time they met was that fabled clash at the Cricket Ground in Round 22, and was in many ways part of Manly’s capitulation leading into the finals. It’s not that Manly have been so awful. It’s more that they’ve been so un-Manly.
Going from having one of the best defensive records in the competition, to missing over 40 tackles in two of their last five, and above 30 in others, is a sign that it’s their defence that’s been letting them down in recent weeks.
Souths have certainly looked the part, and did so again last week against the Roosters, but were unable to down a red-hot side.
They’ll want to turn that around quickly if they’re to get the best of the Rabbitohs at Allianz Stadium.
Manly team list:
1. Brett Stewart
2. Jorge Taufua
3. Jamie Lyon
4. Steve Matai
5. Peta Hiku
6. Kieran Foran
7. Daly Cherry-Evans
8. Josh Starling
9. Jayden Hodges
10. Brenton Lawrence
11. Anthony Watmough
12. Justin Horo
13. Tom Symonds
Interchange
14. Jesse Sene-Lefao
15. Dunamis Lui
16. James Hasson
17. Jason King
South Sydney team list:
1 Greg Inglis
2 Alex Johnston
3 Dylan Walker
4 Kirisome Auva’a
5 Lote Tuqiri
6 Luke Keary
7 Adam Reynolds
8 George Burgess
9 Issac Luke
10 Dave Tyrrell
11 Kyle Turner
12 John Sutton (c)
13 Sam Burgess
Interchange
14 Jason Clark
15 Chris McQueen
16 Luke Burgess
17 Thomas Burgess
18 Bryson Goodwin
19 Ben Lowe
20 Joe Picker
Join The Roar for live scores and coverage of Manly-Souths from 7:15pm (AEST) on Saturday night.
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