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[VIDEO] Manly Sea Eagles vs South Sydney Rabbitohs: NRL finals highlights, scores, blog

12th September, 2014
Teams

Sea Eagles
1. Brett Stewart
2. Jorge Taufua
3. Jamie Lyon (c)
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

Rabbitohs
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

Kickoff: 7:55pm (AEST)
Coverage: Channel 9 from 7:30pm (AEST)
Venue: Allianz Stadium
Last meeting: Round 22, 2014 – Sea Eagles 4 - Rabbitohs 23
Referees: Shayne Hayne & Gavin Badger
Head-to-head: Sea Eagles 73 – 60 Rabbitohs
Betting: Sea Eagles $2.85 - $1.45 Rabbitohs
Last five: RSSRS
South Sydney travel across the Spit Bridge to take on Manly for Thursday night footy. (AAP Image/Action Photographics, Renee McKay)
Roar Guru
12th September, 2014
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15943 Reads

MATCH RESULT:

The South Sydney Rabbitohs have secured a very convincing 40-24 victory against the Manly Sea Eagles in the opening match of the 2014 NRL finals.

Manly scored four tries in 20 minutes to make the scoreboard respectable but were disappointing tonight.

The Rabbitohs switched off late but were at their rampaging best for the first 60 minutes.

South Sydney will move into their third consecutive preliminary final.

For the Sea Eagles, they will have to re-group and face the winner of the Melbourne Storm and Canterbury Bulldogs clash.

FINAL SCORE:
Sea Eagles 24
Rabbitohs 40

MATCH PREVIEW:

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The 2014 NRL finals kick off with the Manly Sea Eagles taking on the South Sydney Rabbitohs at Allianz Stadium. Join The Roar for live scores and coverage from 7:50pm (AEST).

With both sides carrying a number of injuries, a win is vital for both teams as they look to gain a week off which could provide them with the upper hand come week 3 of the finals.

For the “home side”, Brett Stewart and Brenton Lawrence have been named to return for the match. This means Jason King has moved back to the bench and Clinton Gutherson and Michael Chee Kam will drop out of the squad.

For the Rabbitohs, Adam Reynolds returns from his suspension that forces Luke Keary to five-eighth and John Sutton to the second row. As a result, Chris McQueen moves to the bench along with the trio of Bryson Goodwin, Ben Lowe and Joe Picker who make up the latter half of an extended bench.

This match has an added sense of anticipation with the two sides meeting only recently at the SCG in which Manly received a thumping which seemed to kick start their recent poor form.

With recent losses to Parramatta and the Cowboys as well as close and scrappy wins against the Titans and Penrith, the Sea Eagles have barely had an ideal run to the finals but expect a big performance from a side that is accustom to playing finals football.

Similarly to this, the Rabbitohs have had an uncomfortable run to the finals. Losing to the Cowboys and Roosters dented their chances of a top two finish but they will surely fancy their chances of winning this Friday night against a depleted Sea Eagles outfit.

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So where will the game be won?

Both Brett Stewart and Greg Inglis come into the Finals with injuries which have limited their recent participation or effectiveness during matches.

Stewart missed the Sea Eagles Round 26 match against the Cowboys with an ankle injury while Greg Inglis struggled with a hip injury that flared at multiple points in their loss to the Roosters.

The fitness and thus effectiveness of both players will prove extremely significant in this match.

Also keep an eye on the battle of the two number 9’s. With regular Manly hooker Matt Ballin out for several weeks with a leg injury, Jayden Hodges has replaced him in the side.

With Manly becoming extremely familiar with Ballin playing out of dummy half, last week they looked a little disjointed around the ruck.

This needs to change if Manly are to compete with one of the most consistent and effective hookers in the game.

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Issac Luke is a battle-hardened hooker who knows his role within the Rabbitohs side and will look to pick holes in the Manly defensive line.

Hodges must rise to the next level to give his side every chance of winning the match and earning the week off.

With a number of Manly players either on the sideline or carrying injuries, the Rabbitohs should have too much class and progress to earn next weekend off.

Tip: Rabbitohs by 8

Can the Sea Eagles overcome their injury concerns and grind out a win, or will the Rabbitohs take a huge step towards ending their premiership drought?

Join me from 7:50pm (AEST) for live scores, updates and discussion.

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