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Parramatta Eels vs Manly Sea Eagles |
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|---|---|---|
2017 Holden Cup Grand Final, Sunday, October 1 |
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| ANZ Stadium, Homebush, Sydney, NSW | ||
| Parramatta Eels | Manly Sea Eagles | |
| 18 | SCORE | 20 |
| 3 | Tries | 4 |
| 2 | Conversions | 2 |
| 1 | Penalty Goals | 0 |
| 0 | Field Goals | 0 |
The Manly Sea Eagles won the last ever Holden Cup Grand Final in a thrilling finish, with the final margin just two points.
Final score
Parramatta Eels 18
Manly Sea Eagles 20
The last ever Holden Cup grand final will see the Parramatta Eels take on the Manly Sea Eagles. Join The Roar for live scores and coverage from 1:35pm (AEDT).
It’s the unexpected nature of the Holden Cup which has held interest over the last decade, so it’s fitting that it’ll be two teams that weren’t expected to make the grand final that will cap off the competition as a national format – the under 20s being scrapped and junior pathways being moved back to state-by-state competitions.
The fourth-placed Eels go in as red-hot favourites to secure the crown, as Manly, like the Cowboys in the NRL, fell into the finals after finishing eighth.
Parra snuck into the top four with a victory over the New Zealand Warriors in the last round, but that set up a match with the all-conquering Sharks. They weren’t supposed to win, but managed to book a week off with a 35-22 victory.
The Sharks meanwhile, went out in straight sets at the hands of Manly, while Penrith beat Brisbane. The Panthers then fell to the Eels 28-6, with Parra’s defence, which has been strong all season, coming to the fore.
While attack is the order of the day in the NYC, the Eels had to make do for much of the season without star half Troy Dargan, and it meant they finished the third-best defensive record – by some margin as well.
Dargan is still out, with Dean Matterson and Dylan Brown in the halves to lead the side around. If they can get the ball to explosive wingers John Fonua and Greg Lelesiuao, points could be easy to find.
The Sea Eagles have come up with upset after upset to make the decider. They finished the regular season winning two of their last three, piling 50 points on the Warriors away from home.
They then overcame the Cowboys 30-16 and knocked Cronulla out.
Manly’s attack has been particularly impressive, scoring the third most points, led by halves Tom Wright and Cade Crust. Jade Anderson has played with plenty of fire at the back and that helped them get past the Dragons by 16 points in last week’s preliminary final.
Prediction
Manly’s dream run through the finals will come to an end, with Parramatta writing their name in the history books as the last winners of the Holden Cup.
Eels by 8.
Be sure to join The Roar for live coverage of the Holden Cup grand final from 1:35pm (AEST) and don’t forget to add a comment below.