Five and a kick: Seibold gives good news on Turbo’s injury after Manly beat Bulldogs, Panthers beat Bunnies
The Sea Eagles’ best-of-2024 win should have given them the confidence to make the playoffs, but another injury to Tom Trbojevic has cast a dark shadow over their chances.
Manly coach Anthony Seibold is confident Trbojevic’s shoulder injury is not serious but, just a week before the finals, his and the team’s hopes depend on a scan on Saturday which will reveal the extent of the damage.
The unexpected 34-22 win meant Canterbury’s hopes of a top-four finish were over after Penrith defeated South Sydney 34-12 in Friday’s match at Bluebet Stadium.
1. Turbo’s injury leaves him again
It was revealed this week that Trbojevic had offered to take a significant pay cut in a gesture of goodwill towards the Sea Eagles for standing by him during the past four injury-plagued seasons.
It was his 18th appearance for 2024 since a torn hamstring forced him off the pitch midway through the year, but he has played just 55 games for the Manly Maroons over the past five seasons.
He appeared to have taken a heavy blow to his leg early in the second half when he made a last-ditch effort to stop William Kikau’s effort and was rewarded for his efforts when the Fijian forward’s head collided with his shin.
Trbojevic suffered a deep cut to his left leg in a last-ditch tackle on William Kikau close to the line in the first half of his 150th match, and also suffered a blow to the head in the incident which ended his night early.
The AC joint injury occurred in the 64th minute when he brought down Bulldogs forward Jacob Preston, but his teammate Luke Brooks completed the tackle from above and his body weight landed on the arm of Trbojevic who lay on the turf.
He will undergo a scan on Saturday and the best-case scenario is that he will be available to play in the final.
Tom Trbojevic receives an assist from the Accor Stadium. (Photo: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)
His 2022 season ended abruptly after seven games when he dislocated his left shoulder and, following an unfortunate run of hamstring injuries, the 27-year-old fullback has been in strong form recently which has Manly hoping they can do some damage in the finals.
But if Trbojevic is taken out, they won’t be able to do any wonders in the playoffs.
Tolu Koula is a likely candidate at fullback, while Jason Saab will also be out for some time with a syndesmosis injury he suffered after taking a hip-drop tackle from Canterbury centre Bronson Xerri.
Manly coach Anthony Seibold was hopeful of good news from a scan on Saturday.
He said, “He will definitely not be able to play next week. He will have an X-ray. He will be fit for the first round of the finals.”
“We will make a plan for him. We will make sure we take care of him and he gets ready to play again.
“He’s got a calf injury. He was a bit sick tonight, but injuries like that aren’t season-ending.
“I think all going well, he’ll be available for Week 1. It’s pain management. You can inject them (AC injuries) and play.”
2. Dogs lose their protection
Canterbury’s much-vaunted defensive prowess went underwater at Accor Stadium.
He scored the first goal of the match after a set piece when he converted a penalty kick for Reed Mahoney in a brilliant team effort.
With over 35,000 Bulldogs fans in attendance to celebrate a return to the finals after a long eight-year hiatus, the opening try looked like it would mark the start of another dominant performance.
But their defence, regarded as No.1 in the league, was shredded after the Sea Eagles scored four tries in the first half, including a clever scrum move that took advantage of Josh Addo-Carr’s tendency to burst forward from his wing.
Dogs coach Cameron Ciraldo wasn’t overly concerned with the disappointing performance — the team was starting to look a little mentally tired after five straight wins.
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The 12-point margin worked out well for the Dogs as they scored two last-minute tries that put the result beyond doubt.
“What we want to focus on is getting our systems and processes better than they were tonight,” Ciraldo said.
“And I have to say, this is the first time this year I felt disappointed with our defense.
“We’ve been really consistent. Our effort and our attitude has been really good. Tonight we just missed the mark a little bit.”
3. Tri-cornered contest for two home final berths
Manly’s win over Canterbury puts them one point behind the Bulldogs and Cowboys heading into the final round on the stairs,
They could overtake either of these teams, who face each other next Saturday when they host Cronulla on the final Sunday of the regular season, to finish sixth and book a place in a home elimination final.
As much as they will be hurt by Trbojevic’s absence, Manly’s win over the Dogs was built around four big players in the middle who continued to bend the defensive line.
Brown, Olakauatu, Paseka and Lodge may have looked like an accounting firm, but it was the numbers they recorded on the statistics sheet that contributed to Manly’s victory.
Taniela Paseka (178 running metres) and Matthew Lodge (137) dominated early, Nathan Brown (188) gave it all off the bench and Haumole Olakauatu was a constant threat, winning his head-to-head with Kikau comfortably.
He recorded 104 metres, 60 of which were after contact, made a superb offload for Trbojevic’s first-half try and was a constant source of trouble for the Dogs for 80 minutes.
Brown and Lodge may not be to everyone’s liking, but the old and strong Sea Eagles are not out to make friends on the field, but to stir up controversy, and they troubled the Bulldogs right down the middle.
4. Panthers in cruise control
The three-time premiers have the easiest route to the finals with home matches against Souths and Titans set to be great training matches for them.
There was a feeling of inevitability from the start of play on Friday night, and when Isiah Yeo set up James Fisher-Harris to give them an early 6-0 lead, it was always a question of how much that lead would be.
The Rabbitohs didn’t surrender but they fell behind in every department.
Luke Garner and Brad Schneider scored to make it 18-0 while Sunia Turuva, returning from a recent demotion, scored two second-half tries as Ivan Cleary’s side sealed a top-four finish.
They need to get past either the Roosters or the Sharks in the final two rounds to finish above fourth to avoid travelling to AAMI Park to face Melbourne in a qualifying final.
The Panthers have brought their deficit against Cronulla to within 24 points by beating the Rabbitohs, so if the Sharks can only get narrow wins over the Warriors and Manly, while Penrith score big on the Gold Coast, they could overtake Cronulla to move into third place.
5. The touching scenes of Monroe scoring with a heavy heart
Even Penrith fans didn’t mind when Rabbitohs winger Tyrone Munro scored twice.
The 19-year-old fast bowler’s mother passed away during the week but he opted to play the match to pay tribute to Kiravan Fernando, whom he described in an emotional social media post as his “beautiful angel mother who always tried to help everyone and make sure everyone was okay”.
His uncle had also passed away before the match but he took his place on the wing and performed brilliantly.
Cody Walker lofted the ball over the defensive line and it reached Monroe and went straight into the goal before he was surrounded by his teammates in an emotional moment late in the first half.
He also made a long-range interception attempt in the 54th minute, and raced away from the cover defence, and gestured at the tape tied around both his wrists in tribute to his deceased family members.
Munro has missed a large chunk of this season due to a fractured collarbone, but he is clearly stronger and with five tries in just six NRL appearances, he has a bright future in the game. More power to him.
KICK: Souths need Latrell back… no wait
The Rabbitohs have one more match left to complete a disappointing season.
Latrell Mitchell is now unlikely to be available after being ruled out for the rest of the year with a foot injury, which is not coincidental as the NRL has dictated that he must serve his “white powder” ban before he is available for selection.
The Bunnies have continued their policy of preferring their controversial star, claiming he is now fit and ready so he won’t have to serve his ban in Round 1 next year.
If the NRL had waited another fortnight before announcing the sanctions, do you think Mitchell would have been included in the squad for the final round match against the Roosters?
Of course not. This is another big mess.
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