Manly come from behind to topple Sharks

Fulltime score:
Round 3
Manly Sea Eagles 20 v Cronulla Sharks 18

Match summary:

The Manly Sea Eagles have come from behind to beat the Cronulla Sharks 20-18 at Brookvale Oval this evening.

Manly have registered their first win in 2006 while the Sharks are yet to get on the board for a victory after holding comfortable leads in both matches played to date against the Broncos and Sea Eagles.

The Sharks raced to a 12-0 lead and looked like they were going to run away with the match but Manly hung in there as they did against the Cowboys last week but the result went in their favour tonight with a two point victory.

Manlytook the lead with about ten minutes remaining and extended their lead through a penalty goal to Matt Orford but the Sharks scored in the 75th minute to give themselves an outside shot at a last gasp victory but it wasn?t to be.

For Manly, Ben Kennedy and Steven Bell were strong while for the Sharks Adam Dykes had an impressive game.

It has to be said neither side looked overly impressive in this match and both sides have a lot of work to do if they want to compete with the top sides in 2006. It is early days and we don?t usually see teams hit their straps until about round six but if either side continues to front up and play like they did tonight, it will be a long season for both teams.

Scorers:
Manly Sea Eagles: 20
Tries: Travis Burns, Brett Stewart, Steve Bell
Goals: Matt Orford 4/4
Cronulla Sutherland Sharks: 18
Tries: Phil Bailey, Adam Dykes, Darren Albert
Goals: Luke Covell 3/4

Live commentary

1 min: NEWS We are underway at Fortress Brookvale for the clash between the Sea Eagles and the Sharks.

4 min: TRY Cronulla Sutherland Sharks
Kimmorley drops in a kick behind the Manly line and Adam Dykes strolls through to collect the spoils and get the Sharks on the board.
Sharks 6-0

8 min: NEWS David Simmons knocks Chris Hicks into touch to save a certain try. Great show of speed and strength from the Sharks fullback.

12 min: NEWS Michael Robertson is manhandled and forced back in goal by the Sharks defence. All one way traffic at the moment.

14 min: TRY Cronulla Sutherland Sharks
Sharks making look all too easy at the moment but they did the same thing last week. Simple passing movment along the backline saw Albert crash over in the corner.
Sharks 10-0

20 min: NEWS Possible try to Phil Bailey after David Simmons threw a miracle ball. Looks the goods from where I am sitting.

21 min: NEWS No try, obstruction ruled against the Sharks but Manly's defence looks terrible at present.

25 min: NEWS Game starting to even out a bit more but the Sharks still look very dangerous with the ball in hand. Matt Orford is havng a very quiet game so far.

32 min: NEWS Manly attacking the Sharks line. Can they score?

33 min: TRY Manly Sea Eagles
Brett Stewart gets across the line to score Manly;s first try of the night as half time looms large on the horizon. Conversion successful.
Sharks 10-6

37 min: NEWS Luke Covell from the Sharks sent to the sin bin for a professional foul.

40 min: NEWS The Sharks hold a slender four point lead against the Sea Eagles but the Sharks look to be losing momentum as the games wears on. Will they stumble like they did against the Broncos last weekend or will they kick on to register their first win of 2006?

Manly are travelling ok but Matt Orford is yet to have a major impact on the game and still looks a little lost out there. Still, they are in the hunt and if they are good enough, they will find a way to win.

41 min: NEWS We are underway in the second half!

48 min: PENALTY GOAL Cronulla Sutherland Sharks
Luke Covell slots a penalty goal after Ben Kennedy was penalised for a high shot on Lance Thompson.
Sharks 12-6

52 min: TRY Manly Sea Eagles
Burns cleans up a grubber that was missed by a Sharks player to get Manly back on level terms. Conversion successful.
Sharks 12-12

64 min: TRY Manly Sea Eagles
Steve Bell cuts the Sharks "defence" to ribbons to give Manly the lead for the first time in the match. Conversion successful.
Sea Eagles 18-12

73 min: PENALTY GOAL Manly Sea Eagles
Lance Thompson is penalised for a high shot on Brett Stewart and Matt Orford makes the Sharks pay dearly with a penalty goal that puts Manly eight points front with under seven minutes to play.
Sea Eagles 20-12

75 min: TRY Cronulla Sutherland Sharks
Bailey scores to give the Sharks an outside chance at victory after another terrible second half performance. Conversion successful.
Sea Eagles 20-18

80 min: NEWS The Manly Sea Eagles win their first match for 2006 but were anything but convincing. They simply made less errors than the Sharks in the second half and that was enought o see them home.
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Leagueunlimited.com players of the match:
3 - Ben Kennedy
2 - Steve Bell
1 - Adam Dykes
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