2024 review: Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles

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Lachy MacCorquodale looks at the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles' as they surged under Seibold.

2024 was always going to be an important year for the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles. After two successive seasons without finals football, partly due to the absence of Tom Trbojevic through injury, the pressure was on to return to September football.

Throughout 2023 and the following off-season, the Sea Eagles made some moves in the market, bringing in both Luke Brooks and Tommy Talau from the Wests Tigers, with Jaxson Paulo, Nathan Brown and Corey Waddell also joining the club. There were a few departures involving players on the fringe of the team but nothing as major as the mutual agreement to release Josh Schuster from his contract just weeks into the season, someone who was once regarded as the future of the club.

Despite this unfolding over the opening weeks of the season, Anthony Seibold and his Sea Eagles began their campaign with a bang, knocking off the South Sydney Rabbitohs in Las Vegas and then the Sydney Roosters in successive weeks.

It was the start to the season they were after and by the end of the eighth round, the Sea Eagles were sitting high and mightily in second place, until three losses on the trot quickly saw them slide outside the top eight.

Over the next few weeks, they see-sawed in and out of the top eight, before really cementing their status as a top eight team with three straight victories in July which began with a one-point victory over the North Queensland Cowboys, followed by big wins over the Newcastle Knights and the Gold Coast Titans.

From there, the Sea Eagles form was solid, winning three of their last six games to complete the home and away season. It was enough to see the side from the northern beaches into seventh place, three points clear of the Canberra Raiders in ninth.

The Sea Eagles were back playing finals football for the first time since 2021, and they didn't disappoint in their Elimination Final with the Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs, coming from 10-points down to win courtesy of an excellent try from Tolutau Koula.

The exhilaration around the club didn't last long as the Sydney Roosters sent the Sea Eagles packing with a comprehensive display in their Semi Final at the Allianz Stadium, winning by 24 points.

Turning point

In general, for the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles, the turning point of a particular season revolves around the availability or unavailability of their star fullback, Tom Trbojevic. In 2024, when Trbojevic was injured in their loss against the Dolphins, the Sea Eagles were sitting in sixth. In his absence, Manly lost thrice and won twice, along with two byes that helped them stay with the pack sitting in eighth.

Upon Trbojevic's return, the Sea Eagles peeled off three straight victories which gave them enough of a cushion to finish in the top eight despite splitting their last six matches. The then 27-year-old's performances over that stretch was exceptional. Trbojevic wasn't included in the side for their final game of the home and away season, however, in the eight games he played upon returning from injury, the New South Wales and Australian representative scored 10 tries, assisted another nine and averaged just shy of 200 run metres per game.

What worked

Simply, their attack, as is the case when a fully fit Manly Warringah side take the park. With a fit and firing Trbojevic at the back, this outfit, on its day, can be one of the most exhilarating and exciting attacks in the competition. Whilst not being at the attacking level and consistency of a team like the Melbourne Storm or the Sydney Roosters, the Sea Eagles' attack was still potent enough to deal out plenty of punishment throughout the year. In fact, the Sea Eagles scored 26.4 points per game, the fifth highest mark in the competition and were a constant threat to oppositive defences, breaking the line 5.2 times per game (fourth best).

This potency in attack has always been there, yet, with the addition of Luke Brooks and Tommy Talau from the Wests Tigers, the Sea Eagles became more versatile in attack. Brooks created another area of threat with his running game and short ball playing which created more room for Trbojevic to do what he does best. The former Tiger recorded a career-high 17 try assists in his 26 appearances this year, and another off-season should only improve his chemistry with Trbojevic and Daly Cherry-Evans.

Brook's teammate at the Tigers, Talau, was quietly one of the signings of the season, scoring 18 tries in 23 appearances this season. The 24-year-old played a mixture of centre and wing throughout the course of the year, proving adept in both positions. Talau's addition to a backline that features Trbojevic, Koula, Saab and Reuben Garrick no doubt makes them a threat to push for an even better finish in 2025.

What didn't work

It's always more of the same with this Manly side, a real attacking threat but lacking the consistency of the teams that push further into the season than them. Whilst it was a win for the Sea Eagles to return to finals footy, they'll be disappointed about the consistency of their performances throughout the year.

This is a side that knocked off both grand finalists throughout the course of the season yet lost to the likes of Parramatta, South Sydney and the Wests Tigers, the three teams comprising the bottom of the ladder. Overall, the Sea Eagles only won seven of their 15 matches against teams who didn't play finals, whereas they won six of nine against their fellow finals teams.

To perform so inconsistently against worse teams makes it almost impossible to climb higher up the ladder where the chances of  premiership success only increase. Trying to win the competition is hard enough, let alone from seventh place. This is something that the Sea Eagles must address if they want to push for higher honours in 2025.

2024 week-by-week

Best Players

It was the usual suspects who were at their best for Manly in 2024. Daly Cherry-Evans and Haumole Olakau'atu backed up their excellent 2023 campaigns, guiding the Sea Eagles to their first finals appearance since 2022. Cherry-Evans was at his usual orchestrating best, assisting 17 tries throughout the season, whilst Olakau'atu continued his improvement becoming one of the best back rowers in the game, scoring seven tries, breaking the line 11 times and averaging 4.6 tackle breaks per game.

However, this side is a completely different outfit when Tom Trbojevic is fit and firing. The 28-year-old was electric this year, we touched on his back half of the season dominance, but he was still playing to an elite level throughout the whole season. The former Dally M medallist scored 17 tries and assisted a further 17 in just 20 appearances, a genuinely unbelievable figure.

Rookies

The big discovery for Manly in 2024 was the emergence of yet another Hopoate into the NRL. 19-year-old Lehi Hopoate was electric from the get-go, firstly as Trbojevic's replacement at fullback and secondly as a winger upon their star player's return from injury. In 14 appearances, Hopoate scored nine tries, assisted a further six and broke the line on 10 occasions. Add 3.4 tackle breaks per game to the mix and you've got a pretty good rookie on your hands who not only becomes another backline option for the Sea Eagles, but is going to push the likes of Garrick, Saab, Koula and Talau as the five outside backs battle for four spots.

Although not a debutant in 2024, Gordon Chan Kum Tong featured off the bench in 10 games this year. The 22-year-old has been quite effective in the NSW Cup over the past two seasons and has had chances of the bench for the NRL side to make an impact. However, with Lachlan Croker and Jake Simpkin to contend with, it's hard to see a role larger than a bench spot for Chan Kum Tong.

2024 player record

Season snapshot

Coach: Anthony Seibold
Captains: Daly Cherry-Evans (24), Luke Brooks (1), Tom Trbojevic (1)

Biggest home crowd: 17,385 (vs. Parramatta in round 8)
Average home crowd: 16,473

Top pointscorer: Reuben Garrick (202)
Top tryscorer: Tommy Talau (18)

Club awards

NRL Roy Bull Best and Fairest: Tom Trbojevic
NRL Players' Player Award: Tom Trbojevic
NRL Leading Point Scorer Award: Reuben Garrick
NRL Leading Try Scorer Award: Tom Trbojevic
Ken Arthurson Rising Star Award: Lehi Hopoate
Menzies Medal for the Play of the Year: Jake Trbojevic
Gordon Willoughby Medallion: Daly Cherry-Evans
Manly Mentality Award: Tommy Talau
NRL Doug Daley Club Person of the Year Award: Lachlan Croker
NRL Club Wellbeing and Education Award: Karl Lawton
NRL Club Community Award: Jake Trbojevic

Looking Ahead

Last year we said the fitness of Trbojevic was going to be the big factor on the club's success in 2024 and it was. Again, that is the case for 2025, if their star man is available for much of the season, they should be able to make a second successive finals appearance. If not, they may struggle to make the eight, given their line up next year is expected to be quite similar to that of 2024.

The only player they've added to date is Jazz Tevaga from the Warriors, who should provide them with extra energy of the bench as he did so in his 138 games for the Warriors. Their only loss of note is Karl Lawton who is headed to the North Queensland Cowboys after making 24 appearances for the Sea Eagles this season.

2025 Best 17

based on current signings at time of writing

1.     Tom Trbojevic
2.     Jason Saab
3.     Reuben Garrick
4.     Tolutau Koula
5.     Tommy Talau
6.     Luke Brooks
7.     Daly Cherry-Evans
8.     Taniela Paseka
9.     Lachlan Croker
10.  Josh Aloiai
11.  Haumole Olakau'atu
12.  Ben Trbojevic
13.  Jake Trbojevic

14.  Jake Simpkin
15.  Ethan Bullemor
16.  Jazz Tevaga
17.  Nathan Brown