Updated: Rabbitohs 40 DEFEAT Sea Eagles 32
18 Aug 2008
The South Sydney Rabbitohs have secured their eighth victory for the season, defeating the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles 40 points to 32 at ANZ Stadium in front of 11,114 Members and supporters.
Rabbitohs fullback Nathan Merritt scored three tries in the seven-tries-to-six win.
The Sea Eagles led early when centre Steve Ball crossed for a try in the sixth minute.
Six minutes later the Rabbitohs levelled the scores when Fetuli Talanoa touched down on the left hand side of the field. Halfback Chris Sandow kicked cross-field for a flying Talanoa to score.
In the 21st minute of play, Jamie Simpson scored a magical try out wide, tip-toeing along the sideline and putting the ball down millimetres away from touching the right-hand corner post.
Four minutes later Manly stole the lead when Brett Stewart scored the first of two tries, racing 80 metres through the middle of the Rabbitohs’ ruck to score under the posts. Steve Matai converted to give the Sea Eagles a two point lead.
The Rabbitohs responded immediately with Merritt scoring his first try. He was backing up John Sutton who made a long break through the middle of the Eagles’ defensive line. Issac Luke’s conversion gave the Rabbitohs a 14-10 lead.
Two minutes later, Merritt crossed for his second after Sandow made a break who passed to Merritt, backing up again. Sandow’s conversion plus another penalty goal in the 38th minute gave the Rabbitohs a 22-10 lead at the break.
The Rabbitohs were punching holes through the middle of the Manly defence, and wide kicks to the flanks were also proving fruitful for South Sydney.
The Sea Eagles came out firing in the second half, scoring three tries in the opening 20 minutes to lead 26-22 with 20 minutes remaining. Twp tries to Steve Menzies and one more to Brett Stewart gave them a sniff of the lead.
Souths soon ended that when Issac Luke crossed for a try, coming from a chip-and-chase from Sandow. Luke converted his own try to give the Rabbitohs a two-point advantage.
Merritt scored his third try in the 68th minute off a Sandow cross-field bomb. Brett Stewart spilled the ball and Merritt dived on it to score a treble. Issac Luke converted to give the Rabbitohs what proved to be an unassailable lead.
Captain Roy Asotasi scored the Rabbitohs final try in the 77th minute, regathering a chip kick from Jamie Simpson to score. Issac Luke converted to give the Rabbitohs 40-26 lead.
In the 79th minute, Josh Perry scored a bizarre try when it appeared he had knocked the ball forward. The ball dribbled into the in-goal and no one picked it up, leaving Perry to walk over and put his hand on the ball to score. Matai converted to finish the scoring at Rabbitohs 40 – Sea Eagles 32.
Nathan Merritt was outstanding at the back, with Chris Sandow’s kicking game causing all sorts of problems for the Sea Eagles.
The Rabbitohs move on to play the Canberra Raiders next Sunday at 2pm at ANZ Stadium.
The Rabbitohs are searching for a person who threw a bolt at Manly player Steve Matai when he was sin-binned during the game. If you have any information about the incident, please call the South Sydney Football Club on (02) 8306 9900 during business hours.
South Sydney Rabbitohs 40 (Nathan Merritt 3, Fetuli Talanoa, Jamie Simpson, Issac Luke, Roy Asotasi tries; Issac Luke 4, Chris Sandow 2 goals)
defeated
Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles 32 (Brett Stewart 2, Steve Menzies 2, Steve Bell, Josh Perry tries; Matt Orford 2, Steve Matai 2 goals)
Click play on the video above to see exclusive SSTV footage of the post match press conference.
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In the Toyota Cup, the South Sydney Rabbitohs made it a clean sweep for the day, defeating the Sea Eagles 46 points to 30. Dylan Farrell and Eddie Paea scored two tries a-piece, with the Paea racking up 22 points personally.
South Sydney Rabbitohs 46 (Dylan Farrell 2, Eddie Paea 2, Trent Trotter, Malcolm Webster, John Joseph, Jake Leary tries; Eddie Paea 7 goals)
defeated
Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles 30 (Teariki Peneha 2, John Grey, Darcy Lussick, Ilija Radan tries; Daly Cherry-Evans 5 goals)