FOZ Pines Park. KFozC. Foz League. Manly were already celebrating the signing of Kieran Foran as fulltime coach before their home game against South Sydney kicked off.
That they won in a half-canter, 28-14, to kick off the NRL’s round 14 just made the festive air on the Peninsula a little sweeter.
Winger Jason Saab scored the Sea Eagles’ first and last tries before a big Thursday night at crowd, the home side leading 10-8 at halftime.
With talisman Tom Trbojevic back for their next game, there could be no greater contrast between the current mood at Brookvale and during their dismal start to the year under Anthony Seibold.
“On the way here, everywhere I drove it had ‘Fozball’, ‘Foz Pints’, ‘Kieran Foran Chicken’, said captain Jake Trbojevic.
“I thought ‘jeez, we’d better play good’. So thank God we turned up and played well because there was a lot going on.”
The coach said after his eight win from 10 games in charge: “I wanted us to put on a performance tonight in front of the home crowd that they’d really be proud of and they certainly did that.”
The win was secured despite fullback Clayton Faulalo spending 10 minutes in the sin bin, during which the Sea Eagles managed a try.
Faulalo later played on with a hamstring injury and scored a try of his own.
Souths coach Wayne Bennett blamed the defeat on mistakes but was vocal in his criticism of the bunker for missing an apparent knock-on at dummy half before a Manly try.
MANLY 28 (Saab 2 Hopoate Faulalo B Trbojevic tries Garrick 4 goals) beat SOUTH SYDNEY 14 (Koloamatangi Fifita tries Seigwalt 3 goals) at 4 Pines Park.
Teams:
MANLY: Clayton Faulolo; Jason Saab, Tolutau Koula, Reuben Garrick, Lehi Hopoate; Luke Brooks, Jamal Fogarty; Taniela Paseka, Jake Simpkin, Kobe Hetherington, Haumole Olakau’atu, Ben Trbojevic, Jame Trbojevic (c). Res: Brandon Wakeham, Nathan Brown, Jackson Shereb, Simione Laiafa, Josh Feledi, Joey Walsh.
SOUTHS: Jye Gray; Alex Johnston, Latrell Seigwalt, Campbell Graham, Edward Kosi; Kodi Walker, Ashton Ward; Tevita Tatola, Brandon Smith, Keon Kaloamatangi, David Fifita, Tallis Duncan, Cameron Murray (c). Res: Lachlan Hubner, Jamie Humphreys, Euan Aitken, Sean Keppie, Matt Dufty, Bronson Garlick.
Referee: Adam Gee
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