Will Evans2009 Season Preview - Manly Sea Eagles
February 25th 2009 04:53
Manly Sea Eagles
The defending premiers are the team to beat in 2009. With no visible weaknesses in their squad, the Sea Eagles have the same formidable look of the club's great side of the mid-1990s. But will Des Hasler's men handle the mantle of the team every NRL side wants to knock off? Melbourne are supposedly on the wane, so now Manly have a target on their back every week - no more flying under the radar. Another spanner in the works is the boardroom squabbling that has created headlines over the past month.
Strengths: A stellar roster with big-game experience. Manly scored 110 points to 12 in last year's final series on their way to emphatically claiming the 2008 title, including a record 40-0 grand final triumph over arch-nemesis Melbourne. The confidence garnered from their remarkable charge cannot be underestimated, while four Sea Eagles also made their Test debuts in 2008. Their pack contains two international front-rowers in Josh Perry and Brent Kite and a world-class back-row, fullback Brett Stewart is a genuine matchwinner, and, if the grand final can be used as a gauge, Jamie Lyon and Matt Orford have finally found the right balance in the halves. In Des Hasler, Manly has one of the game's most meticulous mentors and best tacticians.
Weaknesses: The administrative battle between Scott Penn and co-owner Max Delmege, combined with the resignation of CEO Grant Mayer, is a distraction the club could do without when they will already be under pressure to dominate from Round 1. Question marks remain over Manly's depth in key positions - how would they cope if injury strikes down Matt Orford or Brett Stewart for an extended period.
Recruitment: Plenty of experience has been lost to England with the departure of Steve Menzies, Steve Bell, Luke Williamson and Mark Bryant. The Sea Eagles have bought astutely to help cover the losses, but have sacrificed depth to come up with a couple of quality signings. Newcastle recruit Chris Bailey provides great utility value and will be a great fit at lock if he can live up to the wraps already heaped upon him. Eels junior and Tongan international Tony Williams is a superstar in the making, while former Penrith premiership-winner Shane Rodney could prove a handy back-up in the engine-room.
Youth brigade: 2008 rookies David Williams and Tony Williams are now internationals and are on the verge of NRL superstardom. Centre Shane Neumann and second-rower Vic Mauro have both been blooded in the last two seasons and can both expect to see more game time in 2009. High-profile 16-year old signing William Hopoate is part of Manly's Toyota Cup squad, and will become the youngest-ever Sea Eagle if he makes his first grade debut this year.
Rep Drain: Manly have been largely ignored by representative selectors over the past couple of seasons, much to the chagrin of the club and their supporters. That is guaranteed to change in 2009. If a NSW side was chosen tomorrow, Brett Stewart, Glenn Stewart, Brent Kite, Josh Perry, Anthony Watmough and David Williams would be walk-up starts. Watch for Manly to experience the tough time perennially encountered by Melbourne and Brisbane in the middle stages of the season. Steve Matai is also a Kiwis certainty if fit, but Manly won't have to worry about Orford or Lyon being unavailable because of rep duty. Hasler was unlucky to miss out on the Kangaroo coaching gig, but will now be able to channel all of his energy towards a second premiership.
X-Factor: Steve Menzies played much of 2008 off the bench and was not the dominant player he had been in the 1990s, but his influence at the club was enormous. Manly desperately needs personality players to step into that breach. Brent Kite, their most experienced forward, is too aloof from the squad socially to step into that role, while the enigmatic Anthony Watmough doesn't need the pressure. Glenn Stewart stepped out of his brilliant younger brother's shadow in 2008 to become a first-choice second-rower for Australia, and has the ability and presence to fill Menzies' shoes.
Under pressure: The club's administration. Firstly, the internal disagreements need to be overcome, then they have an unenviable player retention situation on their hands. Test winger and cult figue David 'Wolfman' Williams and three-try grand final hero Michael Robertson are both off-contract at the end of 2009, with the club unlikely to be able to retain both due to salary cap pressures. One thing is assured though: Sea Eagles' fans will be baying for blood if either flankman is let go. The term Catch-22 comes to mind...
Ready to Explode: The 'Wolfman's' career is poised for the stratosphere. Rep selectors have started a trend of picking club centres for Origin and Test wing duty - the likes of Israel Folau, Greg Inglis, Brent Tate and Joel Monaghan being cases in point. In light of that, Williams, a World Cup final winger, can already lay claims to being the No. 1 winger in the NRL. That said, he would make a gun centre. Glenn Stewart's improvement last year was nothing short of remarkable, and should become a genuine leader at Manly in 2009.
Predictions: The only threat to a minor premiership for Manly is a rep period-inflicted form slump. The Sea Eagles should also be there on the first Sunday of September, but unfortunately for the Silvertails, they will finish in the same vein as their 1995-97 side, the Roosters of 2002-04, and the Storm circa 2006-08 - three consecutive grand finals with just one premiership trophy to show for it.
Minor premiers and beaten grand finallists
The defending premiers are the team to beat in 2009. With no visible weaknesses in their squad, the Sea Eagles have the same formidable look of the club's great side of the mid-1990s. But will Des Hasler's men handle the mantle of the team every NRL side wants to knock off? Melbourne are supposedly on the wane, so now Manly have a target on their back every week - no more flying under the radar. Another spanner in the works is the boardroom squabbling that has created headlines over the past month.
Strengths: A stellar roster with big-game experience. Manly scored 110 points to 12 in last year's final series on their way to emphatically claiming the 2008 title, including a record 40-0 grand final triumph over arch-nemesis Melbourne. The confidence garnered from their remarkable charge cannot be underestimated, while four Sea Eagles also made their Test debuts in 2008. Their pack contains two international front-rowers in Josh Perry and Brent Kite and a world-class back-row, fullback Brett Stewart is a genuine matchwinner, and, if the grand final can be used as a gauge, Jamie Lyon and Matt Orford have finally found the right balance in the halves. In Des Hasler, Manly has one of the game's most meticulous mentors and best tacticians.
Weaknesses: The administrative battle between Scott Penn and co-owner Max Delmege, combined with the resignation of CEO Grant Mayer, is a distraction the club could do without when they will already be under pressure to dominate from Round 1. Question marks remain over Manly's depth in key positions - how would they cope if injury strikes down Matt Orford or Brett Stewart for an extended period.
Recruitment: Plenty of experience has been lost to England with the departure of Steve Menzies, Steve Bell, Luke Williamson and Mark Bryant. The Sea Eagles have bought astutely to help cover the losses, but have sacrificed depth to come up with a couple of quality signings. Newcastle recruit Chris Bailey provides great utility value and will be a great fit at lock if he can live up to the wraps already heaped upon him. Eels junior and Tongan international Tony Williams is a superstar in the making, while former Penrith premiership-winner Shane Rodney could prove a handy back-up in the engine-room.
Youth brigade: 2008 rookies David Williams and Tony Williams are now internationals and are on the verge of NRL superstardom. Centre Shane Neumann and second-rower Vic Mauro have both been blooded in the last two seasons and can both expect to see more game time in 2009. High-profile 16-year old signing William Hopoate is part of Manly's Toyota Cup squad, and will become the youngest-ever Sea Eagle if he makes his first grade debut this year.
Rep Drain: Manly have been largely ignored by representative selectors over the past couple of seasons, much to the chagrin of the club and their supporters. That is guaranteed to change in 2009. If a NSW side was chosen tomorrow, Brett Stewart, Glenn Stewart, Brent Kite, Josh Perry, Anthony Watmough and David Williams would be walk-up starts. Watch for Manly to experience the tough time perennially encountered by Melbourne and Brisbane in the middle stages of the season. Steve Matai is also a Kiwis certainty if fit, but Manly won't have to worry about Orford or Lyon being unavailable because of rep duty. Hasler was unlucky to miss out on the Kangaroo coaching gig, but will now be able to channel all of his energy towards a second premiership.
X-Factor: Steve Menzies played much of 2008 off the bench and was not the dominant player he had been in the 1990s, but his influence at the club was enormous. Manly desperately needs personality players to step into that breach. Brent Kite, their most experienced forward, is too aloof from the squad socially to step into that role, while the enigmatic Anthony Watmough doesn't need the pressure. Glenn Stewart stepped out of his brilliant younger brother's shadow in 2008 to become a first-choice second-rower for Australia, and has the ability and presence to fill Menzies' shoes.
Under pressure: The club's administration. Firstly, the internal disagreements need to be overcome, then they have an unenviable player retention situation on their hands. Test winger and cult figue David 'Wolfman' Williams and three-try grand final hero Michael Robertson are both off-contract at the end of 2009, with the club unlikely to be able to retain both due to salary cap pressures. One thing is assured though: Sea Eagles' fans will be baying for blood if either flankman is let go. The term Catch-22 comes to mind...
Ready to Explode: The 'Wolfman's' career is poised for the stratosphere. Rep selectors have started a trend of picking club centres for Origin and Test wing duty - the likes of Israel Folau, Greg Inglis, Brent Tate and Joel Monaghan being cases in point. In light of that, Williams, a World Cup final winger, can already lay claims to being the No. 1 winger in the NRL. That said, he would make a gun centre. Glenn Stewart's improvement last year was nothing short of remarkable, and should become a genuine leader at Manly in 2009.
Predictions: The only threat to a minor premiership for Manly is a rep period-inflicted form slump. The Sea Eagles should also be there on the first Sunday of September, but unfortunately for the Silvertails, they will finish in the same vein as their 1995-97 side, the Roosters of 2002-04, and the Storm circa 2006-08 - three consecutive grand finals with just one premiership trophy to show for it.
Minor premiers and beaten grand finallists
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