Dennis Pili Gaitau takes on the Woodies defence.
Photo: Adam MacDonald
| Second half collapse sees Woods nail Marlins By Adam Lucius |
| What: Shute Shield round 14 |
| Who: Manly v Eastwood |
| Where: Manly Oval |
| Result: Eastwood 40-24 |
| Manly is where on the table: Seventh (37 points) |
80 minutes in 80 seconds:
With our best and brightest from Generation Next watching on Juniors Day, the Woodies jumped out to an early 10-0 lead and things looked ominous for the men in blue. But a revival of sorts followed and we swept to a 21-10 advantage on the back of tries to Jay Baker, Alex Dalzell and Josh Turner. Then the light switched off. The Woodies took control in the second half as the Marlins faded from view. From 21-10, the visitors piled on 30 points to our three to easily close out the game. It was a terribly disappointing collapse – and one that has left us outside the top six with four rounds remaining.
Where it was Lost:
There were some really poor options taken combined with poor discipline and composure as panic crept in. Our mistakes inevitably led to Eastwood points. Two charge-down tries certainly didn’t help the cause.
Marlins' best:
Aaron Blacklock, Sio Tatola, Luke Crocker
What they said:
“We were our own worst enemy. Too many errors. You can’t win without the footy. We’ve got to be better and we will. It’s pretty much do or die from here.” – hooker Aaron Blacklock
Worth a mention:
The one bright moment from an otherwise second half arrived around the hour mark when popular centre Dennis Pili-Gaitau made his return to Manly Oval after a stint with French club Carcassonne. DPG is a class act and we will need him in what now looms as a testing month leading into the play-offs. A salute also to the premiership-winning 1999 Colts squad – most of whom were still going strong hours after the fulltime bell.
