NRL Analysis: Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles v Sydney Roosters Preview

The Manly Warringah Sea Eagles and Sydney Roosters go head-to-head on Saturday night in a game that could define the season of the respective clubs.

Saturday night could end up being circled as a defining point of the season for the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles and Sydney Roosters.

The Sea Eagles, who just lost Haumole Olakau’atu for the season, are hanging on to their Top 8 hopes to be 9th on the ladder after 21 rounds. Meanwhile, the Roosters have welcomed back Sam Walker with just enough time to correct their horror 2-5 start to the season and play finals football.

Rugby league is a simple game that can often be reduced to which team controlled the middle of the field. Who plays with momentum, kicks well and wins field position, and who doesn’t.

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Both teams boast talented outside backs who profile as elite back-fives when the platform is laid in front of them. The key this week is which team can play with consistency in the middle.

The two packs make for an interesting battle; Manly’s size v Sydney’s speed.

It’s an exciting stylistic matchup on top of the finals implications.

Sea Eagles Surging

With all due respect to Jazz Tevaga, he’s not Harry Grant…

But he doesn’t need to be for the Sea Eagles to find success through the middle. His cues will be simple: have a big forward win the ruck, take away the Roosters’ line speed, and flood the space around the play-the-ball.

The Sea Eagles will have their spots in the line, like the Melbourne Storm did last week. From there, the opportunities will present themselves.

This looks like a fluffed and poorly planned run by Trent Loiero:

But check who it leaves at A on the shortside with Shawn Blore barrelling down at him.

Salesi Foketi and Spencer Leniu aren’t able to slow Loiero down through the tackle. He lands on his knees, pushes them back on his way up, and throws off the markers. With the quick ruck, uncertain markers and a backrower making a line for the halfback, Grant is able to split the defence to score.

It’s a similar story later in the game.

Again, it’s a strange run. Jack Howarth crabs across the field searching for his target: Sam Walker. In winning the contact, Howarth is able to bump Walker off, drop short, and win a quick play-the-ball. Naufahu Whyte hasn’t touched the paint with his foot before Grant is five metres from the line.

Howarth winning the tackle took away all of the Roosters’ linespeed, and that’s all Grant needs to jump out and cause havoc.

Again, we can’t expect this from Tevaga, but the Sea Eagles plan to use their size and strength in setup plays could be similar. Daly Cherry-Evans is just as dangerous against a retreating line if Tevaga can play him onto the advantage line.

Roosters Running Riot

In contrast for the Roosters, it’s about using their speed and mobility. Supports around the ball, leads compressing the middle and providing space for the outside backs to first generate yardage, and later finish the set with points.

The Bulldogs used bodies around the ball against the Sea Eagles last week. A smaller pack supported their ball-playing middles, holding up the inside defenders and stopping the slide outside with their genuine leads.

It doesn’t have to turn into points to be a good play. These shifts often create one-on-one tackles and momentum to then play behind.

Here, Kurt Mann is able to dig into the line with a lead outside him to generate the play-the-ball for points. By being able to stand in the tackle and bring Toafofoa Sipley in, if only for half a second, it’s enough to trigger a late retreater and the scrambled goal line numbers it creates.

Lachlan Galvin is too easily able to get across Sipley at A and into Ben Trbojevic at B, which brings Cherry-Evans in and creates the space out wide.

Styles make matches in the NRL, and these two present as the sort of opponents that can put on a beauty. The Roosters, in particular, are threatening to capture some form if they can string it together across multiple weeks.

It’s Game of the Round material if the two teams play in the style I expect through the middle.

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