NYC Rd 22 North Qld 22 Manly 24
The Manly Sea Eagles NYC team have lifted themselves off the bottom of the NYC ladder with a heart-stopping 24-22 win over the North Queensland Cowboys in Townsville.
by NRLThe Manly Sea Eagles NYC team have lifted themselves off the bottom of the NYC ladder with a heart-stopping 24-22 win over the North Queensland Cowboys in Townsville.
The Sea Eagles led 12-4 at the break, and pushed that lead to 24-10 with 18 minutes remaining before holding off a late Cowboys surge to claim a thrilling win.
It was the perfect start for the Sea Eagles, Nathan Cooper crossing within the first minute to set up a 4-0 lead after the Cowboys spilled the kick-off and gifted Manly the first opportunity.
Josh Drinkwater extended that lead in the 20th minute, crossing for his ninth try of the season before Cooper grabbed his double in the 28th minute to complete the dream start for the visitors.
The Cowboys did strike just before the break, with Nathan Norford crossing, but Manly still maintained a 12-4 lead at the break, dominating most the play and making North Queensland pay for their errors.
The Sea Eagles dominance continued in the second half, as Luke Bartley crossed in the 47th minute to open up an 18-4 lead.
Zac Santo got the home side back in the game in the 57th minute when he scored, but his effort was quickly matched by another try to Manly when Joseph Napoletano to push their lead out to 24-10 inside the final quarter.
The Cowboys came home very strongly, scoring in the 66th minute through Chris Grevsmuhl and then again to set up a grandstand finish in the 75th minute through Roger Dean, closing the gap to 24-22.
Despite their rampant attack, the strong Sea Eagles defence held them out for the final five minutes, and secured a quality victory on the road.
The win will provide the Sea Eagles with plenty of confidence heading into their clash with top eight side South Sydney next Friday at Bluetonge Stadium.
MANLY SEA EAGLES 24
(N Cooper 2, J Drinkwater, L Bartley, J Napoletano Tries; D Kelly 1/1, L Bartley 1/1, J Drinkwater 0/3 Goals)
Defeated
NORTH QUEENSLAND COWBOYS 22
(N Norford, Z Santo, C Grevsmuhl, R Dean Tries; S Foster 3/3, K Feldt 0/1 Goals)
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