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Battered and bruised: Sea Eagles dynasty in ruins

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Getty

Plenty had predicted that 2015 would be the season that Manly’s high-profile departures, drawn-out contract negotiations of their remaining superstars, a supposedly toxic culture and an incompetent board would belatedly bring about the end of the club’s perennial contender status.

Few forecast the Sea Eagles’ demise would be confirmed after Round 1.

Minutes after being humbled 42-12 by the occasionally brilliant but notoriously erratic Parramatta Eels, Manly’s halfback gun Daly Cherry-Evans informed teammates he would be leaving Sydney’s northern peninsula to join Gold Coast in 2016 – ending months of speculation after garishly being shopped around to rival clubs.

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Cherry-Evans, who was reportedly at the crux of fractures within the playing group in recent seasons, is one of the NRL’s nice guys and a tremendous ambassador for the code.

But his poorly-managed contract circus and imminent departure is destined to tug at the loose thread of Manly’s unravelling morale.

Compounding the Sea Eagles’ woes, brilliant five-eighth Kieran Foran – himself strongly rumoured to commit to the Eels any day now, potentially causing further unrest – tore his hamstring and is set to be sidelined for a month, while boom outside-back Clint Gutherson was given the devastating diagnosis of a season-ending ACL injury.

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Daly Cherry-Evans informed teammates he would be leaving Sydney’s northern peninsula. Photo: Getty

Steve Matai, Jamie Buhrer, Jorge Taufua and Josh Starling also remain in the casualty ward.

But the DCE fiasco and simultaneous injury woes are also deflecting from other factors just as crucial to the Sea Eagles’ win column and top-eight prospects this season.

After the departure of valuable veterans Anthony Watmough, Glenn Stewart and Jason King thinned their forward stocks, the Sea Eagles gambled on journeymen Willie Mason and Feleti Mateo.

Both acquisitions are set to backfire horribly.

Mason, almost 35, was repeatedly pummelled by Watmough and his posse of Eels tyros, while Mateo looked overweight, ineffective and as enigmatic and offload-happy as ever.

The formerly feared and revered Manly backline, disjointed against Parramatta and already battling an injury crisis, will struggle if Friday night was any indication of the platform they can expect to be set for them.

The Sea Eagles have qualified for the finals for the past 10 consecutive seasons – a mighty achievement in the salary cap era, encompassing two premierships and a further two Grand Final appearances.

That streak will come to an end this year.

Geoff Toovey’s splintered squad is set to be muscling for rank with the likes of the Titans and Raiders, rather than the Roosters and Rabbitohs.

Money well spent 

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Rabbitohs Chris McQueen is tackled by Justin Hodges of the Broncos during round one. Photo: Getty

The supposed death of loyalty in rugby league and the dearth of one-club stalwarts is regularly bemoaned by the masses, but one of the most exciting aspects of Round 1 every season is watching star players line up in a different jumper.

While the focus has predominantly been on the tentative, misfiring debut of ‘buy of the decade’ Anthony Milford in Brisbane’s heavy loss to South Sydney and Watmough’s grudge match on debut for Parramatta, several off-season recruits have already proved valuable acquisitions.

Glenn Stewart was superb as the Rabbitohs adapt to life without Sam Burgess; Brad Takairangi looks a real danger-man at centre for the Eels; veteran backrower Ryan Hoffman was a dead-set inspiration in his first match in Warriors colours; Blake Ferguson ended his 547-day NRL exile in impressive style as the Roosters spanked the Cowboys; and Brett Morris’ sizzling try as the Bulldogs launched a late comeback at Penrith suggests he can be the missing premiership link for the club at fullback.

The send-off is dead

If promising Wests Tigers five-eighth Mitchell Moses’ ugly coat-hanger on Gold Coast Titans fullback Will Zillman was deemed not serious enough to be sent off, nothing short of a flying elbow off the cross-bar will earn an early shower in 2015.

Despite a lack of malicious intent, Moses will cop a couple of weeks for the tackle – yet the whistle-blowers are reticent to march anyone due to the impact it can have on the result of a match.

As it transpired, the Tigers prevailed 19-18 courtesy of a last-second field goal.

The embattled Titans had cause to feel hard done by, going down to a team that should have been reduced to 12.

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