Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles

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Club information
Full name	Manly-Warringah District Rugby League Football Club
Nickname(s)	Sea Eagles
Colours	Maroon      White
Founded	1947
Departed	1999
Readmitted	2002
details
Ground(s)	Brookvale Oval (23,000)
CEO(s)	David Perry
Coach(s)	Geoff Toovey
Captain(s)	Jamie Lyon Jason King
Competition	National Rugby League
2011 season	Premiers (2nd)
Team colours		Away colours
Records
Premierships	8 (1972, 1973, 1976, 1978, 1987, 1996, 2008, 2011)
Runners-up	10 (1951, 1957, 1959, 1968, 1970, 1982, 1983, 1995, 1997, 2007)
Minor premiership	9 (1971, 1972, 1973, 1976, 1983, 1987, 1995, 1996, 1997)
World Club Challenge	1 (2009)
Wooden spoons	None
Most capped	309 - Cliff Lyons
Most points	1,917 - Graham Eadie

The Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles are an Australian professional rugby league club based on the Northern Beaches of Sydney. They compete in the National Rugby League's (NRL's) Telstra Premiership, the premier rugby league competition of Australasia. The club first appeared in the 1947 New South Wales Rugby Football League season and currently plays home matches out of its ground Brookvale Oval whilst being based at the New South Wales Academy of Sport in Narrabeen.

Manly-Warringah competed in the NSWRL, ARL and NRL every season until 1999. At the end of 1999, the club entered into a joint venture with the North Sydney Bears to form the Northern Eagles, which is considered a separate club. The Northern Eagles competed in 2000 and 2001, before the joint venture collapsed, allowing Manly-Warringah to return to the NRL as a stand-alone club in 2002. They abandoned the Northern Eagles brand at the start of the 2003 season.

Since winning their first premiership in 1972, the club has won a total of eight First Grade titles. They are the reigning NRL premiers, having won the 2011 Grand Final. The club's eight titles span five consecutive decades. Since their first Grand Final appearance in 1951, the club has appeared in 18 Grand Finals in eight consecutive decades. The clubs has never won the wooden spoon in its 62 seasons, the longest period of any current club.

Cliff Lyons holds the record for most first-grade games for Manly with 309; Steven Menzies played 349 games, but 69 were for the Northern Eagles. The record for most points scored is held by Graham Eadie with 1917 points and Matthew Ridge has the highest total in one season, scoring 257 in 1995. Steven Menzies holds the top try scoring record with 151. He is also the highest scoring forward in the history of the game.

History[link]

The movement to set up rugby league in Sydney had gained serious momentum and Manly, as with all the other Sydney district rugby clubs, endured internal agonies as the new "League" was considered.The NSWRL accepted Manly's application and, along with Parramatta, they were granted admission to the 1947 competition.

The North Sydney Bears though suffered more than they anticipated. After having played in the 1943 Grand Final they hit the wall after the exodus of Manly players for 1947. The Bears lost half of their games in 1947, before spending the next four seasons at the bottom of the ladder.

Manly immediately adopted the maroon and white colours they had used for their Presidents Cup team since its inception and borrowed originally from the Freshwater SLSC of which Ken Arthurson & other players were members. They chose for an emblem the sea eagle – the native bird of prey of the Sydney coastline. The use of emblems on jerseys and as a marketing tool was way in the future, and a number of media writers simply referred to Manly as the "sea gulls". However, while they never raised an objection to being called sea gulls (emphasising how much of a non-issue emblems/marketing names were at the time) the club maintains that it has always officially been the Sea Eagles since their first day.

Manly's first premiership game was against Western Suburbs Magpies at Brookvale Oval on Saturday 12 April 1947. Max Whitehead, who had first played for Norths in 1942 and was a member of their 1943 Grand Final team, was Manly's first captain. Whitehead was a big barrel-chested second rower who was used by Bonds as the model for their iconic "Chesty Bond" character. Their first win was against the Parramatta Eels and the club finished their first season in second to last place.

Their first Grand Final appearance was in the 1951 season, which they lost to South Sydney. Manly-Warringah played in five Grand Finals before winning their first in 1972. They then won the following year in 1973 and again in 1976 and 1978.

Manly were powerful in the early 80s but were beaten in two Grand finals by Parramatta, but was victorious against the Canberra raiders in the 1987 Grand final. The Bob Fulton coached Sea Eagles returned to the play-offs in 1993 and 1994 but were beaten on both occasions in the first elimination semi-final by the Brisbane Broncos.

In 1995, amidst the dramas of the Super League war, Manly produced one of its most dominating seasons in the club's history but in one of the league's most dramatic upsets, were upset by the Bulldogs in the Grand Final.

In 1996 a Manly returned to the Grand Final and beat St George Dragons to win the title that had eluded them the season before. Rugby League in Australia was split in two leagues in 1997, the ARL and Super League, and Manly were one of the leading teams of the ARL's competition. For the third year in a row Manly reached the Grand Final, however lapses in their intensity which appeared during the season returned in the premiership decider against the Newcastle Knights and the Sea Eagles were beaten on the full-time siren by a Knights try.

The Manly teams of 1995 to 1997 produced some of the most entertaining football in Sea Eagles' history, but also featured rugby league's stingiest defence. Many great players featured, including Des Hasler, Geoff Toovey, Nik Kosef, Steve Menzies, Terry Hill, Mark Carroll, the ageless Cliff Lyons and former NZ All Blacks Matthew Ridge and Craig Innes.

After 1997 the club collapsed on the field and only recorded a 10th place in the 1998 season, and then missed the finals in 1999.

Resurrection[link]

The joint venture collapsed and Manly retained the Northern Eagles licence for the 2002 season until returning to the competition as Manly for the 2003 season. The 2003 and 2004 seasons produced very few moments of joy for Sea Eagles supporters. The club improved its playing stocks for 2005, and reached the semi-finals for the first time since 1998. Manly have not missed the finals since, whilst every other club have missed the finals at least once since 2004.

A meeting of the Football Club in 3 June 2004 saw the club members vote for the privatisation of the Football Club.

2005 season[link]

It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into 2005 Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles season. (Discuss) Proposed since January 2012.

Manly made an unexpected bright start to the 2005 season, at one stage leading the competition outright after round seven. However their season was marred early by the dismissal of John Hopoate who was given a 17-match ban for striking Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks forward Keith Galloway in the round two match. Furthermore, the season overall was dominated by the team's fear of playing matches at night, with most of their defeats occurring under lights. This was pointed out by the Channel Nine commentators prior to its round eight, Friday night match against the Brisbane Broncos at Suncorp Stadium (which was in fact Manly's first Friday night match in six years) which the Sea Eagles indeed lost by a scoreline of 38–12. The Sea Eagles suffered a late-season form slump with injuries plaguing the club, however wins over the Broncos in round 22 and the Raiders in the final round ensured their first finals appearance since 1998. They crashed out of the finals with a 46–22 hammering from the minor premiers and bitter rivals Parramatta.

This season also marked the beginning of the Sea Eagles' rivalry with the Melbourne Storm. In round three, both teams had won their opening two matches leading into an early-season top-of-the-table match which Manly won 25–18. Although Manly's time at the top of the ladder was short-lived, it proved that Manly could match it with the best sides in the competition. Steve Matai made his first grade debut in that match, a late replacement after John Hopoate was suspended, then sacked by the club.

2006 season[link]

It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into 2006 Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles season. (Discuss) Proposed since January 2012.

Season 2006, its 60th season in the competition, saw an average season in which the Manly side again advanced to the finals, finishing fifth. For this season only, a commemorative 60th anniversary logo was used on the player jerseys. Despite losing their first two matches of the season (both by small margins) the Sea Eagles built on their 2005 season to once again advance to the play-offs. Highlights in the season included wins over the Roosters in round 4, the Bulldogs in round 7, the Storm in round 11 and a last-gasp win over the defending premiers Wests Tigers in round 14 in which Brett Stewart scored a spectacular try in the last five minutes. Furthermore, their fear of playing matches at night were eliminated with the exception of losses to the eventual premiers Brisbane in round 10 and Melbourne in the final round.

Drawn an away final against their 1997 ARL Grand Final nemesis the Newcastle Knights, the Sea Eagles led at halftime only to see their lead run down in a controversial second half. Although they did advance a week further, the Sea Eagles' season ended with a 28–0 shutout at the hands of the St. George Illawarra Dragons. That match also marked Ben Kennedy's final game after two years in Manly colours.

2007 season[link]

It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into 2007 Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles season. (Discuss) Proposed since January 2012.

In 2007, Manly played in their 15th grand final against Melbourne after defeating North Queensland at the Sydney Football Stadium 28 – 6. Manly were beaten 34 – 8 by the Storm on 30 September at Telstra Stadium, the game being notable for the sickening^{[citation needed]} but apparently legal tackle of Manly fullback Brett Stewart by the Storm's Michael Crocker. Melbourne was later stripped of the 2007 title for salary cap breaches. Manly were not recognised as the 2007 premiers (the premiers for 2007 and 2009 are instead being declared as null and void), despite calls by the fans and the Manly MP.

2008 season[link]

It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into 2008 Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles season. (Discuss) Proposed since January 2012.

With the departure of hooker Michael Monaghan, many questioned whether Manly could be as competitive as in 2007 and losses in the first 2 rounds seemed to confirm this. Manly's first win came in round 3 at Brookvale with a 52–6 thrashing of the New Zealand Warriors and followed this up with a 20–2 shutout of South Sydney. In the round 5 grand final rematch against the Storm, Manly were soundly beaten 26–4 and doubt about their premiership credentials resurfaced. In Heritage Round (Rd 6) Manly had a season defining last gasp win over bitter rivals Parramatta, with Manly overcoming injuries before and during the game including to winger Michael Bani who had to be stretchered off the ground after being knocked out.

Manly seemed to use this game as a springboard and entered a dangerous vein of form, notching up numerous impressive wins over top teams such as a 30–12 win over the Brisbane Broncos at Suncorp Stadium, a 42–0 annihilation of the Sydney Roosters at Brookvale Oval and a 34–14 win over the Gold Coast Titans at Skilled Park in round 17. In round 18 Manly avenged their opening round loss to bitter rivals and eventual preliminary finalists Cronulla with a 34–6 hammering of them at Toyota Stadium. In round 19, Manly once again faced historical rivals Parramatta and in a repeat of round 6, Manly lost halfback Matt Orford and lock Luke Williamson before the game and only minutes in five-eighth Jamie Lyon and prop Jason King were forced off the field with injury. An emotional King was later shown by Channel 9 cameras in the changerooms flipping over a table in frustration. Despite the setbacks and an early challenge from the Eels, Manly ran away with the game and finished 28–10 winners.

Some hiccups against the Roosters in round 20, the Storm in round 22 and the Rabbitohs in round 23 meant Manly finished the regular season tied first with Melbourne and Cronulla but 2nd on points differential and Manly missed out on claiming their first minor premiership since 1997. In the qualifying final manly faced 7th placed St. George at Brookvale. This game was club legend Steve Menzies's last ever game at Brookvale and he opened the scoring with an unusual charge down try in which after kicking ahead to himself and falling over, the ball bounced up and hit him in the head before he finally grounded it. Manly were easy 38–6 winners and departing Dragons centre Mark Gasnier was seen crying on the sidelines. After getting the week off, Manly faced the history making New Zealand Warriors whose late season charge got them into 8th place where they became the first 8th placed team to advance past qualifying finals with a dramatic and rare defeat of the Storm at Olympic Park. Despite an early challenge, Manly crushed the Warriors 32–6 and showcased their trademark wall of defense and attacking flair. With the win, Manly qualified for their 17th grand final where in a rematch of the 2007 decider, they would play the Melbourne Storm who had bounced back from the Warriors loss with wins over the Broncos and Sharks.

The story was very different for the Sea Eagles this time around as they decimated the Storm 40–0 to win their seventh premiership in front of 80,388 at ANZ Stadium. Ironically it was Michael Monaghan's replacement, the previously unknown Matt Ballin who scored the first try of the match. The game was also notable for winger Michael Robertson's hatrick and retiring legend Steve Menzies's try 10 minutes from full time, which he scored after coming back onto the field to replace the injured Steve Matai. Manly Prop Brent Kite was awarded the Clive Churchill Medal after a powerhouse display which included a class try in the 58th minute. This is the largest winning margin in a grand final in rugby league history.

2009 season[link]

It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into 2009 Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles season. (Discuss) Proposed since January 2012.

The 2009 season boded poorly as a result of two incidents on the day of Manly's season launch. Second-rower Anthony Watmough was assaulted by a sponsor after allegedly making inappropriate comments to his daughter .^[1] Brett Stewart later that night was charged with the sexual assault of a 17-year old girl outside his apartment block, which he was subsequently cleared of, an incident which led to the dammning Four Corners investigation, "Code of Silence". Stewart was cleared of the charge in late September 2010 by a jury which took 45 minutes to reach their decision.

Manly paid a $100,000 fine for failing to adequately punish Stewart for his offence. Stewart faced a brief trial at the time, and a further, more comprehensive trial began in March 2010. As a result of Stewart's absence, Manly lost their first four games of the season, crashing to last place after round four (thus becoming the first defending premier since Melbourne in 2000 to lose their first four matches of a season), before finally achieving a 23–10 win against the Tigers in which Stewart scored three tries in his first match for 2009. A double against Souths followed, before injury struck. Stewart only played five games overall in 2009 following a serious knee injury suffered in round six, before returning in round 25. The Sea Eagles snared fifth place at the end of the season and lost the first qualifying final to eventual grand final winners Melbourne 40–12 in a one-sided contest played at Melbourne's Etihad Stadium. Due to other unfavourable results occurring on the weekend, Manly were eliminated from the premiership race. This premiership was also stripped from the Storm.

2010 season[link]

It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into 2010 Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles season. (Discuss) Proposed since January 2012.

In 2010, Manly started the season with a team of many new faces, including young play-maker Kieran Foran. After narrowly losing their first two games of the season, Manly won their third, following three matches against Newcastle, the Warriors and the Sharks before a late season slump saw them settle for eighth position on the ladder. Manly players were not involved in any further violations in 2010, and embarked on an active program of community engagement, which includes activities such as reading at schools and raising money for charities.

Manly spent much of the middle of the season near the top of the ladder and were earmarked as a possible premiership contender with impressive wins over the St. George Illawarra Dragons and the Wests Tigers. Inconsistent form, injuries and suspensions caused a dramatic slide down the ladder and Manly were lucky to settle on 8th and just make the finals. Had it not been for the Melbourne Storm salary cap breach earlier in the season, Manly would have missed the finals altogether for the first time since 2004. In round 25 ballplaying second-rower Glenn Stewart was suspended for 4 matches for high shot on Sydney Roosters captain Braith Anasta and in round 26 centre Steve Matai was suspended for 7 matches for a high tackle that knocked out Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs hooker Michael Ennis. Their 2010 season ended with a dismal 28–0 hammering from the eventual premiers St. George Illawarra, although Manly were still in the game with 15 minutes remaining. Manly went into this game with 11 of their first choice players out with either injury or suspension and many of those who did play were still carrying injuries.

2011 season[link]

It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into 2011 Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles season. (Discuss) Proposed since October 2011.

At the end of the 2010 season Manly lost Trent Hodkinson who signed a massive deal with the Bulldogs from the 2011 season onwards, as well as Josh Perry and Ben Farrar to the European Super League. Manly have not made any huge signings for the 2011 season. This was mirrored with its lowly 8th placing in the 2010 season, its lowest placing since 2005. However, Brett Stewart and David Williams are expected to return from long-term knee injuries which wiped them out for all but 76 minutes of the 2010 season. Manly has also announced plans to take games into Asia in 2011 with Macau, Singapore and China being likely destinations.^[2]

Manly's 2011 season started with an 18–6 loss to the Melbourne Storm in Melbourne. Brett Stewart made minimal impact in the match but escaped injury-free. This was followed with an upset 27–16 win over last year's beaten Grand Finalists, the Sydney Roosters, where Manly went into the match without its captain Jamie Lyon, Shane Rodney, Dean Whare and Glenn Stewart through injury and also Jason King and Steve Matai through suspension. Brett Stewart was appointed acting captain for the Roosters match. This is regarded as one of the most commendable wins in Manly's history ^[3] and featured outstanding performances by its younger players including Kieran Foran, Jamie Buhrer, William Hopoate and Vic Mauro. This was followed up with a 26–12 win over the Newcastle Knights at home, before a desperately unlucky loss against the South Sydney Rabbitohs by 32–30 which ended Manly's unbeaten run at Bluetongue Stadium, having won all of its matches at the venue beforehand.

Off-field controversy struck again when Anthony Watmough and Terence Seu Seu were both stood down by the club for urinating in public prior to its round five match against Cronulla at Toyota Stadium. The Sea Eagles were in trouble midway through the second half, at 13–0 down, before scoring 19 unanswered points, including a try after the siren by Michael Oldfield, to give the Silvertails a 19–13 victory.

Despite the massive player turnover from last season the Sea Eagles surprisingly find themselves sitting in second place on the NRL Ladder, only behind another rebuilding team in the Melbourne Storm. They have only lost five matches all season, all of them occurring at night. Manly won all of its matches at Brookvale Oval this season, reinstating the notorious "Fortress Brookie" title to the ground. The Last game at Brookvale was a Top of the Table Clash against the Melbourne Storm, Manly went on to win this game 18 – 4 but the win was shadowed by a massive brawl between Glenn Stewart and Adam Blair, giving the game the nickname 'The Battle Of Brookvale'.

On Saturday 10 September Manly registered a commanding 42-8 win over the North Queensland Cowboys at the Sydney Football Stadium. After a disappointing first stanza, Manly put in a masterclass to score 42 unanswered points in the 2nd half, to progress to the preliminary final. In the match itself, they defeated the Brisbane Broncos 26-14 to be the first team through to the 2011 NRL Grand Final, where they then met the New Zealand Warriors who were vying for their first ever premiership.

A season of success culminated in Manly winning its eighth premiership, defeating the New Zealand Warriors by 24–10 in the Grand Final. Glenn Stewart was awarded the Clive Churchill Medal for his 34 tackles and a crucial try in the second half, making he and brother Brett Stewart the first ever brothers to score tries in the same Grand Final (in the 10 matches where this Stewart Brothers' double has occurred, Manly has won all 10 matches). Their second premiership in the NRL era means that they are only the second team (after the Brisbane Broncos in 1998, 2000 and 2006), and the first New South Wales-based team, to win a premiership more than once since 1998.

Just 40 days after Manly's premiership win, the club sensationally dismissed head coach Des Hasler after he was revealed to have breached his contract by trying to lure coaching staff and players to the Bulldogs where he would have started coaching in 2013. This meant that Geoff Toovey, who was to take over as part of a succession plan, was immediately elevated to the role of head coach from the 2012 season onwards.

2012 season[link]

Manly's pre-season started dismally with a 38-6 loss to perennial strugglers Cronulla in the first match played under new coach Geoff Toovey. This was followed by a 26-12 loss in the 2012 World Club Challenge to Leeds Rhinos.

The Sea Eagles' premiership defence began with an away trip to Eden Park in Auckland where they faced the New Zealand Warriors in the Grand Final rematch and won 26-20. They backed up that close win with another close win against the Wests Tigers, winning 22-18. Manly lost its first match for the 2012 season when it went down 17-13 to the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks in a major upset, then another loss followed when it fell to 2010 premiers St. George Illawarra at Kogarah by 17-4.

Emblem and colours[link]

• Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles - Logos
• Manly 1950.jpg

  1950–1969

• Manly-Warringah logo of the 1970s.jpg

  1970–1980

• Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles logo.svg

  1997–1999, 2003–present

Upon entering the NSWRL, the Manly club took on the colours of maroon and white. These were adopted from the colours of the President's Cup side who wore the colours of the local Freshwater Surf Lifesaving Club, which was previously established in the area in 1908.

The club's first jersey was maroon with a large white 'V' on the front. Manly teams were one of the first to feature an emblem, with an 'MW' appearing in the early 1950s. Far from the flashy logos worn today, the Manly‘Sea Eagle’which appeared in the mid 1950s was often confused for a seagull by many, including the media.

Various changes to the jersey were introduced at irregular intervals. The classic 'V' design was radically changed during the years of Pepsi sponsorship during the 90s. In addition, the club has broken up the maroon jersey with hoops, bars, large eagles, player numbers, stripes, double stripes, top and bottoms, collars, no collars, reversed colours and even the use of blue.

The team has been officially known as the "Sea Eagles" ever since the club entered the first grade competition in 1947. There was some confusion over this in the 1950s, when a journalist named Jim Mather (Sydney Daily Telegraph) began referring to the team as the "Seagulls" in his reports. This was picked up by other journalists and some fans, and at a time when club logos and nicknames were not used as prominently as they are today, the team was often referred to as the "Seagulls" in this era. However, officially Manly have always been the "Sea Eagles". Manly would change their Sea Eagle logo in 1998 following the introduction of the new competition. A new stylised sea eagle appeared under the 'Sea Eagles' banner, much more fierce and aggressive than its predecessor. It featured predominatley maroon, white, yellow and blue to symbolise the connection the club had with its major sponsor at the time Pepsi. This logo would not last however when the ill fated merger with North Sydney Bears in 2000 saw them take on the Northern Eagles moniker instead.

Upon their return in 2003, Manly opted to revert back to the previous logo but tweaked the logo slightly to focus on the sea eagle itself and include Warringah in the clubs name again. They also returned to their original colours of maroon and white, a symbol of their roots steming back from 1947. This logo has been in use since then.

A commemorative logo was used throughout the 2006 season to mark the 60th anniversary of their inclusion in the competition.

During the 2007 pre-season, the club introduced a limited number of 65 playing and memorabilia green and white jerseys, for a trial match against the Melbourne Storm.

Stadium[link]

This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability.

When Manly were accepted into the competition, the local Manly Council denied the club permission to use Manly Oval as a home ground. The council at the time was very pro-rugby union and attempted to stop the rival code spread to the area. Because of this, the club decided instead to acquire Brookvale Showground in order to host matches, which was supported by Warringah Council.

The ground was mostly renovated between 1965 and 1980, including the construction of two grandstands along both the southern end (Southern Stand) and western side (Jane Try Stand) of the ground. In the early 1990s, these two grandstands were connected by the Ken Arthurson Stand. The ground has also retained grassy hill areas along the eastern and northern edges. On 1 September 2008, the Southern Stand was renamed the Fulton-Menzies Stand.

Today the ground has a capacity of about 23,000. In 2006, the ground saw its largest average attendance over an entire season, with an average of 15,484 patrons watching each of the club's 11 matches played there. The record crowd at the ground is 27,655, set in the final round of the 1986 season. Since the club started playing in 1947, over five and a half million spectators have visited the ground.

In recent years, Manly have received criticism over the state of facilities at Brookvale Oval. In 2007, Manly stepped up their campaign for government funding to improve the stadium, culminating in a "Save Brookvale Oval" Rally on 21 November. As of September 2008, $4,000,000 of Warringah Council funding and a $6,000,000 NSW State Government grant has been secured by the club to allow for the initial redevelopment of the Jane Try Stand (with an additional level) and improvements to the Southern Stand and other amenities. A further $10,000,000 is being sought from the Federal Government for the development of an eastern stand, with the intention of maintaining a 10-metre deep grassed area in front of it.

In recent seasons, Brookvale Oval has been regarded as a graveyard for many opposition teams, thus earning the nickname "Fortress Brookvale".^{[citation needed]} Manly went through the 2011 season undefeated at its home ground, with no visiting team victorious at the ground since Round 26, 2010.

Players[link]

Current squad[link]

2012 Player Transfers[link]

It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into 2011 Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles season. (Discuss) Proposed since September 2011.

Notable players[link]

In 1990, the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles club recognised their players, past and present, with a team announced to reflect the best squad up to that point. That team is listed below.

No. Position Player 1 FB Graham Eadie 2 WG Tom Mooney 3 CE Michael O'Connor 4 CE Bob Fulton 5 WG Les Hanigan 6 FE Wally O'Connell 7 HB Des Hasler 13 LK Malcolm "Mal" Reilly 12 SR Terry Randall

No. Position Player 11 SR Phil Lowe 10 PR Roy Bull 9 HK Max Krilich 8 PR John O'Neill 14 RE Ian Martin 15 RE Alan Thompson 16 RE Steve Norton 17 RE John McDonald

In 2006, a Dream Team of former Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles players was selected by a panel of selectors which featured former Manly-Warringah administrator Ken Arthurson, respected rugby league writer Ian Heads, the club Chairman Kerry Sibraa and journalist Phil Rothfield.

No. Position Player 1 FB Graham Eadie 2 WG Ken Irvine 3 CE Ray Branighan 4 CE Bob Fulton 5 WG Michael O'Connor 6 FE Wally O'Connell 7 HB Geoff Toovey 8 PR Roy Bull 9 HK Max Krilich

No. Position Player 10 PR John O'Neill 11 SR Steve Menzies 12 SR Terry Randall 13 LK Malcolm "Mal" Reilly 14 RE Des Hasler 15 RE Ben Kennedy 16 RE Cliff Lyons 17 RE Paul Vautin CO Frank Stanton (coach)

Coaches[link]

• Harold Johnston – 1947
• Ray Stehr – 1947–1948
• George Mullins – 1949
• Wally O'Connell – 1950–1952 and 1966–1967
• Roy Bull – 1953
• Ray Norman – 1954
• Pat Devery – 1955–1956
• Ken Arthurson – 1957–1961
• Ron Willey – 1962 and 1970–1974
• Tony Paskins – 1963
• Russell Pepperell – 1964–1965
• George Hunter – 1968–1969
• Frank Stanton – 1975–1979
• Allan Thomson – 1980
• Ray Ritchie – 1981–1982
• Bob Fulton – 1983–1988 and 1993–1999
• Alan Thompson – 1989
• Graham Lowe – 1990–1992
• Peter Sharp – 1999 and 2003¹
• Des Hasler – 2004–2011
• Geoff Toovey – 2012–

¹ Sharp was also coach of the Northern Eagles between 2000 and 2002.

Records and statistics[link]

• Biggest win: 70-7 vs Penrith (1973 NSWRFL season)
• Biggest loss: 6-68 vs Cronulla-Sutherland (2005 NRL season)
• Most consecutive wins: 15 (1995 ARL season)
• Most consecutive losses: 8 (1950 & 1998-99)

Honours[link]

• New South Wales Rugby League, Australian Rugby League and National Rugby League^[4]: 8

1972, 1973, 1976, 1978, 1987, 1996, 2008, 2011

• New South Wales Rugby League, Australian Rugby League and National Rugby League runners-up: 10

1951, 1957, 1959, 1968, 1970, 1982–83, 1995, 1997, 2007

• New South Wales Rugby League, Australian Rugby League and National Rugby League minor premierships: 9

1971, 1972, 1973, 1976, 1983, 1987, 1995, 1996, 1997

• New South Wales Rugby League Club Championships: 4

1972, 1983, 1987, 1988

• Pre-Season Cup titles: 1

1980

• World Club Challenge: 1

2009

• KB Cup: 2

1982, 1983

• Sevens: 3

1990, 1994, 1995

• First Division, Premier League^[5]: 5

1954, 1960, 1969, 1973, 1988

• Jersey Flegg: 4

1961, 1974, 1987, 1988

• Presidents Cup: 2

1946, 1970

• Third Grade: 1

1952

Supporters[link]

The Sea Eagles, nicknamed the Silvertails, are well known as a team that most working-class rugby league fans traditionally love to hate.^[6] Notable supporters of the club include Jim Anderson,^[7] Allen Aylett,^[8] Wendy Harmer,^[9] Hugh Jackman,^[10] Thomas Keneally,^[11]

Kerri Pottharst,^[12] Layne Beachley,^[12] Shelley Taylor-Smith,^[12] Shelley Oates-Wilding,^[12] Tracey Spicer,^[12] Nici Andronicus,^[12] Naomi Flood,^[12] Melissa Femia,^[12] Melinda Gainsford-Taylor,^[12] Louise Sauvage,^[12] Debbie Watson,^[12] Brooke Hanson,^[12] Anne Sargeant,^[12] Amy O'Mara,^[12] Johanna Griggs,^[13] Zali Steggall,^[13] Jean Hay, AM,^[14]

Doug Mulray,^[15] Peter Phelps,^[9] Mike Goldman,^[16] Miles Stewart^[17] and Sarah Murdoch.^[18]

References[link]

Sources[link]

• Rugby League History; Sean Fagan
• Encyclopedia of Rugby League Players, 1999; Alan Whiticker and Glen Hudson
• ABC of Rugby League, 1995; Malcolm Andrews
• Heritage Report on Brookvale Oval, Mayne-Wilson & Associates; August 2005

External links[link]

• Rugby League Tables and Statistics; Paul Jeffs
• Official Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles Website
• Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles Annual Report 2008

Jamie Lyon

Lyon playing for Manly in 2008
Personal information
Nickname	Killer[1][2]
Born	(1982-01-24) 24 January 1982 (age 30) Narrabri, New South Wales, Australia
Height	1.79 m (5 ft 10 in)
Weight	95 kg (14 st 13 lb)
Playing information
Position	Centre, Five-eighth
Club
Years	Team	Pld	T	G	FG	P
2000–04	Parramatta Eels	70	36	0	0	144
2005–06	St Helens	63	46	213	0	610
2007–	Manly-Warringah	125	48	234	0	662
	Total	258	130	447	0	1416
Representative
Years	Team	Pld	T	G	FG	P
2003–09	NSW Country	2	1	3	0	10
2002–10	New South Wales	10	1	8	0	20
2001–10	Australia	8	4	6	0	20
As of 15 July 2011
Source: [1], NRL Stats, RLP, Herald Sun

Jamie Lyon (born 24 January 1982 in Narrabri, New South Wales) is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who currently captains the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles of the National Rugby League (NRL). An Australian international and New South Wales State of Origin representative goal-kicking centre, he played his first club football for the Parramatta Eels before joining Super League with English club St. Helens, with whom he won the 2006 Championship and Challenge Cup titles. Lyon then returned to the NRL with Manly-Warringah, winning the 2008 and 2011 grand finals with them.

Biography[link]

Born in Narrabri in north-central New South Wales^[1] and growing up in Wee Waa, New South Wales, he played junior rugby league for the Wee Waa Panthers.^[1] Selected to play for the Australian Schoolboys team, while attending Parramatta Marist High School he was part of the 1999 squad who went undefeated in their tour of France, Ireland and England.^[3] Parramatta Eels's club development officer at the time, Noel Cleal, saw potential in the young centre and managed to lure Lyon to sign with the Sydney club.^[4]

Professional playing career[link]

Parramatta[link]

Lyon made his NRL début coming off the bench in the Eels' round 21 clash against the newly merged Wests Tigers on 25 June 2000^[5] becoming the 622nd first grader for Parramatta in the process.^[6] He scored his first try just three rounds later and he finished his début season with a try in Parramatta's 32–24 defeat of the St George Illawarra Dragons.

In 2001, Lyon found himself regularly in the run-on squad. By season's end Parramatta took out the J. J. Giltinan Shield as the minor premiers thanks in part to Lyon's 11 tries. After defeating the New Zealand Warriors and the Brisbane Broncos in the qualifying and preliminary finals respectively, Parramatta fell just short of becoming premiers losing to the Newcastle Knights in 2001 NRL Grand Final, in which Lyon played at centre, scoring two tries. At the end of the 2001 NRL season, Lyon became the 697th player to represent Australia^[7] when he made his national representative début in the test match at Lloyd Robson Oval, Port Moresby against Papua New Guinea where scored two tries off the bench. Later that year, he became the youngest-ever Kangaroo tourist when he was selected for the 2001 Kangaroo Tour.^[8]

The start of the 2002 NRL season started off well for Lyon, and he made his New South Wales Blues début in Game I of the 2002 State of Origin series, scoring a try in 32–4 points victory. He played again in Game II of the series however an ankle injury that was sustained in the Eels round 14 match against the defending premiers, found Lyon out for the remainder of the season.^[9] In June 2002, he extended his contract with the Parramatta club until the end of 2006 at around $250,000 per season.^[10]

He made his return in Round 1 of the 2003 NRL season. Starting off well again, he scored four tries in four games.^[11] That year, he played in all three games for the Blues in their 2–1 2003 State of Origin series victory. A hamstring injury though saw Lyon again on sideline. However, he recovered and in round 24, he set the club record for the most tries in first grade match when he ran in 5 in Parramatta's 74–4 defeat of the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks, helping the Eels set their highest ever score and largest ever winning margin in process.^[12][13] But this was not enough for the Eels as they just missed the finals for the first time since 1996, and for the first time in Brian Smith's time at the club.

During his time at Parramatta, Lyon had received several club awards including the Jack Gibson Award in 2001 awarded by the first grade coach, the Ron Lynch Media Award in 2003, the Members People Choice Award in 2003 and, along with Matthew Petersen, was jointly awarded the Murray Wilson Try Scoring Award as the top try scorers for the club in the 2003 NRL season.^[14]

Lyon made headlines when on 15 March 2004, after four seasons, 70 games and at the age of just 22, announced that he was retiring from Parramatta and the NRL. He did so just two days after Parramatta's round one 48–14 loss to the Canterbury Bulldogs^[15] and without talking to his team mates.^[16] He had around two years remaining on his contract.

In reaction to the announcement, fellow country players Justin Hodges and David Peachey publicly supported his decision. With both players themselves taking breaks from the game, Hodges was quoted as saying that "footy does get a hold on you and it does get you down sometimes. People say it's the life but sometimes there's more bad than good. He's [Lyon] only 22 and he's from the country so it's pretty hard living in a big city like this. Even I struggled."^[17]

Terry Hill added to the controversy when at the press conference to announce his own retirement, he predicted more young players would take Lyon's lead and leave the top grade.^[16]

Return to Country NSW[link]

On 9 April 2004, Lyon's manager Alan Gainey announced that Lyon was seeking a clearance to return to his junior club – the Wee Waa Panthers.^[18] On 14 April 2004, one month after he walked out, Lyon and Gainey meet with Parramatta officials for two hours to determine Lyon's future.^[19] The following day, it was announced this that his pay would be suspended and that the initial Wee Waa offer was rejected.^[20]

However, six weeks later on 4 June 2004, the Eels conceded and granted the clearance under the condition that Lyon could not play for another club in the NRL.^[21] Lyon agreed to the condition and signed a supplemental agreement to play with the Country Rugby League Group Four club up until the end of 2006.^[22] He proved to be a worthy asset as the Panthers defeated the Moree Boars in the grand final.^[23]

St. Helens[link]

Jamie Lyon preparing to kick at goal for St Helens

After bids from the Penrith Panthers,^[24] the Gold Coast Dolphins (as they originally were going to be named),^[25] the Canberra Raiders^[24] and the Sea-eagles,^[26] Lyon on 17 August 2004, signed with European Super League club St. Helens on a two year deal.^[27] The club outlayed $150,000 to clear Lyon of his existing contract as well as $600,000 over the two seasons.^[28]

Lyon made his début for the Saints on 11 February 2005 against the Widnes Vikings at Knowsley Road. After a delayed start due to crowd congestion, Lyon set up two tries in the 40–18 win.^[29] He scored his first try for the 116 year old club in the round 5 clash against the Salford City Reds^[30] and in the following round against the Wakefield Trinity Wildcats kicked six goals from seven attempts.^[31]

Jamie Lyon kicking at goal for St. Helens in the 2006 Super League Grand Final victory over Hull at Old Trafford

Lyon's performance for the Saints received praise from both the media and the fans. He was twice voted as the Super League Player of the Month by the readers of the British rugby league publication Rugby Leaguer and League Express. For rounds 13 to 16 he received 42 percent of the vote and for round 17 to 20 he increased his share to 67.5 percent of the vote.^[32]

By seasons end, he had amassed 22 tries and 42 goals for a total 172 points; became only the fourth non-British player to be presented with the Man of Steel Award; was named the Rugby League Players Association Players' Player of the Year;^[33] and was named as part of the media selected 2005 Super League Dream Team.^[34]

In 2006, Lyon became the Saints number one goal kicker with captain Paul Sculthorpe reduced to replacement kicker. He was instrumental for the Saints as they won both the 2006 Super League Grand Final and the Rugby League Challenge Cup. In addition to the 88 points scored in the Challenge Cup, he almost doubled his 2005 premiership points tally with 328. As a result, he was once again selected as part of Super League Dream Team.^[35]

Manly-Warringah[link]

In March 2006, Lyon made contact with Parramatta with the intent of returning to his old club in 2007.^[36] In early May, it seemed certain that Lyon was about to sign the Eels,^[37] but in June the deal went sour and other offers came in from Penrith^[38] and Newcastle.^[39] In the end Manly won out when on 5 July 2006, 5 days after the anti-tampering deadline it was announced that Lyon had signed a four year deal with the Brookvale based club.^[40][41][42] The determining factor was Noel Cleal, the club's recruitment officer.^[39]

On 2 October 2006, the squad for the 2006 Tri-Nations tournament was announced with Lyon being a surprise inclusion.^[43][44] In reaction to his selection, Parramatta legend Peter Sterling had at the time criticised Lyon, saying that he should not even be allowed in the NRL claiming that Lyon took $125,000 for playing only a handful of games in 2004 and considering Lyon as "lacking class".^[45] Lyon retorted that he did "not look up to Sterlo" and that the comments "would not worry" him.^[46] Lyon played in only one match during the series, Australia's first match against Great Britain^[47] where Australia went down 23–12. Australia ended up winning the series defeating New Zealand in the final.

After a great pre-season,^[48] he made his début for Manly on 17 March 2007 against the Canberra Raiders where he scored two tries and kicked three goals.^[49] Initially playing in the centres, the return of Steve Matai saw Lyon move into the Stand-off/five-eighth role.

Round 9 saw Manly at home to Parramatta and the first time Lyon played against old club, however Parramatta played down the significance.^[50] Lyon showed no mercy as he scored early in second half to help steer Manly to victory.^[51]

Since Lyon's return to the NRL has played in the 2007 ANZAC Test against New Zealand and Games I and II of the 2007 State of Origin series.

He played in the 2007 NRL grand final defeat to the Melbourne Storm.^[52]

He played in the 2008 NRL Grand Final victory over the Melbourne Storm, kicking two goals.^[53] In the 2010 season, he was appointed co-captain of Manly.^[54]

Lyon switched between centre and five-eight in the 2009 season, in the later games played in the centres to make way for young Kieran Foran. After representative exile, he was selected for Country in the City vs Country match on 8 May 2009.^[55] He was then named in the 17 man squad to represent New South Wales in the opening match of the 2009 State of Origin series, in Melbourne.^[56]

With the departure of captain Matt Orford to the Bradford Bulls in the European Super League at the conclusion of the 2009 season, Lyon was named co-captain alongside Manly stalwart Jason King. Since being appointed co-captaincy and making a permanent move to right centre position, Lyon has been in arguably career-best form, reflected by being named Dally M Centre of the Year in both 2010 and 2011. Lyon has also been an almost automatic selection for both NSW and Australia, however he has sought exemption from representative duties on most occasions, citing family reasons.

Lyon also played in the 2010 ANZAC test vs New Zealand, scoring two goals and for Game 1 of the 2010 State of Origin series.

Lyon captained the Manly Sea Eagles from his position at centre in the 2011 NRL grand final, scoring a try in the win over the New Zealand Warriors.

On 3 November 2011 The annual RLIF Awards dinner was held at the Tower of London and Lyon was named centre three-quarter back of the year.^[57]

References[link]