Shute Shield Previews: Manly to Bounce Back while Pirates Eye Play-Offs
by Brendan Bradford -
Manly vs Northern Suburbs –
Manly coach Phil Blake was quick to douse speculation that his side was in trouble after its second loss in three weeks. The Marlins’ 43-34 defeat in the Northern Beaches derby followed a 19-18 loss to Easts two weeks before, but Blake remains philosophical about the results as the regular season draws to a close.
“We need to address a few issues and understand that we were outplayed on the weekend, and that happens sometimes,” he said.
“They didn’t play any differently to how we thought they’d play, but our execution let us down. We missed a few lineouts, gave up scrum penalties, had kicks that didn’t find touch or were charged down, so they had the running of the first half. That’s just pressure and don’t forget that they were beaten by