Don't mention the war: Sea Eagles refuse to bite about departed

Don't mention the war: Sea Eagles refuse to bite about departed
Adrian Proszenko
February 26, 2012

MANLY'S first premiership-winning skipper, Fred Jones, began an anecdote with ''I'll never forget a game we played against Canterbury at Belmore …'' and was met with boos.

There was no mention of the elephant - make that Bulldog - in the room at Manly's season launch. When MC John Gibbs asked Geoff Toovey who the Sea Eagles were playing in round eight, the new coach offered ''Who cares?'' and scurried off the stage like he would through a gap in the defensive line in his playing days. No one was biting. Perhaps the goalposts weren't the only shadow cast on the event.

The Sun-Herald was granted an Eagle-eye view of proceedings, held at a corporate marquee at Brookvale Oval. Appropriately, it was pitched on the southern try line, familiar turf for players who often celebrated successes on that very patch last year. They sipped bottled water and mingled with sponsors, diehards and members of the club's first premiership-winning side in 1972. Given their premiership defence is but a week away, this couldn't replace the celebration that should have been their grand final party at Miramare Gardens function centre last October. And while the surroundings were slightly less salubrious, the whole shindig was just so, well, Manly.

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When co-captain Jason King was asked about Manly's tough opening to the season - a trip across the Tasman and no home games in the first five rounds - he began: ''The NRL never seems to look after us with scheduling …'', prompting Gibbs to interject: ''You're up the NRL already! Conspiracy theory. Fantastic!''

Likewise, the ''Godfather'', Ken Arthurson, confirmed what we all thought of the ''Insular Peninsular'' with this recollection of 1972. ''It wasn't enough to defeat the opposing sides we were up against, we had to beat the referees as well. I don't know if I'm being paranoid or not, but we had everyone against us.''

So it will be this year, with you-know-who another force to contend with after moving from Brookvale to Belmore. However, Arko is happy with the new man in charge, describing Toovey as the ''most courageous and tough player that I have seen play the game''.

In a magnanimous gesture, author Thomas Keneally, gave up his No.1 ticket-holder status, which was auctioned off to the highest bidder. Not for the first time, David Kenney of co-owner Quantum, pumped much-needed funds into the Sea Eagles, this time $40,000. These used to be the Silvertails. The last word should go to Jones, who challenged the current squad to ''join us'' by also going back-to-back. ''We had a bit of a problem at the end of last year,'' he said catching himself before mentioning the war. ''How did we have a problem? We won the comp!''


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