Eagles get grip on flag John Greco 19 June 2008 http://manlydaily.com.au/article/2008/06/19/10689_sports.html Brazilian martial arts expert Marcelo Rezende has been working with the Sea Eagles since November. <br> Picture: ANNIKA ENDERBORG Brazilian martial arts expert Marcelo Rezende has been working with the Sea Eagles since November. Picture: ANNIKA ENDERBORG THIS is the Brazilian martial arts expert the Sea Eagles are hoping will help them go one better in 2008. Jiu Jitsu champion Marcelo Rezende has been working with Manly since November, helping transform them into one of the most miserly and fearsome defensive units in the NRL. Rezende holds a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. He has trained weekly with the Sea Eagles players to improve their wrestling and submission techniques. And the results are there for all to see with Manly conceding fewer tries and metres than any other team in the premiership. The Sea Eagles also have the second best defensive record behind Melbourne, conceding an average of just over 13 points per match. "The club approached me at the end of last year to help out," Rezende explained from his Brookvale-based fighting school. "It's all about being stronger on the ground. I teach the players techniques on how to hold and maintain balance on the ground. I also show them how to slow players down, tackle better and how to put them down quickly. "It's all important for the game. "That's why (the Sea Eagles) are number one in defence." Rezende has a strong reputation in the martial arts world and is a former Pan American Jiu Jitsu champion. Since moving to Australia in 2001, the 31-year-old has worked with the Roosters, the ACT Brumbies in the Super 14, as well as individual coaching with Wallaby forwards Wycliff Palu and Rocky Elsom. "With almost all the Jiu Jitsu techniques, you can adapt them and make them specific to rugby," Rezende said. "The training is not just about wrestling and grappling but good for fitness as well." Sea Eagles interchange forward Adam Cuthbertson said working with the Jiu Jitsu champion was simply about improving the team's dominance in the ruck. "There's wrestling involved, but it's not to the point where we're out to hurt people with the coaching we're getting," Cuthbertson who returns from suspension against the Warriors on Sunday, said
