Anthony Watmough helped himself to a first-half hat-trick of tries as Manly emerged out of their form slump with a 48-18 NRL win over an awful Cronulla side at Toyota Stadium.
Beaten in four of their last five games, Manly stormed to a 36-0 halftime lead on Saturday, scoring seven tries before the break.The huge win lifted the Sea Eagles back into the top eight and surely shattered any faint finals aspirations the Sharks possessed.
It was the biggest score conceded by the Sharks this year and the seventh time this season the Sharks had leaked 30 or more points and followed a 40-12 mauling by Manly back in round five.The Sea Eagles scored nine tries to three.
Apart from Watmough, Tony Williams crossed twice and there was one try apiece for fellow winger Michael Robertson, five-eighth Kieran Foran, centre and captain Jamie Lyon and utility Chris Bailey.Cronulla improved significantly in the second half, scoring three tries to two.Hit by the late withdrawal of their captain and five-eighth Trent Barrett, Cronulla fell off tackles and were caught horribly short in defence in the first half despite completing their first 11 sets.
Williams started the rout in the seventh minute following a kick from lock Glenn Stewart.Watmough, who had scored just one try in his 15 previous Manly appearances this year, ran 40 metres after charging down a kick from Sharks’ halfback John Morris.
The NSW and Australian second rower smashed through some powder-puff defence for his second and it was 20-0 after 20 minutes when Williams crossed for his second.Watmough completed his hat-trick just before the half hour when he pounced on the ball after Manly captain Jamie Lyon and Shark’s fullback Nathan Gardner contested a bomb.
The humiliation continued for Cronulla, who were booed off the field at halftime with Robertson crossing for the sixth try and setting up the seventh for Foran.Cronulla played with much more heart in the second half, scoring the first 12 points.Fullback Nathan Gardner who got precious little protection at the back in the first half, showed plenty of pace to score a 44th-minute try.Lock Paul Gallen, who worked heroically and deputised as captain in Barrett’s absence, crossed again three minute, later with winger Luke Covell converting both to cut the deficit to 24 points.
The Sharks started the second half in more determined fashion. Fullback Nathan Gardner who got precious little protection at the back in the first half, showed plenty of pace to score a 44th minute try.Lock Paul Gallen, who was deputising as captain in Barrett’s absence, crossed again three minutes later with winger Luke Covell converting both to cut the deficit to 24 points.
Manly were held scoreless in the second half until the 65th minute, when captain and centre Jamie Lyon converted his own try which followed an accurate kick from halfback Trent Hodkinson.Chris Bailey squeezed over in the 75th minute, while Josh Cordoba notched the Sharks last try just before the end.
