Anthony Seibold insists he is the best man to coach Manly despite angry fans chanting “Seibold out” at full-time on Thursday night.
The Sea Eagles crashed to their third straight loss from as many starts, going down to the Sydney Roosters 33-16 at 4 Pines Park.
The 16,082 supporters started the evening booing their former favourite son Daly Cherry-Evans, then finished the game turning their frustrations on Seibold.
Seibold, who is signed until the end of 2027, conceded on-field results were the only way to silence the external noise.
“I didn’t hear the fans, but what do you want me to do?” Seibold asked after the game.
“I turn up and work hard for the group. I feel I’ve got a group there that can win games of footy and they fight hard.
“If we didn’t have any fight in us, we would have got towelled up by 60 points with those stats, not getting penalty.
“I can’t control that decision [about my future].
“Only Scott [Penn] and the ownership group can control that, so there’s no point me wasting any energy or time on that.
“I think I’ve invested a lot of time in the club over the last three-and-a-bit years, and made a lot of sacrifice with my time.
“But if I’m not the right person, I’m sure Scott will tell me. I still believe that we can do something together as a group.
“I haven’t really put any thought into it. Three games into a two-year extension … it hasn’t sort of been a focus for me.”
A wild storm swept through Sydney 90 minutes before kick-off, with 4 Pines Park losing power, and concerns the PA system and big screen would not be restored in time.
The Sea Eagles started brilliantly, with Jake Trbojevic spreading the ball right on the second play of the game, before Jason Saab screamed down field, and threw an inside pass for Tom Trbojevic to score after 30 seconds.
The Roosters dominated field position and completed all 21 of their sets by the break, which was remarkable, but they still trailed 10-8 at the break.
If you get the chance to watch the highlights, make a point of seeing Manly speedster Tolu Koula’s first-half long-range try, where he somehow slipped past four defenders.
The knockout blow for Manly came in a five-minute spurt early in the second half when the Roosters piled on three tries, and on the back of a loose carry and strip.
Seibold was delighted his side showed more resolve than they did in round two against Newcastle.
“If we compare that to our game against the Knights, it was chalk and cheese,” Seibold said.
“We showed a ton of effort. But ultimately the scoreboard is what we’ll be judged on, we lost, so everyone will make a comment around that.”
The Sea Eagles head to Brisbane next Thursday to take on the Dolphins. Jason Saab was placed on report and binned for a high shot on Hugo Savala.
There was a nice moment for the Sea Eagles when 19-year-old Simi Laiafi debuted, and made an immediate impression with the locals when he charged off the fence for a kick-off carry in the second half.
Laifai was still playing SG Ball at the start of last year, progressed to Jersey Flegg, then NSW Cup, then sat on the bench as 18th man in the final NRL game of the season.
The Australian Schoolboys’ prop was given the late, late call-up after Ethan Bullemor went down with injury in the warm-up.
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