Brett Stewart tore the Raiders apart with a hat-trick of tries as Manly scored a 20-nil whitewash at Brookvale Oval in horrendous conditions in Round 9 last year.
Winger Michael Robertson showed great skill to catch a Kieran Foran cross-field kick into the Raiders’ in-goal to open the scoring in the 17th minute. The Manly playmaker was at it again six minutes later, making an angled run from close range before passing inside for Stewart to score.
The Manly fullback notched his 100th NRL try five minutes after the break when he finished off a right-side sweep, then made it three for the evening when he crossed in the right corner with 63 minutes gone.
The Raiders had no answer to the Sea Eagles’ relentless attack, conceding an unanswered eight line-breaks, but they also made their job more difficult by tallying exactly double the home side’s 20 missed tackles – including 24 in the second half.
Jamie Lyon and Anthony Watmough were the major contributors, with 144 and 126 metres respectively.
