By Nicholas Quinlan
Manly stars Daly Cherry-Evans and Tom Trbojevic have picked up injuries to their back and hamstring respectively in Manly's defeat against the New Zealand Warriors.
The Sea Eagles were dismally beaten with a rousing 36 -16 win against the Warriors in Auckland with Warriors halfback Luke Metcalf starring for the New Zealand side.
Daly Cherry Evans came off with what Manly indicated was back spasms.
— NRL PHYSIO (@nrlphysio) March 14, 2025
If only spasms - painful +++ but unlikely to require lengthy recovery, symptoms can linger/be easily re-aggravated if he plays too soon. Worst case underlying structural damage (eg disc) but hopefully avoided. pic.twitter.com/wsc8Xc5RXM
Both injuries were picked up late in the game with Trbojevic being subbed out in the 65th minute and Cherry-Evans in the 73rd minute.
In the post-game press conference, Manly coach Anthony Seibold said that both players will need to be checked before confirming if they will miss any games.
“Chez had a little back spasm, and he needs to get checked," Seibold said.
“And Turbo was feeling a bit of tightness (in his hamstring) and again we need to get both of those guys checked.”
There will likely be extra concern surround Trbojevic’s injury given his history of hamstring issues.
This will now be the seventh hamstring strain/injury that he had since 2019.
Both Trbojevic and Cherry-Evans did manage to score a try before they left the game.
The other Friday night game saw the Sydney Roosters deliver a massive upset win against the Penrith Panthers, winning 38-32.
Many thought it was a foregone conclusion for the Panthers to win as they added back Brian To’o into their starting 13.
However, the Roosters led throughout a seesawing first half and managed to hold off the Panthers’ onslaught in the second half with a last second diving save from Daniel Tupou to deny To’o a potentially game tying try.
After the game, Roosters’ captain James Tedesco was quick to put into words how much this win meant.
“I think that is our greatest win as a club,” Tedesco remarked on the live broadcast.
In injury news, Panthers’ fullback Dylan Edwards left the ground with a suspected groin injury.
In his post-game press conference, coach Ivan Cleary gave an update on his situation.
"He just had a bit of a groin strain," Cleary said.
"He could have kept playing but just the way the game was and what we needed at the time, we had a fresh fullback sitting on the bench, that is why we made that call."
Manly will face the Canberra Raiders next Sunday night back at 4 Pines Park, while the Roosters take on the same trip as Manly this week to take on the Warriors in New Zealand.
Crafted by Project Diamond