NRL Round 2 Preview and Prediction - Manly Sea Eagles v South Sydney Rabbitohs @ Brookvale Oval

Manly Sea Eagles v South Sydney Rabbitohs @ Brookvale Oval
 
Preview - Both the Sea Eagles and Rabbitohs will be desperate to avoid sitting in an 0-2 hole to start 2017 when they clash in an early season crunch match at Brookvale Oval. Whilst Manly were brave and tackled their hearts out against Parramatta, they turned over way too much cheap ball and looked disorganised with the football in their 20-12 loss. While Trent Barrett's men at one stage held out 5 straight sets on their goal line, all their energy was sapped from them and they couldn't muster anything with the football in the final 20 minutes. The Rabbitohs, on the other hand, put in a shocking performance as they were spanked 34-18 by a rampant Wests Tigers outfit at ANZ Stadium. To be honest, that scoreline flattered Souths as they scored a couple of late consolation tries after being cut apart by a younger and quicker Tigers’ side. Souths were expected to try and dominate this match in the forwards, but struggled to assert any superiority in the middle as their kicking game also floundered without Adam Reynolds. 
 
History - The Rabbitohs have a good recent record at Brookvale Oval having won 2 of their past 3 at the venue and 4 of their last 6. However, overall it is the Sea Eagles with the edge with 75 wins and 63 losses. 
 
South Sydney Rabbitohs Scouting Report - The Rabbitohs are playing some ducks and drakes leading up to this game with Adam Reynolds participating in some training this week. Reynolds was meant to be out for month however it would give the Rabbitohs a huge boost if he were to take his place for this clash. With Greg Inglis having been ruled out for the season, the Rabbitohs, without him and Reynolds would look thread bare in terms of experience, class and creativity in their spine. I thought last week Luke Kelly and Cody Walker really struggled and their kicking game was awful against the Wests Tigers. However, I think Michael Maguire will be more disappointed at their forward pack who were overrun by a relatively no name West Tigers pack. With Tom and George Burgess named in Reserve Grade this week, I really don't think all is well at South Sydney at the moment.
 
Manly Sea Eagles Scouting Report - Manly are in a deal of trouble up front in this game, having lost Martin Taupau and Addin Fonua-Blake to suspension, as well as Lloyd Perrett to injury. I don't think Manly have quality depth in their forwards this years it will be a big step up for the likes of Jarrad Kennedy and Shaun Lane. I think Nate Myles, as their most experienced forward, really needs to step up and have more impact as he has been well below his best at Manly. Tom Trbojevic and Daly Cherry-Evans had relatively quiet games in attack in Round 1 as the Sea Eagles’ attack misfired, dropping way too much ball and having very little field possession to work with.
 
Verdict - Manly By 1-6 in a low scoring game
 
I thought Manly were morals in this game before I looked closer into their forward injuries. That, and the fact that Souths are playing ducks and drakes with Adam Reynolds, makes this game a far more difficult proposition in terms of picking the winner. And without Greg Inglis, there is also the fact that there was almost nothing to like about South Sydney's performance in Round 1 against the Tigers. I think with Manly there were a few more things to like as they looked far more energetic and physical. Manly also tackled a hell of a lot better than South Sydney who appeared to lack line speed and fall off tackles way too easily. I think, given this game is at Brookvale, the stakes are a little higher for Manly as they simply can't afford to drop two home games to start the season, both against sides that missed the finals last year. Expect both of these teams, having come off losses, to play relatively conservatively, especially given they have some injury concerns and Manly coughed up way too much football last week.