Source :- THE AGE NEWS
Penrith appear in the box seat for the NRL minor premiership after the first-placed Warriors’ unconvincing 31-30 defeat of Manly in Auckland.
Warriors halfback Te Maire Martin returned from a hamstring injury to star in a see-sawing affair on Saturday, before halves partner Chanel Harris-Tavita sealed the result with a field goal in the last three minutes.
The Warriors enter the finals series on a six-game winning streak, but they hold a tenuous spot on first place ahead of the last day of the regular season.
Playing at near full strength, the Panthers need only beat 15th-placed Wests Tigers by two points on Sunday to leapfrog the Warriors and snatch first place.
That would spoil the Warriors’ hopes of a first minor premiership since 2002, and leave the Kiwi club to host the third-placed Dolphins in the first week of finals.
If they clinch the minor premiership, the Warriors will continue their push for a first premiership against the Sydney Roosters.
The result pulls the curtain down on a rollercoaster season for Manly, who finish ninth with an 11-13 record despite sitting in the top four for a time.
Manly will be left to rue the slow start to 2026 that cost Anthony Seibold his job, and a six-game losing streak that followed Luke Brooks’ ACL injury.
Frustratingly, the Sea Eagles saved one of their gutsiest performances of 2026 for their first game since being officially eliminated from finals contention.
Manly did not play the ball in the Warriors’ red zone until the 57th minute and needed to withstand a sin-binning to Ben Trbojevic (hip-drop tackle) right as the Warriors were humming.
But led by Tom Trbojevic, the Sea Eagles found success shifting the ball inside their own half as Lehi Hopoate and Reuben Garrick bagged two tries each.
In his last game for Manly, Roosters recruit Garrick notched 100 tries for the club in crossing for his second.
But the individual brilliance of Martin, and try-scoring doubles to Taine Tuaupiki and Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, were enough to seal a Warriors victory.
Martin sent beautifully weighted passes to second-rowers Eddie Ieremia-Toeva and Jacob Laban ahead of the Warriors’ first two tries.
He popped up a ball for Tuaupiki to cut inside and complete his double, then helped Nicoll-Klokstad do the same with a kick after the break.
With the scores locked at 30, Harris-Tavita and Tanner Stowers-Smith each had tries chalked off in the final 10 minutes.
Caleb Navale charged down Harris-Tavita’s first field goal attempt, before the five-eighth struck from directly in front in the final minutes.
AAP
