An eight-minute hat-trick. A hair pull on a man wearing headgear. And yet another NSW Origin injury headache.
And of course Jarome Luai was in anything and everything, running the Panthers show and goading Luke Brooks in the lead-up to what proved to be a critical try.
Michael Maguire’s blood pressure will have hopefully been tempered somewhat after NSW Origin debutant Haumole Olakau’atu lasted just 24 minutes of Manly’s 32-22 loss to Penrith on Sunday afternoon.
A calf injury laid Olakau’atu low as fellow Blues back-rower Liam Martin (toe) and Dylan Edwards (quad) watched from Ivan Cleary’s coach’s box, but both NRL mentors were reasonably upbeat on the injury front afterwards.
“The risk was that if we keep him out there that he does it properly,” coach Anthony Seibold said, with hope that Olakau’atu will be fit for a pre-Origin hitout next Sunday against the Dragons.
“Of course we would have loved to have him but if we keep him out there and he does his calf … the medical staff tell me he’s OK.”
Cleary is “pretty confident” Edwards will return as well against Newcastle in the last match before Maguire picks his Origin II squad. And “even if [Martin] can’t make it for next week, I’m sure he’ll be fine for Origin”.
But at least Luai and pocket rocket Brian To’o – with a treble of his own – had themselves a day out after Tommy Talau scored four tries and three in the first half hour.
When a Sea Eagles ambush loomed, Manly and Queensland captain Daly Cherry-Evans played like the million-dollar halfback he has been for almost a deca
