The one person the Sea Eagles value more than Tom Trbojevic

Manly owner Scott Penn loves what in-form fullback Tom Trbojevic has done for the club, but believes Des Hasler deserves arguably more credit for having the Sea Eagles within striking distance of a top-four finish.

While it remains to be seen if Trbojevic will be a late scratching against Canberra on Friday evening because of a knock to his cheekbone, Penn heaped praise on the head coach whose future was being debated just a month into the season, when Manly were without their injured fullback and winless after four rounds.

There were even suggestions at the time Paul Green would be parachuted in to help behind the scenes.

But with Trbojevic back and in career-best form, the Sea Eagles have since rocketed into fifth spot on the ladder with 13 wins from their past 17 games, and the guaranteed NRL finals’ appearance has triggered the 2023 option in Hasler’s contract.

Players like Morgan Harper, Reuben Garrick, Brad Parker, Jason Saab and Lachlan Croker are playing out of their skin, while Hasler has a host of young forwards prepared to run through brick walls for him.

Speaking from New York, Penn said conjecture about Hasler’s future early in the season was wrong and gave the impression he does not want the coach departing the northern beaches any time soon.

“What Des has done has been phenomenal,” Penn told the Herald.

“Clearly we didn’t have the start we were expecting or the start Des was expecting.

“There were never any questions about Des’s future, but we had to ask some tough questions about whether we had the right plan in place.

Manly coach Des HaslerCredit:AAP

“We had broad conversation around whether Des needed any additional support at the time, but it was very quickly shut down - by Des. It wasn’t much of a discussion in the end.

“Des has held everything together. They’ve been in Queensland now more than a month, he’s been away from his family and his wife Christine, and it’s taken a lot of mental fortitude to make it all happen and galvanise the players.

“The players know Des has their back, they know he will absolutely always back them, and that’s all we can ask for.”

Penn and Hasler had a famous falling out when the coaches left the northern beaches in 2011 but they have never been closer.

Tom Trbojevic is keen to play against Canberra.Credit:Getty Images

“I called him when he was in Europe on a break (after leaving the Bulldogs in 2017) and asked him to come back - we needed each other,” Penn said.

“The last 18 months has been the most pressure any coach has been under in the game’s history - it’s been emotionally and physically draining trying to keep their players sane.

“Des understands all that. We’re so glad to have Des right now.

Club legend Steve Menzies also loved what Hasler was doing and said: “The boys believe in what Des says, they believe in his systems. He has instilled self belief in all the boys, which has always been his party trick, it’s his best skill. You can tell he has got them playing with confidence.”

Penn said the best thing about Trbojevic was he was home-grown and had all but single-handedly justified his family’s $10m-plus investment in junior development the past decade.

Trbojevic is locked down until at least 2026, but skipper Daly Cherry-Evans is off at the end of 2023, which makes him a prime target for the successful second Brisbane NRL franchise in just 12 months time.

The skipper loves Manly, and Penn would love to give Cherry-Evans every chance to finish on his terms as a one-club player.

The halfback knows he has another couple of seasons in him, which would take him through 36.

“Daly has played over 250 games and if we keep him healthy he will more than likely become our longest-serving player ever,” Penn said.

“Cliffy [Lyons] is on 309. With another two or three seasons after this one, Daly will be on track to break Cliffy’s record.

“Clearly he’s firmly in our plans, it will be dependent on Daly and what he wants to do. We want him to be a one-club player. He looks great right now, so there’s no reason he can’t be.”

Christian Nicolussi covers rugby league for The Sydney Morning Herald.

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