Sea Eagles vs Broncos: Tom Trbojevic and Manly struggle during Anthony Seibold's return to Brisbane 

Mark Molyneux

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Sea Eagles vs Broncos: Tom Trbojevic and Manly struggle during Anthony Seibold's return to Brisbane  image

Brisbane made easy work of Manly as they cruised to a 32-6 victory at Magic Round. 

The Broncos responded in the best way possible following their loss to the Rabbitohs last week by racing out to an early lead which they never looked in danger of relinquishing against an under-par Sea Eagles. 

Payne Haas lays the platform for Brisbane with commanding display 

Payne Haas led the charge from the start as he returned from his one-match suspension clearly hellbent on making up for lost time.

MORE: Ponga or Walsh - Who will play fullback for Queensland?

The break doing wonders for the man who is already far and away the best prop in the game, as he helped to lay the platform for Brisbane's attacking threats to cause carnage against a porous Manly defence.

He was on the field for 60 minutes during his one and only stint but the damage he caused along with his partner in crime, Patrick Carrigan, was more than enough to earn him an early breather.

He reclined in his plastic chair on the sidelines soaking in the adulation from a lively home crowd as the Broncos eased to their ninth win of the season, while he had clocked a team-high 189m from his 20 carries. 

Selwyn Cobbo claimed a hat-trick for the second consecutive year during Magic Round, while Reece Walsh pressed his claims yet again for a Queensland jersey.

The fullback, who endured a difficult night against the Bunnies last week, responded in style to finish with two try assists, a linebreak and 11 tackle busts. 

Tom Trbojevic and Manly struggle during Anthony Seibold's return to Brisbane 

Anthony Seibold was subjected to a nightmare return to his old stomping ground. 

His side looked lethargic from the offset and were riddled with errors which allowed the Broncos pack to dictate the flow of the contest. 

"It's disappointing because we thought we were going to come up here and give a good account of ourselves and challenge the team at the top of the table," Seibold said. 

"It's been a disappointing two weeks, but we'll bounce back."

Manly have now conceded 58 points in back-to-back defeats to the Titans and Brisbane, while scoring just 16 points themselves during this run. 

Last week against the Gold Coast, they were without their talisman Tom Trbojevic. Although his return offered very little improvement as the Sea Eagles made six linebreaks yet were unable to capitalise. 

"It wasn't so much comeback, he only had one week out," Manly's coach said of Trbojevic. 

"He was okay, but we didn't give him enough opportunities down in the right end of the field."

The fullback often cut a forlorn figure throughout the match, spraying cut-out passes over the sideline, gifting Cobbo a try from an intercept and generally struggling to produce the goods as he has so often done in the past for his side. 

"We were probably all a bit frustrated tonight," Seibold said after watching his side commit 15 errors and only narrowly avoid being kept to zero on the scoreboard. 

"We've got a hurt changing room because they're disappointed with what they produced...but we'll keep chipping away."

Mark Molyneux

Mark Molyneux Photo

Mark Molyneux is a freelance writer covering the NRL and UFC for Sporting News Australia. He has previously worked in the music industry and as a teacher around the world.