High-flying Manly’s mid-season form won’t be derailed by the club’s alleged salary cap scandal, insists coach Trent Barrett.
Barrett fronted the media on Friday morning, and faced a deluge of questions surrounding the latest saga, after the NRL confirmed this week they would investigate the club following reports of an alleged breach.
However he said he done his best to shield the players from the reports, ahead of Saturday night’s clash with Penrith at Pepper Stadium.
“The players are really good with it,” Barrett said.
“They know what their job is. They can’t control it. I can’t control it. The best thing I can do is shield them from it and focus them on what we’ve got to do tomorrow night.
The Sea Eagles have become well accustomed to off-field scandals dominating headlines.
And in turn, they have thrived off their famous siege mentality.
Most recently, the club was forced to endure allegations of match-fixing last seasons, which were only reportedly cleared this week.
And Barrett said the players had openly joked about the latest salary cap allegations across the league – where Manly have been the only club named – before continuing with preparations for Saturday’s match.
“The players had a bit of a chuckle. They wanted to know who was getting (the money),” Barrett said.
“We’ve been through similar things last year and the group handled it well and nothing came of that either.
“It seems funny that everyone turns up here all the time.”
Saturday’s match poses a significant point in the Sea Eagles’ season.
A win will likely take them into the top two for the first time since 2014, while a loss could potentially drop them out of a crucial top-four spot heading into the final third of the season.
Halfback Daly Cherry-Evans will also be desperate to continue his career-best form, after being overlooked by Queensland State of Origin selectors.
They will be without Jake Trbojevic through Origin, while injuries to Curtis Sironen and Lewis Brown have left a hole on their right edge.
Barrett identified the clash as a danger game, given Penrith’s desperation to break a two-game losing streak and make a charge at the finals.
“It’s a real danger game for us,” he said.
“There are a dozen individuals on that team who can hurt you on their own and that’s what makes them really dangerous.”
STATS THAT MATTER:
* Penrith have won their past four matches against Manly.
* Manly have not scored above 12 in their past four matches at Pepper Stadium.
* Manly are ranked second for average points this year, and make the least errors per game.