Manly officials are bitterly disappointed by the scheduling of their Brookvale Oval clash with fierce rivals Melbourne, but are confident avoiding a “financial disaster” by packing the stands for the round 15 NRL game.

The Sea Eagles will host the ladder-leading Storm on a Monday night in arguably the season’s most highly-anticipated match-up – their first meeting since the ‘Battle of Brookvale’ in round 25 last season that erupted in a vicious all-in brawl.

The Friday night fixtures, dictated by the first two matches picked by broadcaster Channel Nine, are Brisbane up against North Queensland for the Queensland audience, while NSW viewers will see Canterbury and St George Illawarra.

Manly had been banking on a bumper crowd for the rematch – even turning down an offer to take the game to Perth to ensure it was played on their home turf.

As a result, the scheduling has them less than impressed.

“Clearly we’re disappointed that this game wasn’t scheduled on a Friday night or a Sunday afternoon, which is more suitable for a wider variety of fans,” Sea Eagles chief executive David Perry told AAP.

“The Storm match has been a long awaited clash.

“But it’s a broadcasting decision and we respect that.”

Monday nights traditionally draw the weaker crowds of the round due to the 7pm kickoff time, but Perry said the anticipation surrounding the Storm clash would likely offset any dip in fans caused by the awkward timeslot.

“It’s always going to have an impact, but if there’s one game which (the Monday night factor) will not impact as much, it’s the Storm game for us,” Perry said.

“It won’t be a financial disaster unless it’s only 10,000 that turn up.”

The Melbourne clash is Manly’s second home Monday night fixture of the year following this week’s match against Penrith – their first at Brookvale for the year – which drew a crowd of 14,255 on Easter Monday.

The Sea Eagles, who ended a three-game losing streak with a 30-0 victory over the Panthers, face Gold Coast on Saturday night at Brookvale in co-captain Jason King’s 200th game for the club.

“It’s a real honour to pull on the Manly jersey,” King said.

“As a young fella I didn’t even think I’d play for Manly at all, so to get the opportunity to play for this great club and to play so many games is something I hold very close to my heart.

“And to do it that number of times is something I’ll look back on in the future and be very proud of.”

AAP jb/imc/wk/g