2008 NRL Grand Final
Encyclopedia
The 2008 NRL Grand Final was a rugby league football
match played between the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles
and the Melbourne Storm
, held on Sunday, 5 October at ANZ Stadium in Sydney to determine the 2008 Telstra Premiership.
The 2008 Grand Final was the first Grand Final played in daylight since the introduction of the night Grand Final in 2001. The two teams had previously played in the 2007 NRL Grand Final
, with Melbourne winning. Manly reversed this result in 2008, winning 40-0; the largest Grand Final winning margin in the history of the game, and the first Grand Final since 1978 where the losing team did not score a point.
. Melbourne and Manly were also the teams which contested the 2007 NRL Grand Final
, with Melbourne winning the game 34-8.
In the qualifying final, Melbourne played the New Zealand Warriors
. Melbourne lost this game 18-15 after a Warriors try from Michael Witt
two minutes from full-time; becoming the first minor premier side since the introduction of the McIntyre finals structure in 1999 to lose to the eighth-placed team.
The loss against New Zealand saw Melbourne matched up against the Brisbane Broncos
in the semi-final; the team the Storm lost against in the 2006 grand final. They narrowly won the game 16-14 after scoring a try 45 seconds before full-time, after a Broncos' handling mistake.
Melbourne captain Cameron Smith was controversially suspended for a grapple tackle
during the Broncos game; the two-week suspension causing him to miss the rest of the finals season. Despite this suspension, Melbourne defeated the Cronulla Sharks
28-0 in the preliminary final, and entered their third consecutive grand final.
was presented with the Dally M Award for his performance during the regular season, while Brett Stewart
was the leagues top tryscorer with 19 tries.
In the first finals round, Manly defeated the St. George Illawarra Dragons 38-6. Manly then faced New Zealand in the preliminary final, beating them 32-6 to advance to their second grand final in a row, and their 17th overall (excluding the 1978 grand final replay).
of the Sea Eagles, who became the first hooker to score the first try in an NRL Grand Final since 1991. Matt Orford
was unable to covert the try. Manly almost scored again three minutes later, but the ball bounced out of play. The second try was scored by Michael Robertson
in the 34th minute, after being given the benefit of the doubt by video referee Bill Harrigan
. Again, Matt Orford
was unable to convert the try, and the score remained at 8-0 until half time.
Steve Matai was injured and removed from the field nine minutes before full time; he was substituted for by Steve Menzies, who scored Manly's seventh try a minute later.
defeated St George
, 38–0. It is also the first time that a team has been kept scoreless in a Grand Final since the 1978 NSWRL Grand Final Replay, where Cronulla
lost to Manly 16–0.
The 2008 Grand Final was the last match for Super League
-bound Steve Menzies of Manly. Playing in this match brought his career games played to 349, equalling the current record from Terry Lamb
.
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
match played between the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles
Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles
The Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles are an Australian professional rugby league club based on the Northern Beaches of Sydney. They compete in the National Rugby League's Telstra Premiership, the premier rugby league competition of Australasia...
and the Melbourne Storm
Melbourne Storm
The Melbourne Storm are an Australian professional rugby league club based in the city of Melbourne. They are the first fully professional rugby league team based in the Australian rules football-dominated state of Victoria....
, held on Sunday, 5 October at ANZ Stadium in Sydney to determine the 2008 Telstra Premiership.
The 2008 Grand Final was the first Grand Final played in daylight since the introduction of the night Grand Final in 2001. The two teams had previously played in the 2007 NRL Grand Final
2007 NRL grand final
The 2007 NRL Grand Final was the conclusive, premiership-deciding match of the 2007 NRL season. Played between the first-placed Melbourne Storm and second-placed Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles at Telstra Stadium on September 30, in front of 81,392 spectators. It was the fourth NRL Grand Final played...
, with Melbourne winning. Manly reversed this result in 2008, winning 40-0; the largest Grand Final winning margin in the history of the game, and the first Grand Final since 1978 where the losing team did not score a point.
Lead-up
During the regular season, the Manly Sea Eagles and the Melbourne Storm met twice: Round 5 and Round 22. The Round 5 result in Melbourne went the Storm's way with a 26–4 victory. The Round 22 game was a closer contest, with Melbourne winning again, 16–10 at Manly's Brookvale OvalBrookvale Oval
Brookvale Oval is a sporting ground located within Brookvale Park at Brookvale, New South Wales, Australia. The ground is owned by Warringah Council and is primarily used by the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles rugby league team...
. Melbourne and Manly were also the teams which contested the 2007 NRL Grand Final
2007 NRL grand final
The 2007 NRL Grand Final was the conclusive, premiership-deciding match of the 2007 NRL season. Played between the first-placed Melbourne Storm and second-placed Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles at Telstra Stadium on September 30, in front of 81,392 spectators. It was the fourth NRL Grand Final played...
, with Melbourne winning the game 34-8.
Melbourne Storm
During the regular season, the Melbourne Storm won 17 of their 24 games, winning their third consecutive minor premiership on points differential from Manly and Cronulla.In the qualifying final, Melbourne played the New Zealand Warriors
New Zealand Warriors
The New Zealand Warriors are a professional rugby league football club based in Auckland, New Zealand. They compete in the National Rugby League premiership and are the League's only team from outside Australia...
. Melbourne lost this game 18-15 after a Warriors try from Michael Witt
Michael Witt
Michael Witt is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who currently plays for the Harlequins RL in the Super League...
two minutes from full-time; becoming the first minor premier side since the introduction of the McIntyre finals structure in 1999 to lose to the eighth-placed team.
The loss against New Zealand saw Melbourne matched up against the Brisbane Broncos
Brisbane Broncos
The Brisbane Broncos are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the city of Brisbane, the capital of the state of Queensland. Founded in 1988, the Broncos play in Australasia's elite competition, the National Rugby League premiership. They have won six premierships and two...
in the semi-final; the team the Storm lost against in the 2006 grand final. They narrowly won the game 16-14 after scoring a try 45 seconds before full-time, after a Broncos' handling mistake.
Melbourne captain Cameron Smith was controversially suspended for a grapple tackle
Grapple tackle
A grapple tackle is a controversial tackling technique used in rugby league. It has gained notoriety in Australia's National Rugby League competition whereby the tackler attempts to impede the ball carrier by applying a chokehold-like grip...
during the Broncos game; the two-week suspension causing him to miss the rest of the finals season. Despite this suspension, Melbourne defeated the Cronulla Sharks
Cronulla Sharks
The Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks are Australian professional Rugby league team based in Cronulla, in the Sutherland Shire, Southern Sydney, New South Wales...
28-0 in the preliminary final, and entered their third consecutive grand final.
Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles
Manly also won 17 of their 24 games but lost the minor premiership to Melbourne on points differential, Melbourne having a 302 points difference compared to Manly's 290. Halfback Matt OrfordMatt Orford
Matthew Orford is an Australian professional rugby league player, last playing for the Canberra Raiders in the National Rugby League competition...
was presented with the Dally M Award for his performance during the regular season, while Brett Stewart
Brett Stewart
Brett Stewart is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays for the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles in the National Rugby League. He is an Australian international and New South Wales State of Origin representative fullback known for pace and his prolific try-scoring...
was the leagues top tryscorer with 19 tries.
In the first finals round, Manly defeated the St. George Illawarra Dragons 38-6. Manly then faced New Zealand in the preliminary final, beating them 32-6 to advance to their second grand final in a row, and their 17th overall (excluding the 1978 grand final replay).
Teams
| Manly Sea Eagles | Melbourne Storm Melbourne Storm The Melbourne Storm are an Australian professional rugby league club based in the city of Melbourne. They are the first fully professional rugby league team based in the Australian rules football-dominated state of Victoria.... |
|
|---|---|---|
| Brett Stewart Brett Stewart Brett Stewart is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays for the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles in the National Rugby League. He is an Australian international and New South Wales State of Origin representative fullback known for pace and his prolific try-scoring... |
Fullback | Billy Slater Billy Slater Billy Slater is an Australian professional rugby league footballer for the Melbourne Storm of the National Rugby League . An Australian international and Queensland State of Origin representative fullback, he has played his whole NRL career to date at Melbourne... |
| Michael Robertson Michael Robertson (rugby league) Michael Robertson is an Australian professional rugby league footballer currently playing for London Broncos of Super League... |
Winger | Steve Turner |
| Steven Bell Steven Bell Steven "Steve" Bell is an Australian professional rugby league footballer for the Catalans Dragons of Super League... |
Centre | Matt Geyer Matt Geyer Matt Geyer is an Australian rugby league footballer for the Norths Devils in the Queensland Cup. A New South Wales State of Origin representative winger, he played his club football primarily with the Melbourne Storm of the National Rugby League competition, winning premierships with them in 1999... |
| Steve Matai Steve Matai Stephen "Steve" Matai is a professional rugby league footballer for the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles of the National Rugby League. He plays as a centre. He is a New Zealand international of Samoan Heritage... |
Centre | Israel Folau Israel Folau Israel Folau is a professional Australian rules footballer currently listed with the Greater Western Sydney Football Club in the Australian Football League . He previously played Rugby league for the Melbourne Storm in the National Rugby League from 2007 to 2008 where he broke the record for most... |
| David Williams David Williams (rugby league) David Williams is an Australian professional rugby league footballer for the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles of the National Rugby League. He plays on the wing and can also play in the centres... |
Winger | Anthony Quinn Anthony Quinn (rugby league) Anthony Quinn is an Australian professional rugby league player for the Melbourne Storm in the National Rugby League competition. After playing for the Newcastle Knights' feeder club Valentine-Eleebana, Quinn was called up to the NRL in 2002... |
| Jamie Lyon Jamie Lyon Jamie Lyon is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who currently captains for the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles of the National Rugby League... |
Five-Eighth | Greg Inglis Greg Inglis Greg Inglis is an Australian professional rugby league player for the South Sydney Rabbitohs. A Queensland State of Origin and Australian international representative outside back, Inglis joined the Rabbitohs in 2011 after much controversy.Inglis is a versatile back, having played in several... |
| Matt Orford Matt Orford Matthew Orford is an Australian professional rugby league player, last playing for the Canberra Raiders in the National Rugby League competition... (c) |
Halfback | Cooper Cronk Cooper Cronk Cooper Patrick Cronk is an Australian professional rugby league footballer currently playing for the Melbourne Storm of the NRL... (c) |
| Brent Kite Brent Kite Brent Kite is an Australian professional rugby league footballer currently playing in the NRL with the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles. A Tonga and Australia international, and New South Wales State of Origin representative front-row forward, he has played club football for the St. George Illawarra... |
Prop | Jeff Lima Jeff Lima Jeff Lima is a professional rugby league footballer for the Wigan Warriors of Europe's Super League... |
| Matt Ballin Matt Ballin Matthew Ballin is a professional rugby league player who currently plays for the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles in the National Rugby League . He primarily plays at hooker.-Early years:... |
Hooker | Russell Aitken Russell Aitken Russell Aitken is an Australian professional rugby league footballer with the AS Carcassonne rugby league club in France.... |
| Josh Perry Josh Perry Josh Perry is an Australian professional rugby league player for St Helens RLFC in the Super League competition... |
Prop | Brett White Brett White Brett White is an Australian professional rugby league footballer for the Canberra Raiders, and formally of the Melbourne Storm of the NRL... |
| Anthony Watmough Anthony Watmough Anthony Watmough is an Australian professional rugby league footballer for the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles club of the National Rugby League... |
2nd Row | Michael Crocker Michael Crocker Michael Crocker is an Australian professional rugby league footballer with the South Sydney Rabbitohs of the NRL... |
| Glenn Hall | 2nd Row | Jeremy Smith |
| Glenn Stewart Glenn Stewart Glenn Stewart is an Australian professional rugby league footballer for the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles of the National Rugby League . An Australian international and New South Wales State of Origin representative second-row forward, Stewart has played all of his club football to date with Manly,... |
Lock | Dallas Johnson Dallas Johnson Dallas Johnson is an Australian professional rugby league footballer for the North Queensland Cowboys in the National Rugby League and formerly the Melbourne Storm and Catalans Dragons. He plays primarily as a lock forward.Between 2007 and 2009, Johnson played in four consecutive NRL grand finals... |
| Heath L'Estrange Heath L'Estrange Heath L'Estrange is an Australian professional rugby league footballer for the Bradford Bulls. Prior to his career with Bradford, he won the 2008 National Rugby League grand final with Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles... |
Interchange | Scott Anderson Scott Anderson (rugby league) Scott Anderson is an Australian professional rugby league footballer for the Brisbane Broncos of the NRL. A prop forward, he previously played for the Melbourne Storm with whom he won the 2009 NRL Premiership.-Melbourne Storm:... |
| Mark Bryant Mark Bryant (rugby league) Mark Bryant is a professional rugby league player who currently plays for Harlequins RL in the European Super League. He has previously played for Crusaders RL and Manly Sea Eagles in the National Rugby League.His preferred position is prop.... |
Interchange | Adam Blair Adam Blair Adam Blair is a New Zealand professional rugby league footballer currently contracted to the Melbourne Storm of the National Rugby League until 1 November 2011, when he will join the Wests Tigers. A New Zealand international representative forward, Blair spent six seasons with the Storm, winning... |
| Jason King | Interchange | Sika Manu Sika Manu Sika Manu is a professional rugby league footballer who currently plays for the Melbourne Storm in the NRL. He was a member of the World Cup winning New Zealand team who beat Australia in the 2008 World Cup Final... |
| Steve Menzies | Interchange | Antonio Kaufusi Antonio Kaufusi Antonio Kaufusi is a Tongan-Australian professional rugby league footballer currently playing for the London Broncos of the English Super League. An Australian and Tongan international and Queensland State of Origin representative forward, he previously played for the Melbourne Storm, North... |
| Des Hasler Des Hasler Des Hasler is an Australian former professional rugby league player and current head coach of the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs. He played in 309 matches in a first-grade career spanning 16 seasons. Most of his career was spent with the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles, with whom he won two premierships... |
Coach | Craig Bellamy |
First half
The game began with Steve Turner from the Melbourne Storm kicking off and Glenn Hall from the Manly Sea Eagles taking the first hit. The first try was scored in the 24th minute by Matt BallinMatt Ballin
Matthew Ballin is a professional rugby league player who currently plays for the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles in the National Rugby League . He primarily plays at hooker.-Early years:...
of the Sea Eagles, who became the first hooker to score the first try in an NRL Grand Final since 1991. Matt Orford
Matt Orford
Matthew Orford is an Australian professional rugby league player, last playing for the Canberra Raiders in the National Rugby League competition...
was unable to covert the try. Manly almost scored again three minutes later, but the ball bounced out of play. The second try was scored by Michael Robertson
Michael Robertson (rugby league)
Michael Robertson is an Australian professional rugby league footballer currently playing for London Broncos of Super League...
in the 34th minute, after being given the benefit of the doubt by video referee Bill Harrigan
Bill Harrigan
-External links:**http://www.billharrigan.com.au/Referee-career-pg2853.html*http://www.mediaman.com.au/profiles/harrigan.html*http://www.abc.net.au/queensland/conversations/stories/s1766903.htm*http://www.claxtonspeakers.com.au/speakers_profile/134...
. Again, Matt Orford
Matt Orford
Matthew Orford is an Australian professional rugby league player, last playing for the Canberra Raiders in the National Rugby League competition...
was unable to convert the try, and the score remained at 8-0 until half time.
Second half
Seven minutes after the resumption of play, a kick from Matt Orford out wide to Michael Robertson saw Manly score their third try, which was converted by Steve Matai. Robertson scored again four minutes later.Steve Matai was injured and removed from the field nine minutes before full time; he was substituted for by Steve Menzies, who scored Manly's seventh try a minute later.
Results
The Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles defeated the Melbourne Storm 40-0, scoring eight tries, four of which were converted. This is the highest Rugby League Grand Final margin in Australian history, eclipsing the 1975 Grand Final where Eastern SuburbsSydney Roosters
The Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney. The club competes in the National Rugby League and is one of the oldest and most successful clubs in Australian rugby league history, having won twelve New South Wales Rugby League...
defeated St George
St George Illawarra Dragons
The St George Illawarra Dragons is an Australian professional rugby league football club, representing the St. George and Illawarra regions. They have competed in the National Rugby League since 1999 as a joint venture between Sydney's historic St. George Dragons club and 1982 expansion club, the...
, 38–0. It is also the first time that a team has been kept scoreless in a Grand Final since the 1978 NSWRL Grand Final Replay, where Cronulla
Cronulla Sharks
The Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks are Australian professional Rugby league team based in Cronulla, in the Sutherland Shire, Southern Sydney, New South Wales...
lost to Manly 16–0.
The 2008 Grand Final was the last match for Super League
Super League
Super League is the top-level professional rugby league football club competition in Europe. As a result of sponsorship from engage Mutual Assurance the competition is currently officially known as the engage Super League. The League features fourteen teams: thirteen from England and one from...
-bound Steve Menzies of Manly. Playing in this match brought his career games played to 349, equalling the current record from Terry Lamb
Terry Lamb
Terry Lamb OAM, is an Australian retired professional rugby league footballer and coach. He played 349 games , with Wests , and Canterbury . Lamb was known for his support of the ball-carrier - his ability to be in the right place at the right time netted him 164 tries. This earned him the moniker...
.
Match details
Match statistics
| Manly Sea Eagles | Melbourne Storm Melbourne Storm The Melbourne Storm are an Australian professional rugby league club based in the city of Melbourne. They are the first fully professional rugby league team based in the Australian rules football-dominated state of Victoria.... |
|
|---|---|---|
| Tackles | 279 | 319 |
| Linebreaks | 8 | 2 |
| Hitups | 78 | 65 |
| Offloads | 8 | 6 |
| Missed Tackles | 44 | 34 |
| Errors | 9 | 11 |
| Dummy-Half Runs | 17 | 20 |
| Kicks in Play | 22 | 18 |
| Metres Gained | 1610 | 1148 |
| Shots at Goal | 4/8 | 0/0 |
| Scrums | 8 | 5 |
| Penalties | 5 | 4 |
| Possession | 63% | 37% |