Mens coach Anthony Seibold has refused to comment on a dramatic post-siren penalty that helped the Warriors escape with a 22-22 draw in Auckland.
With Manly leading 22-14 with 55 seconds left in regulation time, Dallin Waetene-Zelezniak scored and Shaun Johnson set up a side conversion to cut the gap to two.
Then, with three seconds left, Manly prop Josh Aloiai collected Johnson’s outstretched leg after half of the Warriors attempted a two-point field goal.
The shot fell short but referee Chris Butler sent the play up before the bunker declared Aloiai had made dangerous contact with Johnson as he ran in from the side.
With three seconds left in the game, the Warriors were awarded a controversial penalty
Referee Chris Butler (pictured) sent play upstairs before the bunker declared Josh Aloiai had made dangerous contact with Shaun Johnson as he ran in from the side
The subsequent penalty goal took the match to golden point, with the Warriors missing two big chances to claim victory.
The draw is only the sixth in the past decade and left both teams with three wins and two losses.
“It’s probably something I don’t want to comment on,” Seibold said afterward.
‘Because if I say it shouldn’t have been a penalty, I’m called a whiner.
‘If I say it should have been a penalty, I may not be looking after the players in my group.
“It was a penalty and we’re going to continue with it.”
Daly Cherry-Evans indicated he could understand the decision given the protection for kickers, while Warriors coach Andrew Webster suggested it was an obvious penalty.
“It’s absolutely the right decision,” Webster said.
The penalty goal sent the match to the golden point, which ultimately ended in a draw
Many footy fans were furious that the Warriors were allowed back into the game
‘It’s unfortunate. I don’t think Josh meant it. He tries to shoot the ball down.
“He goes for a field goal and Josh has to do it. He has to go for the ball.
“It’s unfortunate what happened, but it’s fortunate for us.”
The controversial late penalty angered many football fans, who took to social media to express their feelings.
‘Pathetic call to award the Warriors a full-time penalty. Since when can you no longer put pressure on a kicker?’ wrote a fan on X.
“That punishment was absolutely ridiculous,” said another.
“No mention of the pathetic punishment the Warriors received for locking it up? What a joke your organization has become,” a third complained.
Either way, both sides will feel they should have walked away with all the points in a gripping, high-paced encounter.
After Manly led 16-0 inside 27 minutes, the Warriors scored twice shortly before half-time to go into half-time trailing 16-10.
The hosts dominated field position in the second half as their center went wild and Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad totaled 337 running meters at the back.
But the Warriors were unable to draw to the death, then squandered two chances to win it on golden point with the better field position.
The first came when Tohu Harris dropped a ball on offense before a 30-yard field goal by Johnson went well wide in the second half of overtime.
Cherry-Evans also had two long-range chances for Manly, but they fell well short as Manly struggled to get through.
The Warriors’ controversial late penalty was the biggest talking point of the match
The draw came at a cost, with Manly losing Toff Sipley (knee) and Ben Trbojevic (hamstring), while Warriors prop Jazz Tevaga (hamstring) ended up on crutches.
Some thirteen years after they met in a grand final as rookies, it looked like Cherry-Evans might beat his old rival Johnson in the opening 79 minutes of the match.
He scored the first two tries, putting himself in the right place after a Tom Trbojevic offload went to the ground and collecting a kick from Tommy Talau after the break.
The Warriors came back to 16-12 thanks to two tries in four minutes before half-time.
It was then Cherry-Evans who gave Manly the lead again and sent Ben Trbojevic off after the break to make it 22-12.
But a bit of Johnson magic kept the Warriors in touch as he set up Tom Trbojevic from 40 yards out to score and make it 22-14 before the late drama.
He then stood in a tackle and threw the final pass for Waetene-Zelezniak’s late try to set up the finish in the stands.