Wings clipped by injuries and off-field drama

FORMER Test five-eighth Trent Barrett confronted greater challenges than he had bargained for in his first season as Manly coach. Injuries took a savage toll on Barrett’s playing resources during the year, undermining his efforts to develop a significantly newlook playing roster while off-field issues also provided unwelcome distractions. The most serious of them were the allegations of match-fixing that surfaced in June and involved two Manly games from 2015. The NSW Police’s Organised Crime Squad launched a probe into Sea Eagles games against South Sydney and Parramatta and later broadened the investigation to include a 2016 game between the Sea Eagles and Eels. The investigation led to ongoing media speculation. As well as damaging the Sea Eagles’ brand, it also had an inevitable affect on players’ preparations. Senior officials took the unusual…

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Official Rugby League Annual (Digital) - 1 Issue, 2016 Edition

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