Match Details
Match Date	20th Jul, 2012
Opponent	Manly
Result	Win 20-12
Coach	Des Hasler
Captain	Michael Ennis
Venue	Brookvale Oval
Crowd	16,820
Referee	Ben Cummins Brett Suttor

A staunch defensive effort and some Ben Barba brilliance has seen the Canterbury Bulldogs win their eighth consecutive game against Manly 20-12 at Brookvale Oval.

Despite the Sea Eagles dominating for long periods in the game, the Bulldogs tenacity in defence held them at bay before some Barba brilliance again sealed the victory in a match of the year candidate.

It was a game that had plenty of hype and anticipation surrounding it, and it didn't take long before for sparks to fly when Jason King put a massive hit on Sam Kasiano in just the third minute, with the Bulldogs prop leaving the field not so long after.

An energetic opening was turned into points for the Bulldogs in the ninth minute, with Barba crossing after picking up a Dean Whare loose pass as the Manly fullback attempted to keep the ball alive before being tackled into touch, giving Canterbury a 6-0 lead.

The loss of Kasiano didn't stop the Bulldogs however, and they continued to attack the Sea Eagles line only to be met by some great goal line defence. It took a smart scrum play in the 15th minute, on what was the Bulldogs third consecutive set on Manly's line, to grab their second try, as Josh Reynolds' pinpoint kick was latched onto by Sam Perrett to push the score to 12-0.

Kris Keating left the field not long after with a hamstring injury, and the Sea Eagles started to look very dangerous down their left side through Tony Williams and Steve Matai. They took control of the game but were unable to capitalise with passes going astray on
either side of the field.

In a less intense opening to the second half, the Bulldogs stretched their lead to 14-0 in the 46th minute when Krisnan Inu slotted a penalty goal from directly in front.

But the Sea Eagles weren't dead, as Kieran Foran broke the game open in the 48th minute when he busted the line and took on Barba. The Bulldogs fullback stripped the ball, but the Sea Eagles regathered it and had a full set on the Canterbury line, only for good defence to keep them at bay.

It wouldn't be long however, as Jamie Lyon pounced on a Daly Cherry-Evans grubber which had been left by Barba to close the gap to 14-6 in the 50th minute. It fired the Sea Eagles up, as they lifted their intensity in defence.

With all the running they closed the gap to just two points in the 59th minute when Jason King crossed after a good short ball from Anthony Watmough, closing the score to 14-12 with only a quarter of the game remaining.

The game would swing towards both sides in the final 15 minutes, with the Bulldogs' chance to seal the game in the 72nd minute denied when Josh Morris' try was disallowed by the video referee and a knock on ruled against Dale Finucane off a Bulldogs bomb.

It wasn't until the 78th minute that Barba secured the victory for Canterbury, when his grubber bounced off the goal pads and straight into his hands, sealing the 20-12 win.

Source: AAP

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