Sea Eagles skipper Daly Cherry-Evans has been hit with a wave of criticism this season after his decision to depart the Manly club and later his axing from Billy Slater’s Queensland side.
The 36-year-old has been accused of derailing the Sea Eagles’ 2025 campaign, while questions regarding his ability to compete at the top level also arose.
However, one moment against the Storm proved he has more to give in the NRL.
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That is according to veteran reporter Phil Rothfield, who pointed to Cherry-Evans’ last-ditch tackle on man mountain Nelson Asofa-Solomona.
The Storm gun looked certain to score after steaming onto a Jahrome Hughes short ball, but was instead cut down in a crucial moment that helped Manly to an 18-16 win.
The veteran halfback is reportedly set to join the Roosters in 2026, and Rothfield believes Cherry-Evans is still a prized recruit for the famous Tricolours club.
“How good was it? What a tackle… it defied the laws of physics and gravity that a man of all but 80 kilograms could do that on a guy of 120 kilograms,” Rothfield said on the Big Sports Breakfast.
“Storming at him, no one there to help him. These days in tackles you often get two or three guys on the big fellas.
“Here’s DCE, 10 metres out from his line, no one else to be and he brings him down. It was unbelievable. He has been a human punching bag all year, I’ve been included in that.
“I thought he almost wrecked their season when he came out and said he was leaving Manly and didn’t tell us where he was going. Then after the first loss of the Origin series he was sacked, made the scapegoat.
“He didn’t complain, he didn’t whinge, just went on about his footy to help rebuild what was a really shaky season.”
After their triumphant win, the Sea Eagles now sit in seventh spot on the NRL ladder.
But it wasn’t long ago Anthony Seibold was holding crisis meetings with every player following a horror loss to the Titans in Round 15.
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“It was only six or seven weeks ago they were flogged, I think it was 28-8 by the Titans on the Gold Coast, that’s when the pressure (began),” Rothfield said.
“Then Anthony Seibold had all those one-on-one, seven minute meetings with the players. Turbo was dumped as fullback and moved to the centres.
“Hopoate to fullback and I described it in the paper today, Asofa-Solomona running at DCE is the equivalent of a RAM ute running at a push bike.
“That’s the weight difference, god it was a good tackle and I think it lifted the rest of the side.
“That their captain would put his body on the line in the manner in which he did, it was fantastic footy.”
