Never one to miss a chance to remind everyone of their struggles, Manly have thus far not enjoyed a fruitful 2016.

Daly Cherry Evans has struggled to justify his massive price-tag, while Nate Myles, Dylan Walker and Marty Taupau have fallen well short of expectation since their high profile moves.

Trent Barrett looks a man struggling with the pressures of first grade coaching, as best shown by his emotions following Manly’s horror loss this past weekend.

Manly’s form, and run with injuries, have prompted Barrett to play one of his trump cards, perhaps a little earlier than he may have wanted, after naming Liam Knight to debut this weekend.

Although he has been named on an extended bench, Knight is expected to come in regardless of Nate Myles injury status.

When mentioning Knight, the elephant in the room is of course his off field incident that made headlines earlier this season.

I won’t make any excuses or defences for Knight’s actions that night but I do admire his actions since.

Knight has come across as young man who received a wake-up call, and as funny as it may sound, may look back on the events as being part of his making both as a footballer and a man.

Although it did not hit the headlines, Knight took it upon himself to meet with those affected by drink driving and enrolled himself in a drink driving prevention course. These programs were completed before any court ordered punishment was handed down.

Moving on from those events, it seems to may have been forgotten just how good a young footballer the 21 year-old is.

Those who follow the Holden Cup competition will know of Knight’s abilities, after he played a huge part in leading the Sea Eagles to last year’s Grand Final.

At 191cms and 106 kilos, Knight is physically ready for the demands of NRL competition. There's also the slight advantage of Greg Bird missing the fixture due to Origin selection.

That being said, with the likes of Paasi, McQueen and James, Knight and the rest of the Sea Eagles pack will have their work well and truly ahead of them.

Knight will also be afforded the luxury of making his NRL entrance from the bench, which should allow his nerves to settle before running into battle.

Whereas Knight was bossing opposition forwards around in the junior grades, despite his size and power, he will be a boy amongst men when opposing the likes of Titans monster Ryan James.

With that said, having watched Knight develop through the lower grades, I would not bet against him putting his hand up early in the first set in attack when he comes onto the field.

In fact I would not be surprised if Knight produces big numbers on debut and becomes, very quickly, an established presence in this Manly side.

2016 looks like a year to be written off on the Northern beaches, but introducing their most highly regarded young forward may be a true highlight in an otherwise disappointing season.

One thing I genuinely hope is that after Monday Night, people will be taking about this young man in regards to his footballing ability and the bright career he has ahead of him.

Wade Graham Decision An Absolute Farce

For those living under a rock for the past 12 or so hours, Wade Graham has been suspended for his ‘shot’ on Johnathan Thurston, and will miss his chance to debut for NSW at Suncorp Stadium next Wednesday night.

This means that Graham, who caught a falling Thurston, with such little force that Thurston was able to jump back to his feet to convert a penalty goal attempt before publicly throwing his support behind Graham, will serve the same week-long suspension handed down to Marty Taupau.

The same Taupau who caught Jack Bird in an incident far more serious, and damaging than that seen this past Monday Night.

The shot on Thurston by Graham was a textbook penalty, no question. Deserved to be put on report, but in a season that has seen players drive opponents into the ground head first, or almost take their head off with a swinging arm, either let off or slapped on the right, why is Graham being forced to miss the biggest game of his career?

Do not get me wrong, I would maintain the same outrage even if Graham was forced to sit out a game for the Sharks. The fact it will affect his Origin debut is just headline grabbing.

Hmm, I wonder if that had anything to do with the upholding of the charge?

For the record I don’t buy into any bias being shown by referees or the judiciary, just incompetence.

The same goes for the officials involved in Origin One. They had a shocker, both coaches and literally every fan watching thought as much.

Did they cheat? Of course not. Do they deserve another shot at the showpiece game(s) in an elite series? Of course not.

Perhaps Todd Greenberg will hold a press conference tomorrow, or speak to someone from the media one-on-one to explain the judiciary inconsistencies and the fact that two officials who performed terribly in Origin one were re-appointed?

Perhaps not.

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