NRL News
Matty Johns: Wests Tigers Vs. Manly Sea Eagles: "There Will Be Blood" Post by: Christina Rowatt 29 July, 2011 - 10:00 AM
The Wests Tigers vs. Manly Sea Eagles stoush at Bluetongue Stadium tonight could become a "bloody" battlefield, according to Triple M's Matty Johns.
Tensions between the two teams boiled over at an unlikely place earlier this year - a charity cricket match between the two teams at Manly Oval.
The game featured past legends of the game, Matty and Andrew "Joey" Johns.
"I've had a good relationship with the Tigers boys. So the Tigers boys asked me to play for them ... and Manly asked Joey to play for them." Matty Johns said.
"Charity cricket games are all about goodwill, but these guys were competitors and there was a feeling that one side treated the game as a 'win at all costs' [situation].
"Manly won the game with a ball to spare, but the Tigers had their nose out of joint.
"There were a couple of things ... there was a gentlemen's agreement that all batsmen would declare at 50.
"Two of the Manly batsmen got to about 70 odd. The Tigers boys were going, 'Come on, you've gotta declare,' the Manly blokes were laughing.
"My competitive spirit was burnt out ten years ago, but the Tigers believe they were ambushed, and on the end of unsportsman-like behaviour after travelling all the way to Manly.
"There was a genuine standoff at the end of the match, and it wasn't about the cricket game. That was just the tipping point.
"And at the end of the game, there was really bad blood. I think it will spill over into tonight," Johns explained.
Johns believes this "bloody" tension is not necessarily a bad thing; it has the potential to could translate into really exciting football.
"The two blokes to keep an eye on [tonight] will be [Wests] Robbie Farah and [Manly's] Anthony Watmough.
"I think there is genuine dislike between these two camps, and I think it's fantastic," Johns concluded.
Who will win Round #21: Tigers Or Sea Eagles?
