Sea Eagles grounded as Dragons find form

THEY live on Sydney’s wellto-do northern beaches but the Sea Eagles suddenly find themselves on Struggle Street.

Three successive losses, injured and suspended players and a looming game against competition leader Parramatta leave Manly in a precarious position.

The Sea Eagles are now in 10th spot with four wins from nine matches after a horrible 34-4 loss to St George Illawarra at Netstrata Stadium on Sunday night.

It was St George Illawarra’s third win of the season and it eased the pressure on underperforming stars and head coach Paul McGregor.

The Dragons are now in 11th place, just one position behind Manly.

The Dragons finally look to have found their strongest side.

Their stats were brilliant – six tries and 39 of 42 sets completed.

Manly’s season is sliding amid refereeing blunders, the Addin Fonua-Blake drama, and injuries to Tom Trbojevic and Dylan Walker.

Handling errors also dented any ambitions for victory against the Dragons.

There can be no excuses, though.

The Sea Eagles just couldn’t find any sustained field position.

Winger Jorge Taufua was sin-binned for a professional foul, while halfback Daly Cherry-Evans had problems with his handling.

And while some last-minute changes altered Manly’s dynamics, they simply weren’t enough to secure victory or halt the Dragons’ charge.

■ ST George Illawarra has finally landed a replacement for Englishman James Graham after signing Penrith back-rower Kaide Ellis.

It is understood Ellis’s deal is for the rest of the season.

The 23-year-old is expected to link up with the Dragons as early as today.