The Manly Sea Eagles are heading into Thursday’s away clash against the North Queensland Cowboys in Townsville with renewed momentum, as the club’s stunning recent form has drawn comparisons to their memorable 2021 comeback season. At the center of pre-match speculation is veteran forward Jake Trbojevic, who is on track to be named in the matchday squad despite sustaining a grueling eye injury during last weekend’s victory over the St. George Illawarra Dragons.
Trbojevic was forced to exit the Dragons win early after a hard tackle left him with a deep cut below his right eye, which swelled so severely that the eye closed completely completely. While initial medical checks ruled out any concussion — a key concern given Trbojevic’s history of head impacts — he was unable to rejoin the game due to impaired vision. Posts from rugby league medical observers on social media shortly after the incident raised questions about a possible eye socket fracture, leaving Sea Eagles fans waiting anxiously for updates on his condition.
The star forward skipped all contact drills at Monday’s training session at the NSWRL Centre of Excellence in Sydney’s Olympic Park, but his presence on the training ground remained critical. Trbojevic stayed on the field to lead warm-ups, walk through tactical drills, and direct younger teammates, signaling his preparation to suit up for the Townsville match. When asked about his availability, Trbojevic confirmed to teammates he intends to play, a commitment his front row partner Taniela Paseka says he fully trusts.
“He’s told me he’s in, so I’m going to go off that because whatever he says usually happens,” Paseka told NewsWire. “It’s going to be very important to have him in our team this week against a big, physical forward pack like the Cowboys.”
Beyond his on-field contributions, Paseka says Trbojevic’s natural leadership and tactical eye suggest a successful second career as a coach once he retires from playing. “I reckon he’ll definitely be a coach, and I keep telling him that. I think he’s very good at explaining the game, so I told him ‘Mate, you should be a coach.’ Maybe not a head coach straight away because it’s too big of a job, but he would be an excellent forwards coach focusing on one area of the game. He’s actually thinking about it, and he’s admitted the idea appeals to him.”
Trbojevic’s expected return is just the latest bright spot for a Sea Eagles side that has undergone a dramatic transformation since a disastrous 0-3 start to the 2026 season. That poor opening stretch cost head coach Anthony Seibold his job, with former Manly playmaker Kieran Foran stepping into the interim head coach role. The shift has already delivered staggering results: Manly has put up 80 points across Foran’s first two games in charge, a far cry from the lackluster performance that saw them booed off their home ground by angry fans in round four.
Paseka attributes the sudden turnaround to growing on-field cohesion after the squad’s major mid-season shakeup. “It took a while for us to get it right with the chemistry and the combinations,” he explained. “Now that we’ve played a few games together, we’ve figured out what’s working for us and what isn’t. We doubled down on the strategies that fit this group, and that’s paid off over the last two weeks. We’re just building on that week after week.”
Even with two straight wins under their belt, Paseka says the squad is remaining grounded, taking each match as it comes rather than getting ahead of themselves. “I think the sky’s the limit for this group. As more key players come back from injury, we’ll only get stronger. We’re just trying every week to be present, take it week by week and not look too far ahead. We’re winning at the moment, but we’re still very grounded, if that makes sense, because you don’t want to get ahead of yourself.”
For long-time Sea Eagles supporters, the current run of form is already bringing back echoes of 2021, a season that saw Manly start with four straight losses before storming through the back half of the year to reach the NRL preliminary final. That turnaround was fueled by superstar fullback Tom Trbojevic – Jake’s brother – who missed the opening of that season before producing one of the most dominant attacking individual campaigns in modern NRL history. Today, Tom “Turbo” Trbojevic is back in top form heading into Thursday’s trip to north Queensland, a parallel Paseka doesn’t deny.
“I do see similarities to 2021. But like I said, I don’t want to look too far ahead because you’ve got to be present,” Paseka said. “But for sure, that was a great year for us and for Turbo as well. Right now, Turbo’s playing great footy, and that’s a huge boost for all of us.”