Manly Warringah Sea Eagles 2021 draw snapshot

Here is all you need to know about the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles' 2021 Telstra Premiership draw.

The Lowdown

Teams they play twice

Dragons, Panthers, Warriors, Titans, Wests Tigers, Eels, Cowboys, Bulldogs, Raiders

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• The 2021 Telstra Premiership draw
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Teams they play once

Roosters, Rabbitohs, Broncos, Knights, Sharks, Storm

Day-by-day breakdown

Thursday - 2, Friday - 6, Saturday - 9, Sunday - 7

Turnarounds

5 days – 2, 6 days – 6, 7+ days – 15

Kick-off

The Sea Eagles will travel to the Sydney Cricket Ground in round one for an away clash against the Sydney Roosters on March 13. Des Hasler's side got the chocolates 9-8 in the only clash between the two sides in 2020. Matches against the Rabbitohs (home), Dragons (away) and Panthers (home) follow.

Five key match-ups

Warriors (Round 5, Mt Smart Stadium; Round 9, Lottoland): One decade after the 2011 Telstra Premiership grand final between the two sides will see Manly's halves combination Daly Cherry-Evans and Kieran Foran partnering up again.

While the Warriors won't have anyone who featured from that match, their key signing Addin Fonua-Blake will fired up to face his former teammates after departing the club in abrupt circumstances in September.

The Sea Eagles have lost four of the past five clashes between these sides after previously holding a seven-game winning streak.

Wests Tigers (Round 7, Bankwest Stadium; Round 19, Central Coast Stadium): A see-sawing affair in round 17, 2020, which saw the Sea Eagles surrender a 14-point lead with 11 minutes remaining, may not be the only thing both sides will have on their mind come kick-off.

Talk of a swap involving Curtis Sironen and Josh Aloiai won't go away, and after Aloiai's reported comments of never wanting to play for the Wests Tigers again as he looks to take up a Sea Eagles offer, a rivalry could be brewing between these clubs.

The Sea Eagles have struggled recently against the joint venture, dropping five of their past six games, and the Tigers are the kind of team they'll need to beat to have any chance of getting back into the finals race.

Eels (Round 11, Bankwest Stadium; Round 22, Lottoland): The battles between these two rivals rarely disappoints with a Tom Trbojevic forward pass call ruining a comeback on the siren in round four last season before the Sea Eagles turned the screws six weeks later to come out on top and shock the Eels by four at Lottoland.

With recent history split at 3-3, it won't take much for the Sea Eagles to get up for this clash.

Knights (Round 12, McDonald Jones Stadium): Nothing gets these teams fired up more than replays of the 1997 grand final played on the big screens the week leading into clashes between the two clubs.

Newcastle got out of jail on two occasions against the Sea Eagles in 2020 with particular controversy at the end of their round-eight encounter. After the Sea Eagles dominated the Knights over a five-year period, Newcastle have hit back lately for a 4-2 recent record.

Bulldogs (Round 16, ANZ Stadium; Round 24, Lottoland): Kieran Foran's much-anticipated return to the Sea Eagles won't be lost on the Bulldogs faithful after a frustrating three years at the club and matched by the aftermath of Des Hasler's exit as Canterbury coach, there is no love lost between all parties involved.

Sea Eagles recruit Morgan Harper will also be out with a point to prove against his former team, while Corey Waddell links with the Bulldogs under Trent Barrett after two years at Brookvale.

Toughest stretch

The Sea Eagles face a difficult opening to the season with just two games at Lottoland in the first eight rounds to coincide with clashes against the Roosters, Rabbitohs and Panthers in the opening month.

They're also set to have their State of Origin representatives back up just 48 hours after games in clashes against the Cowboys (round 14) and Dragons (round 18) at Lottoland. 

And another thing ... 

The Sea Eagles will take their round-six clash against the Titans to Mudgee on April 17 in a first for the club, while they'll also take on the Panthers in an away trip to Bathurst at Carrington Park a fortnight later.

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