Lehi Hopoate can consider himself fortunate that teammate Brandon Wakeham has reliable hands following a cheeky moment during Manly’s victory over the Cowboys.
Having already scored a double, Hopoate capitalised on a miscue from Scott Drinkwater just before half-time, sprinting over the try line.
Wakeham, yet to score this season, joined him in the run to the line, and in a surprising twist, Hopoate passed the ball back to Wakeham, who then scored to extend the lead to 20-6.
Phil Gould’s reaction on Nine was one of disbelief: “Did he really just do that?”
“Oh dear, oh dear… Just put it down, my goodness.”
Lehi Hopoate makes a pass over the line. Nine
Former Cowboys captain Johnathan Thurston described the moment as “painful to witness” from a North Queensland viewpoint.
“That certainly gives off a vibe of arrogance, passing it like that over the try line,” he chuckled.
“It’s like a real ‘up yours’ to the Cowboys.”
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Gould’s astonishment wasn’t finished as he stated, “I can’t imagine how I’d handle that.”
“It’s a different story when the score’s 50 or 60 with just a few minutes remaining,” he added.
“That’s one for Kieran Foran to tackle. Welcome to coaching.”
Foran’s immediate reaction wasn’t captured from the coaching box, and he wasn’t questioned about it in the post-match interviews.
However, Gould’s disbelief carried on into the post-match discussion when asked how he would have addressed the situation at half-time.
“It wouldn’t have been a pleasant conversation,” he remarked.
“Well, it ended well, I suppose, but no, no, no, no, no, you can’t do that.”
Compiled by SportArena.au
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