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WHO would have thought 21 years later these blokes would be battling each other for the NRL minor premiership?
The top three sides - Manly, Canterbury and Penrith - are all coached by former Sea
Eagles.
Geoff Toovey (Manly), Des Hasler (Canterbury) and Ivan Cleary (Penrith) played together at Brookvale from 1992-93, with their clubs now equal on 26 competition points and hunting for the NRL minor premiership and a $100,000 reward.
"That (1993) was a time when Manly were starting another run," Hasler remembered of the days when he sported an old-school mullet. The Tooveys, Clearys, Menzies, Gartners and Kosefs were all starting to develop and come through."
Asked about the three former players who would go on to become great coaches, former Manly hooker David O'Donnell recalled: "Tooves was very determined, Des was very dedicated, Ivan put a lot of thought into his game.
"They are still showing the same qualities now as coaches as they did back then. Their success is well deserved. They were high achievers back then and still are."
Former Manly winger Jack Elsegood said the trio shared similar qualities.
"Hasler and Toovey were both very tenacious players," Elsegood said. "They were the ultimate competitors who demanded a lot from themselves.
"They have passed that on to their players. I played with Ivan at Manly and also the Sydney Roosters.
"He has always been very astute and smart. He doesn't say a lot, but when he does talk, he makes a good point.
"Ivan doesn't waffle and use 1000 words. He can condense that back to five or six words.
"All three are very disciplined - that is a trait they all share."
The Manly side that year also included club champions Ian Roberts, Cliff Lyons, Nik Kosef and Matthew Ridge. The side was coached by Immortal Bob Fulton.
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Dean Ritchie
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/how-immortal-bob-fultons-manly-side-launched-the-nrls-coaching-revolution/story-fni3gnk1-1226993814972