One thing that is undisputed is that with out Manly and to a lesser extent the Roosters taking a stand from the beginning against the Murdoch takeover , he would have gained full control of the code in Australia , and that would have been hardly ideal . The one matter that did adversely affect Manly is that they were the ONLY A R L club that quite willingly did not receive any financial assistance from Packer or the A R L at the time . Without a doubt , this then did cripple their financial position when the war ended and then resulting in the ill fated and diabolical Bears Merger . A R L aligned clubs like the Eels , Roosters in what ever ways always had natural advantages to continue to be quite viable , as did the Dogs , Panthers and the Raiders after S L . S L aligned clubs like the Cowboys and Sharks had some basket case times post S L . Mixed bag really , disappointed that a second Brisbane team , the Adelaide and Perth teams dropped out , but just so , so grateful that the Sea Eagles were still able to eventually resume and survive as an independent entity .