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Live sport on SN this weekend'Not all roses and sunshine': Manly's reality check
Jasper Bruce, AAP •  July 18th, 2026 8:36 am
Taniela Paseka (centre) is confident Manly can bounce back from their recent losses | Photo: Dan Himbrechts/AAP
Taniela Paseka says it is unrealistic to expect life will always be "roses and sunshine" in Manly's Kieran Foran era.
But the Sea Eagles prop is confident his side is back on track, conceding "everyone has been off" the past fortnight after their mental focus had lapsed.
Paseka agreed life under Foran began in something of a honeymoon phase, with Manly winning eight of the club legend's first 10 games as coach.
"I've heard stories about the honeymoon phase, and it was sort of like that," Paseka said.
"We were just turning up and we were just winning games."
But since their round-15 bye, the Sea Eagles have lost three of four matches to drop from the top four and into ninth spot on the ladder ahead of round 20.
Manly were particularly disappointed with their two most recent defeats, the first coming against 15th-placed Parramatta who were missing Mitch Moses.
Last week, the Sea Eagles led 14-6 after nearly an hour of their clash with North Queensland, only to lose 19-18 in extra time.
"They were two tough losses. That's not us, that's not Manly identity," Paseka said.
"The Cowboys loss was a big hit for us, we were very upset and disappointed."
Taniela Paseka and Tom Trbojevic with other disappointed Sea Eagles after the North Queensland loss | Photo: Steven Markham/AAP
Paseka said the past two losses had presented a new challenge for rookie coach Foran, one of the NRL's most affable characters.
"That was the first time seeing him emotional," Paseka said of his former teammate.
"Obviously early in his (coaching) career he was very successful, but there's going to be a time when it's not all roses and sunshine.
"It's how you react to that and how you respond to that."
But Paseka has seen a more resilient and focused Manly outfit at training this week ahead of Sunday's clash with improving Gold Coast.
Focusing for the full game will be key against the Titans, with the Sea Eagles leading at half-time in each of their three most recent losses.
"I think we've just been off with the mindset, that's all it is," Paseka said.
"It's just a bit of focus. When you're playing, when you're competing against a team like the Cowboys, they were on the whole 80. (We were) just losing focus parts of the game.
"I can feel it with the group and the team, that we're back on track."
Clayton Faulalo starred in the Sea Eagles' 12-10 defeat of the Titans earlier in the season but is currently sidelined with a hamstring injury.
Paseka said Manly could not rely on individual brilliance to hoist them over the line this time.
"I think everyone has been off the last two weeks. This week, everyone has to step up," he said.
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