Five games, three days, and not a single local in any of them.
Manly finished ninth this season — eleven wins, thirteen losses, one place outside the eight — so the peninsula spends finals weekend as a neutral. If you have ever tried to get near a screen at the Steyne while the Sea Eagles were still alive, that is quietly good news. The pubs will be full but not feral, and you can actually watch the football.
Here is everything on between Friday 25 and Sunday 27 September, the grand finals the weekend after, and every venue in the village showing them.
The fixtures
All times AEST.
| When | Game | Who | Played at |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri 25 Sep, 7:50pm | NRL preliminary final | Dolphins 20 v Sydney Roosters 36 | Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane |
| Sat 26 Sep, 2:30pm | AFL Grand Final | Fremantle 12.17 (89) v Brisbane 14.12 (96) | MCG, Melbourne |
| Sat 26 Sep, 7:50pm | NRLW preliminary final | Sydney Roosters 20 v Canberra Raiders 10 | Allianz Stadium, Sydney |
| Sun 27 Sep, 1:05pm | NRLW preliminary final | Gold Coast Titans 8 v Brisbane Broncos 20 | Cbus Super Stadium |
| Sun 27 Sep, 4:05pm | NRL preliminary final | Penrith Panthers 14 v Newcastle Knights 22 | Accor Stadium, Sydney |
The field is set. The Roosters booked the Friday trip to Brisbane by putting 46–10 on Cronulla, Newcastle upset the Warriors 12–10 in front of a sold-out Eden Park to take the Sunday game against Penrith — their first preliminary final since 2013 — and both NRLW prelims are locked in, Canberra coming through 6–0 against the Tigers and Brisbane beating Newcastle 40–16.
Weekend results: the Roosters beat the Dolphins 36–20 in Brisbane on Friday, Sam Walker scoring on his return from injury and Mark Nawaqanitawase grabbing a double. On Saturday Brisbane won a third straight AFL flag, kicking the last four goals to turn a 17-point deficit into a seven-point win over Fremantle, 14.12 (96) to 12.17 (89), with Logan Morris putting them in front with a minute left. That night the Roosters' women beat Canberra 20–10. On Sunday Brisbane's women beat the Titans 20–8, and Newcastle stunned Penrith 22–14 despite playing the whole second half a man down, in a game overshadowed by a broken leg for Nathan Cleary. That sets up Roosters v Knights in the NRL grand final, Newcastle's first since 2001, and Roosters v Broncos in the NRLW decider, a rematch of last year's.
The NRL and NRLW grand finals are the weekend after, on Sunday 4 October at Accor Stadium.
On the Corso
Hotel Steyne
The obvious one, and the biggest. The Steyne is four venues stacked into one 1936 corner pub at 75 The Corso, and the sports room is Magic Millions Bar on the ground floor — the traditional gathering point for Sea Eagles supporters, which this year means it is available to everyone else. Screens throughout, a late licence, and the Top Deck upstairs if you want the game on in the background rather than in your face.
Best for: grand final night on 4 October, and anyone who wants a second room to escape to when the first one fills.
The Ivanhoe
The Ivanhoe at 27 The Corso markets itself as a sports pub and means it: a dedicated sports bar with full TAB facilities and large screens, in a room that is still genuinely a local's pub. Schooner prices belong to a different decade. Open 9am to 3am Monday to Thursday, 9am to 6am Friday and Saturday, and 9am to midnight Sunday — open before, during and long after every game on this list.
Best for: watching properly, with a bet on, without paying beachfront prices.
The New Brighton Hotel
The loudest room in Manly, on the corner where the Corso meets Belgrave Street: sport on the big screens whenever there is sport to show, and cover bands from around nine. That cuts both ways. It is a good call for an evening game when you want a night out either side of it, and a poor one if you want to hear the commentary. The beer garden out the back is the calmer move when the front bar is heaving.
Best for: an evening game as part of a bigger night out.
Down at the wharf
Felons Manly Wharf
The only venue in Manly with a confirmed, bookable grand final sitting. Felons screened the AFL Grand Final with bookable tables, and the NRL and NRLW grand finals on Sunday 4 October are open for booking now. Regular fixtures are walk-in. Doors from 11am daily.
It is the old Manly Wharf Hotel rebadged, so the room is enormous, the pizza is wood-fired and the water is right there. Our full Felons guide has the detail if you have not been since the changeover.
Best for: the NRL Grand Final on 4 October. Book it — this is the one sitting that will fill.
4 Pines Brewpub
Opposite the wharf on East Esplanade, the original 4 Pines. Downstairs is the classic public bar, and the sports-bar directories list it — but 4 Pines' own venue page says nothing about screens, so ring ahead before you commit a group to it.
Best for: a Pacific Ale and a look at the score, rather than the full eighty minutes.
The clubs
Manly Bowling Club
Manly's best-kept secret for this sort of thing. Large-screen TVs indoors and more on the verandah, looking out over Manly Oval at 59 Raglan Street, at club prices, with kids welcome. Open 11am to 10pm Thursday to Saturday and 11am to 9pm Sunday, closed Monday.
Do the arithmetic for evening games, though: the club closes at 9pm on Sundays. The 4:05pm prelim fits comfortably; check the grand final kick-off against that close before you plan on it.
Best for: the Sunday afternoon prelim with family, on a verandah, for half what the Corso charges.
Manly 16ft Skiff Sailing Club
On the sand at the eastern arm of Manly Cove, with the best-value waterfront deck on the peninsula. Visitors sign in at the door. It is a club bar with screens rather than a sports barn — nobody is here primarily for the football — but for the Sunday afternoon prelim, with the harbour doing its thing outside, it is the most pleasant room on this list by a distance.
Best for: the Sunday 4:05pm, if the weather behaves.
Just up the road
Harbord Diggers, Freshwater is a fifteen-minute drive or a short bus ride, and runs a proper live sport program covering both codes on a scale the village venues cannot match, with the clifftop view as a bonus. Worth the trip if you want big-club atmosphere rather than pub atmosphere.
Before you go
Book only where booking exists. Felons is the one venue with published grand final bookings. Everywhere else is walk-in, so on grand final day arrive early — a Sydney club in the decider pulls a Sydney crowd, and on a warm spring Sunday the beach crowd and the football crowd want the same tables.
Sunday is the easy one. No local side, no Sydney derby, and an afternoon slot competing with the beach — you will get a seat.
Getting home. The Sunday prelim finishes around 6pm, well inside the ferry timetable. For an evening grand final, check the last F1 to Circular Quay before you settle in — the ferry guide has the timetable. Driving is the worse idea on grand final day; parking is at its worst.
Eat first. Pub kitchens on grand final day are a lottery. The fish and chips guide solves it in ten minutes, and you can take it to the sand beforehand.
Apart from Felons, none of these venues has published anything specific for this weekend. They are all standing sports bars that will have the football on — but if you are bringing a group, ring on the Thursday and ask.
