Victory was a long time coming for the Sea Eagles.

After three-straight losses, each by six points or less, Manly were finally able to secure a 26-20 win over the Melbourne Storm. The Battle of Brookvale continues.

Coach Anthony Seibold said the team were overdue for a win.

“It was a real tough win, the Storm are a good side, have been for a long time for a reason, so we knew we’d have to fight really hard and I thought Chez [Daly Cherry-Evans] and Jake [Trbojevic] led the boys really well,” he said.

“Really proud, we probably weren’t too far away last week against the Broncos, so to come back home and beat the Storm there was a lot to like about the performance.”

Defence has been Manly’s downfall all year, but Seibold said it was their goal-line defence in the dying minutes of the game that helped them escape with a six-point victory.

“I was a bit more nervous then, I’ve got to say, and I thought we actually did a really good job, defending our try line. Storm had all the field position and they had a heap of possession there at the end,” he said.

“We probably needed that. There’s been a couple of close games that we haven’t unfortunately been able to get the result, so it gives us a bit of confidence and we go into a bye. I think we were looking for the bye as well. It’s been a pretty tough three months of footy.”

Storm coach Craig Bellamy had a lengthy chat to his team after the game, and said the poor completion rate and lack of possession lost them the match.

“I just thought our start [from] both halves was poor, especially to start the game. We went 25 minutes and we completed not even 50 per cent, so that put a lot of pressure,” Bellamy said.

“You can’t start games like that and expect to win them at this level.”