![\"Christian](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/635402f1698dc5687fb8f98be5c093fe76cbc56f.png\")
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April 27, 2026 \u2014 7:30pm<\/p>\n
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Remove items from your saved list<\/a> to add more.<\/p>\n Save this article for later<\/p>\n Add articles to your saved list and come back to them anytime.<\/p>\n Got it<\/p>\n AAA<\/p>\n Manly winger Jason Saab grew tired of catching kicks and being crunched by defenders, so he hatched a plan to deliberately head the ball forward if he got the chance.<\/p>\n Saab had commentators and fans confused when he positioned himself under a Jamal Fogarty kick midway through the first half of Sunday\u2019s win over the Eels<\/a>, then headed the ball forward with the sort of power that would have impressed any Premier League player.<\/p>\n Saab, a Manchester city fan, was unsure if the bold tactic would work, or whether he would be heckled for sending the ball deep into the crowd on the Brookvale Oval hill.<\/p>\n Under the rules, a player can not deliberately head the ball forward, but an accidental \u2018falcon\u2019 is not an offence.<\/p>\n \u201cWith me being a kick target these days, if the ball falls short, opposition players let me catch it, tackle me, and I can\u2019t do much with it,\u201d Saab said.<\/p>\n \u201cObviously if you head the ball, it\u2019s play on. I thought I\u2019d head it forward and see what happens.<\/p>\n \u201cLuckily it went the right way.<\/p>\n \u201cI told \u2018Shmole\u2019 [Haumole Olakau\u2019atu] last week, \u2018You know what, I\u2019m going to do that\u2019. And he was like, \u2018[assistant coach] Jim Dymock will love it if you do it\u2019. Jimmy came in at half-time and was cheering. Jimmy\u2019s whole game is off-the-cuff footy, and loves that sort of stuff.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m glad it didn\u2019t backfire. We didn\u2019t get much out it of other than another 10m [towards the Eels try line]. A try assist would have been cool. I know it\u2019s within the rules, so why not do it. I only thought about it last week.<\/p>\n \u201cBecause it\u2019s not a round ball, it\u2019s not like it\u2019s the best percentage play. I could see a guy like [Penrith\u2019s] Brian To\u2019o doing something like this. I actually hope he does \u2013 I\u2019d love to see him do it, just not next Sunday against us.\u201d<\/p>\n Olakau\u2019atu, who was at his rampaging best in the win over the Eels, said he completely forgot about his conversation with Saab, and could not believe it when he actually headed the ball.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen it actually happened, I giggled,\u201d Olakau\u2019atu said.<\/p>\n \u201cHe helped us in a way because instead of him catching it on the 20m line, we tackled Parra five metres out from their own line. It was a smart play. I know the crowd loved it.\u201d<\/p>\n Manly made it four in a row for caretaker coach Kieran Foran, and they were determined not to disappoint their home fans after dropping their first three games at 4 Pines Park.<\/p>\n![\"Jason](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1777309395_527_f3eb642deb6dd9f6058336662b2bb5c73ae2a2792c371645c271d52b843e22ca.gif\")
Jason Saab with his deliberate header.Channel Nine<\/p>\n![\"Jason](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/ff94c5b6a6b925239effd26a1a780e12e8c71ac8.jpeg\")
Jason Saab scored a try on Sunday, but it wasn\u2019t the moment the fans will remember.Getty Images<\/p>\n
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