Brett Stewart may believe Manly "need" Anthony Watmough to win but the Sea Eagles will have to beat Canterbury minus their star back-rower after he accepted a one-game ban for a dangerous throw.
Watmough opted against fighting the charge for a lifting tackle on South Sydney's Greg Inglis.
"Choc's [Watmough] been one of our best forwards all year; we need him in the side to win, I think," Stewart said before Watmough confirmed he would not contest his dangerous throw charge.
Club legend Steve Menzies also hinted the Sea Eagles would struggle with Watmough, Glenn Stewart, Matt Ballin and Jamie Buhrer all sidelined. South Sydney showed Manly's middle was vulnerable as the Rabbitohs raced to a 40-0 lead on Friday night, with the Bulldogs expected to follow a similar game plan on Saturday night.
"It's hard to win those bigger games and lift when they haven't been playing as good as they wanted to," Menzies said. "Losing a starting player is always tough, but when you've lost a few senior guys it makes it harder.
"These young guys can do it but it's going to be hard because they are not used to that [extra defensive] workload. You haven't practised it as much as the other guys.
"Their attitude has to be to throw caution to the wind and have nothing to lose. They need to play with that attitude with attack and defence. That can be dangerous with any team that have an attitude like that."
The finals match will mark Stewart's 200th match, made possible by the fullback overcoming a string of season-ending injuries to reach the milestone.
"I don't want to take the focus off a big game in an elimination final but [I am] very privileged to come up to 200," Stewart said. "It's a great club, very historic. If someone had have told me 10, 12 years ago I'd play 200 games, I probably wouldn't have believed them, so I feel very honoured.
"I probably should be [higher than 200]. I've had a few injuries but that's rugby league – everyone's got their own story and their own injuries. I'm just grateful to make 200."
Meanwhile, the one-game ban could end Watmough's 12-season stint at the club with the Eels circling.
Parramatta hooker Nathan Peats said Watmough would be a welcomed addition to the Eels roster should he be granted an early release.
"He's an Australian player, has won grand finals and played for NSW," Peats said. "If Watmough wants to come to Parramatta, he can come here any day of the week.
"I enjoy playing against him and would love to play with him. In saying that, if he doesn't [come], it's no loss; it's not like he was here and left ... If it happens, it happens."
"He's a power athlete and he's got the endurance to play a full game as well. It would be a good balance he'd definitely bring."
