MARK ‘SPUDD’ CARROLL: My dressing room blow-up with outgoing Manly Sea Eagles skipper Daly Cherry-Evans

Everywhere I go on the northern beaches, I get asked the same question.

“Hey Spudd, how come Manly didn’t make the eight?”

I know injuries knocked them around a bit you can’t tell me the Sea Eagles are not a better side than a couple of those teams playing September footy.

Their roster was good enough to win more than 12 games and finish much higher than 10th.

So why didn’t they?

Now the dust has settled on their campaign, I am more convinced than ever that Daly Cherry-Evans’ momentous decision to walk away from the club next year cost them their season.

And I told him as much.

I have been sitting on this column for several months, but the time has come to disclose all.

Now that Manly is officially out of the finals race, I feel comfortable revealing the confrontation I had with Daly Cherry-Evans weeks after he decided to quit the Sea Eagles live on national television.

I was in the Manly dressing-room before a late-season game and was looking to have a quick word with Ethan Bullemor and Toff Sipley, as I work with both of them throughout the season.

But before I could get to them, I saw DCE staring daggers at me.

What’s he so filthy about, I thought to myself.

So I walked over to him and said: “Congratulations on what you have achieved here and good luck wherever you go.”

He responded: “Do you really mean that?”

I shot back: “What do you mean by that?”

He then told me he’d read my column in The Nightly where I’d criticised his decision to quit the club after three rounds of a new season, suggesting it would cause a rift with teammates, ruin his legacy on the northern beaches and cost his side a finals berth.

He was also upset I’d called on him to retire from State of Origin football and to give the maroon and whites his entire focus in his 15th and final year.

DCE thought my article was harsh and out of line.

And he felt I was now contradicting myself by congratulating him.

I told him: “At least you’re reading my stuff and I don’t back away from what I wrote. You’re a legend of this club and played for your state and country and I thought it would be nice if you put all your energy into helping Manly make the 8.

“Instead, you come across as trying to be some sort of superhero and I feel your decision derailed the season.

“As for playing Origin, that backfired. You were the captain and got punted.”

He told me he was okay with that decision and I replied: “I certainly wouldn’t be.”

I then gave him a special Spudd handshake – which has been known to make eyes pop – and we went our separate ways.

I’ve thought about our confrontation a lot since it happened and don’t have any regrets over what I said or wrote.

Let me reiterate that there is no doubt this bloke will go down as one of the club’s all-time greats.

He already holds the record for most games played and was a central figure in the 2011 grand final win.

We won so many games on the back of DCE’s skill, ability, class and leadership and he deserves immense gratitude and respect for that.

What I said and wrote was strong stuff and probably painful for Daly to read, but someone had to say it and I will own my opinion even if it was upsetting to some.

I truly believe Manly would-be playing finals footy next week if not for his selfish decision to abandon ship and the way he went about it.

How you can go on a footy show – with no club gear on – and blindside so many people with such a major career call is beyond me.

And while his teammates said the right things publicly, you could tell they were hurting and angry.

When the world’s nicest bloke Jake Trbojevic said, “I don’t really care”, after he was asked about his captain’s next move, that said it all for me.

If DCE’s got a problem with me, I can live with that.

I don’t have any regrets - but I’m not sure he can say the same thing.