Wests Tigers have had the last laugh over Luke Brooks, ambushing ill-disciplined Manly for a 34-26 upset win on the Sea Eagles five-eighth's return to Leichhardt Oval.
In the halfback spot that Brooks filled for 11 seasons, former Manly junior Latu Fainu put the last-placed Tigers on top during a run of 30 unanswered points that overturned Manly's 16-0 lead and threw their finals hopes into doubt.
The Sea Eagles could have booked their top-eight spot with victory on Thursday night but must now beat either of top-four hopefuls Canterbury or Cronulla to guarantee they will play finals in 2024.
It's hard to see Manly winning either clash or making a deep impact in finals if they reprise Thursday night's wayward performance, during which they lost three men to the sin bin.
Manly conceded two soft first-half tries, both on the back of Jake Trbojevic mistakes, to watch their 16-0 lead close to four points in the space of five minutes.
Repeated penalties sent Ethan Bullemor to the sin bin after he had set Tom Trbojevic up for a runaway try earlier in the half, before Haumole Olakau'atu went for 10 minutes following a high shot on rookie fullback Heath Mason.
The Tigers took their first lead as Fainu took control while Olaka'autu was off the park just after half-time.
The 19-year-old sent Alex Seyfarth over untouched with a no-look pass only seconds later, having just come on to replace injured veteran Aidan Sezer (shoulder).
When Fainu scooped the ball up following a set restart and darted for the line, the Tigers were on their way to a shock eight-point lead.
The Sea Eagles were rattled after Lachie Galvin's kick bounced over Tolu Koula to gift Solomon Faataape a try and the Tigers a 14-point advantage.
Trbojevic bagged two more tries to make the Tigers nervous while Corey Waddell was in the sin bin for a high shot on Solomon Alaimalo in the final quarter of the game.
But the Tigers were officially home as Samuela Fainu, the Tigers' best player this season, burst over on the left in the final seconds.
For his part, Brooks had a quiet night following a strong first season since leaving the club where he became maligned for his long-time inability to inspire a finals berth.
He and Tom Trbojevic held Sezer up ahead of what could have been the night's first try but like the rest of the spine, he struggled to reassert Manly's influence on the contest when the Tigers began to fire.
The Leichhardt Oval crowd booed Brooks with every touch in the first half and took particular delight when he dropped the ball cold while Manly were on the attack down the left edge.
The Tigers' second consecutive win moves them onto level points with 16th-placed Parramatta and adds intrigue to the sides' Round-27 meeting, which could decide the wooden spoon.