Of all the things Trent Barrett could have done in a bid to get Manly's season back on track, taking the Steeden away from his players appeared the least likely.
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There was no point spraying them, as the coach had already done that after they blew a 20-6 half-time lead to the lowly Wests Tigers. A flogging would also be pointless given the intensity he'd applied to his troops at training over the past month.
So rather than just oversee another ballwork or torture session, Barrett gathered his men, split them into two groups and dropped a soccer ball at their feet.
"We played 13 verses 13 soccer, it was good," centre Dylan Walker said.
"We've been training really hard the last month or so, working really hard on our defence.
"For us, it lightened the mood up at training the last couple of days.
"[Barrett] has cracked the whip out the last month, we've been training hard and the boys have had to knuckle down.
"Baz being an ex-player, he knows what we're feeling and what we've gone through, that a couple of boys have been sore.
"He's given us a down day, to lighten up and bring the joy back to training. That's very important, you don't want to be dreading coming to training.
"I have a good time here, it's like going to school with your best mates. Everyone enjoys each other's company and yesterday was good.
"It was a step in the right direction getting the enjoyment back, especially at this time of the season."
Daly Cherry-Evans had other commitments and didn't get a chance to take part when his teammates applied their skills to the "world game". However, the skipper noticed a marked difference in attitude when the squad reconvened at Narrabeen on Thursday.
"I walked in today and there was a spring in a lot of people's steps and a smile on a lot of people's faces," Cherry-Evans said.
"The different training takes your mind of rugby league, which is great, but also being here and enjoying each other's company is pretty important.
"[Barrett] is good at understanding where people's heads are at. That was a difficult loss but he understood how it happened, why it happened and how it can be fixed. Obviously yesterday was a great day for us to enjoy each other's company and play a few games. Today we'll get down to business."
In the business of soccer, there were a couple of standouts. Tom Trbojevic proved himself adept at yet another sports, while winger Matt Wright described himself as "more of a slide tackler".
"Tommy Turbo went alright but I think I took the 3-2-1 [points]," Walker quipped.
"It's a bit of a gee-up, we were running around all over the shop and a few of the boys had more energy than others.
"It was good fun. I know a couple of the boys love their FIFA on PlayStation.
"Everyone thought they were Lionel Messi and Ronaldo."
The change may be just what the players need. The Sea Eagles have lost three of their past four games, leaving them in a position to either shoot for the top four or miss the finals altogether, depending on their finish to the season.
They take on a Canterbury side that never really recovered from the 34-0 drubbing the Sea Eagles gave them earlier in the year. More recently, Bulldogs players have been unnerved by the constant speculation over who will make way as part of the club's salary cap squeeze.
