An emotional Brett Stewart admits he's unsure how he will react when he makes his long-awaited return to action at Brookvale for Manly's clash with Newcastle next Sunday.

The former NSW fullback skippered a depleted Sea Eagles side to a momentous 27-16 victory over Sydney Roosters on Sunday in only his second game since sustaining a serious knee injury in round one last season.

Stewart has not played at Brookvale since September 2009, where he scored a try in a 38-4 win over the Gold Coast.

The 26-year-old's voice quivered with emotion when asked what it would mean to play in front of his adoring home fans who have given him "unbelievable support" during his recovery and high-profile court case, which saw him cleared of two counts of sexual assault last year.

"It will be good to get back to Brookie, and personally, I don't really know how to put it into words what it will mean," Stuart said.

"But I will be thanking them some way for the support they have shown me.

"It has been a long road, I have been working tirelessly for a year with the physios and they have showed confidence in me and I have the confidence in them to believe I am almost 100 per cent.

"It is only my second game but I am getting stronger and better with each game."

Despite being without co-captains Jason King and Jamie Lyon as well as Steve Matai and Glenn Stewart, a youthful Sea Eagles side produced a performance full of character to shock last year's beaten grand finalists.

Stewart, who has not skippered a side since he was 16, admitted he thought the coin toss was won from a best of three before the game, but said he loved the experienced of leading his teammates around the park.

"I was proud to be part of it, a lot of the young guys stepped in and it is credit to the coaching staff, we get a few injuries and these guys come in and do such a great job," Stewart said.

"It was good to captain the side in a performance like this."

Manlycoach Des Hasler hailed his players, and revealed he was almost forced into a last-minute change when David Williams suffered back spasms in the pre-game warm-up.

"The boys were fantastic and came here today against reasonable odds and to graft out a win like that today does wonders for confidence, particularly for some of the younger players out there," Hasler said.

"What's important now is that we go back with a win under our belt and build on it.

"David's back and the hamstrings just tightened up five minutes before the game, and we were almost forced into an instant reshuffle in the backline.

"The medical people did an amazing job in such a short space of time to get him right and Dave was able to take his position on the field."

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