12:00a.m. 20th July 2008

The Sea Eagles’ reign of terror is over.

After enjoying an unprecedented four-game unbeaten streak, Sunshine Coast fell back down to earth against Wests in Brisbane yesterday, going down 38-12.

According to five eighth Ben Whiddon, handling errors were the major reason behind the big loss to the third-placed Panthers.

“There was a lot of dropped ball in the first half which didn’t help, and they scored a few tries off our errors,” he said.

“It’s hard to put a finger on it. The intensity and attitude seemed good from the boys, but we probably went away from the game plan a little bit.”

Whiddon said the fact the club received conditional support for a 2009 Queensland Cup license on Friday didn’t play a part.

“That wasn’t a distraction at all because honestly I hadn’t heard anything about it until I saw it in the paper,” he said.

“We just fell apart from our game plan and self destructed a little bit.

“We just have to look at next week now, focus on that game and take one step at a time.”

The Sea Eagles have a great chance to return to the winner’s circle when they host second-last Tweed Heads at Stockland Park on Saturday.