Date: Friday 28^th of April

Venue: 1300 Smiles Stadium

Gates Open: 5:20pm

Kick off: 7:50 pm (NYC 5:35)

Head Referee: Dave Munro

Assistant Referee: Alan Shortall

Head to head: Played 35, Eels 18, Cowboys 16, Drawn 1

Head to head odds: Cowboys ($ 1.50), Eels ($ 2.65)  

Broadcast: Live Channel Nine (Broadcast kick off: 7:30pm)

 

Last four encounters:

1. Cowboys 32, Eels 16 at 1300 Smiles Stadium (2016)
2. Eels 20, Cowboys 16 at Pirtek Stadium (2016)
3. Cowboys 46, Eels 4 at 1300 Smiles Stadium (2015)
4. Cowboys 36, Eels 30 at Pirtek Stadium (2015)

 

Preview:

This week’s round nine Friday night encounter is a battle between the 6^th placed North Queensland Cowboys and the 10^th placed Parramatta Eels.

Both the Cowboys and the Eels enter this clash off the back of wins. North Queensland scored a comfortable 24 points to 12 win over the last placed Newcastle Knights whereas Parramatta  were able to cause an upset 6 point win over the Penrith Panthers at ANZ Stadium.

The Cowboys are favoured to take the two points against the Eels even though they are slated to enter this match up without most of their first grade spine with Lachlan Coote, Jake Granville and Johnathan Thurston all expected to by unavailable for the clash. Thurston is rated an outside chance to take the field against the Eels, and if he does play it would be a huge boost for the Cowboys.

Much like the Cowboys, the Eels have not had great luck with injuries this season, and they enter this encounter without the likes of Bevan French, Brad Takairangi, Peni Terepo, Isaac DeGois and Frank Pritchard. French and Takairangi play pivotal roles, and the impact of the loss of these key backs sees Kenny Edwards listed as five eighth. The Cowboys are facing a similar dilemma with John Asiata named in the halves.

On paper it appears to be a win to the Cowboys but the Eels did pull off an upset victory against the Panthers last weekend and they would be confident of making it two upsets in a row.

It promises to be an interesting encounter.

 

Value Bet:

This week’s value bet is for the Cowboys to score a victory over the Eels by a margin of 1 to 12 points at the price of $3 on Sportsbet.

In the first try scorers market, the Cowboys have Antonio Winterstein at $10 and Kyle Feldt at $11 whereas the Parramatta Eels have Semi Radradra at $8 and Michael Jennings at $13.

 

Interesting fact:

The Eels lost the 2^nd half in terms of points scored against the Panthers last weekend. Kudos must still be given to the Eels as they did not receive a 2^nd half penalty. Gavin Badger came up with some contentious calls but the Panthers were unable to capitalise on their possession until late in the half.

 

 

It will be a big game for:

This game shapes as a big one for Eels superstar centre Michael Jennings.

Over the past couple of weeks, Jennings has been in outstanding form. He was arguably the Eels best a fortnight ago against the Tigers, running for over 170 metres and making 12 tackle busts. He then repeated his strong form against the Panthers.

Despite this form, Jennings was excluded from the Australian Kangaroos squad to take on New Zealand in the ANZAC test. He will also face stiff competition to retain his Origin jersey.

Jennings strength lies in his dynamic ball running. He remains one of the fastest players in the NRL, and that speed off the mark is still used to great advantage.

Jennings sits on a Parramatta left edge packed with talent, with Manu Ma’u, Semi Radradra and Corey Norman throwing plenty of questions at their opponents. That combination is sure to feature in the Cowboys tip sheets.

 

 

Danger man:

This week’s danger man is Cowboys young gun back rower Coen Hess.

Hess has come of age in the 2017 season. He is a homegrown product who made his debut for the Cowboys NYC under 20s back in 2014.

Hess’s impact on the NRL has been immediate, having quickly earned a reputation as a hard man who’s almost impossible to bring down one on one. He has already managed to score six tries this season, quite a feat for a back rower. Although he maybe young and relatively inexperienced, Hess will be closely marked by the Eels.

 

Team lists:

 

North Queensland Cowboys (6^th place coming into the round)

 

1. Kalyn Ponga
2. Kyle Feldt
3. Justin O’ Neil
4. Kane Linnet
5. Antonio Winterstein
6. John Asiata
7. Michael Morgan
8. Patrick Kaufusi
9. Blake Leary
10. Scott Bolton
11. Gavin Cooper (C)
12. Coen Hess
13. Jason Taumalolo

 

14. Ray Thompson
15. Ethan Lowe
16. Ben Spina
17. Corey Jensen

 

18. Johnathan Thurston
19. Ben Hampton
20. Sam Hoare
21. Shaun Fensom

 

Coach: Anthony Griffin

 

Late mail: Johnathan Thurston has been named in the 21 man squad to take on the Eels, and is a chance of taking the field.

 

Parramatta Eels (10^th coming into the round)

 

1. Clinton Gutherson
2. Semi Radradra
3. Michael Jennings
4. Kirisome Auva’a
5. Josh Hoffman
6. Kenny Edwards
7. Corey Norman
8. Suaia Matagi
9. Kaysa Pritchard
10. Tim Mannah (C)
11. Manu Ma’u
12. Tepai Moeroa
13. Nathan Brown

 

14. Beau Scott (C)
15. Daniel Alvaro
16. David Gower
17. Siosaia Vave

 

18. John Folau
19. Will Smith

 

Coach: Brad Arthur

Late mail: Kenny Edwards has been named at five eighth for the Eels clash against the Cowboys. John Folau and Will Smith have also been named in the Eels squad fueling speculation of a last minute reshuffle. However, Edwards remains a big body to counter the Cowboys selection of Asiata.

 

Two key match ups:

 

 

Kalyn Ponga vs Clinton Gutherson:

The first key match up is a battle of the fullbacks as Cowboys young gun Kalyn Ponga takes on Eels utility back Clint Gutherson.

Even before he made his debut in the NRL, Ponga had been one player everyone looked to as a future star. Ponga was setting the world on fire in the NYC under 20s and it wasn’t too long before Cowboys management began to wonder just how this young talent would fit into their line up.

Ponga is a fullback who can play just about anywhere in the backline. In fact he made his NRL debut on the wing and in doing so became just the 6^th player in NRL history to make his debut in an NRL finals encounter. His performances saw a rise in his stocks as a number of clubs clamoured for his services.

Throughout the off season it was expected that the Cowboys would retain Ponga and many thought the young gun would go onto replace Johnathan Thurston when he eventually retired. However the Newcastle Knights had other plans for Ponga offering him a multi million-dollar deal to take up a playing contract with them in 2018.

The young fullback is an explosive runner of the ball and possesses one of the best steps in the game. The Eels will see Ponga as a gigantic threat to them claiming three wins in a row.

Eels utility back Clinton Gutherson was absolutely outstanding for the Eels in their upset win against the Penrith Panthers last Saturday night. Despite Corey Norman being named the Eels best on paddock, Gutherson didn’t go without praise, with many Eels fans even suggesting that Gutherson would retain his place at fullback when Bevan French returns from injury.

Since moving to fullback for the Eels a little over a month ago, Gutherson has looked very much at home which is no surprise considering he was a fullback when coming through the lower grades at the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles. The Eels will be without makeshift five eighth Brad Takairangi which would put some of the playmaking pressure back on Gutherson. Look for him and Norman to steer the Eels around the park in this one.

 

 

 

Gavin Cooper vs Manu Ma’u:

The second key match up features a battle of the back rowers as Cowboys Mr. Consistent Gavin Cooper comes up against Eels hard man Manu Ma’u.

Gavin Cooper has been a very reliable player for the Cowboys for many years now, and even shares the captaincy with Thurston. Cooper’s combination with the superstar playmaker is amongst the most dangerous in the NRL. Indeed, the two were instrumental in engineering the Cowboys remarkable victory against the Eels a couple of years back. It was a win that would go down as the greatest comeback in the history of the North Queensland Cowboys.

The Cowboys are a hard team to beat at the best of times but when they’re in a mood they can be almost unbeatable. If Thurston is unable to play it would be a massive blow to them though the threat of Cooper remains. The likes of Kalyn Ponga and Michael Morgan would still look to hit Cooper close to the Eels line. The play may be predictable to an extent but it’s almost impossible to stop if executed to perfection.

Eels back rower Manu Ma’u has a reputation that labels him one of the hardest men in the NRL. He is recognised for his hard running on the left edge for the Eels, especially on the end of passes delivered by Norman and Gutherson’s. Indeed, his mobility has seen him fill in at centre when the Eels have been hit with backline injuries.

Ma’u also possesses an offload which can be a great asset for the likes of Semi Radradra and Michael Jennings. For defences, it becomes a challenge to both stop his charges and lock up the ball.

The Eels will be hoping Ma’u is at his devastating best against the Cowboys.

 

My tip:

I see the Cowboys having too much class for the Eels. Whilst the Eels have won two straight games they have been a little scrappy in doing so. Watching the win against the Tigers a fortnight ago would back up those claims.

Whilst my head says the Cowboys will be too good for the Eels, my heart can still feel a third straight win for the Eels coming and if Johnathan Thurston is in fact ruled out, who knows, the Eels may pull off yet another upset.

But for now I’m tipping a Cowboys victory. Cowboys 22, Eels 18.

 

Man of the match: Kalyn Ponga, Coen Hess, Corey Norman or Clinton Gutherson

 

Enjoy the game, GO THE EELS !!!

Nathan