26 May 2017
ANZ Stadium, Homebush
After a promising start to the 2017 season, the Eels are mid table and have a mounting injury toll which could derail our Top 8 chances for another year. However, if we can stay mid table throughout the next six rounds and in reach of the 8, this ‘rest’ that our star players are getting now will help with our charge into the semi-finals.
Back in 2009 the end of the Origin period saw us on a huge roll and it’s been a fairly good part of the season for us over the years. With wins comes confidence and that starts this week against a very up and down Rabbitohs outfit.
So lets look at the history of these two teams.
Past 10 Games
| Season | Round | Date | Eels | Rabbitohs | Venue | Result |
| 2016 | 15 | 17-Jun-2016 | 30 | 12 | ANZ Stadium | Eels win by 18 points |
| 2016 | 10 | 13-May-2016 | 20 | 22 | Pirtek Stadium | Rabbitohs win by 2 points |
| 2015 | 11 | 22-May-2015 | 12 | 14 | ANZ Stadium | Rabbitohs win by 2 points |
| 2015 | 4 | 27-Mar-2015 | 29 | 16 | Pirtek Stadium | Eels win by 13 points |
| 2014 | 19 | 18-Jul-2014 | 12 | 32 | Pirtek Stadium | Rabbitohs win by 20 points |
| 2013 | 15 | 23-Jun-2013 | 10 | 30 | ANZ Stadium | Rabbitohs win by 20 points |
| 2012 | 25 | 26-Aug-2012 | 6 | 38 | ANZ Stadium | Rabbitohs win by 32 points |
| 2012 | 15 | 16-Jun-2012 | 6 | 24 | ANZ Stadium | Rabbitohs win by 18 points |
| 2011 | 22 | 08-Aug-2011 | 6 | 56 | ANZ Stadium | Rabbitohs win by 50 points |
| 2011 | 3 | 25-Mar-2011 | 18 | 32 | ANZ Stadium | Rabbitohs win by 14 points |
The past 10 matches sees the Rabbitohs with a clear 8 wins to 2 advantage, and a score aggregate of the Rabbitohs 276 to the Eels 149. This provides us with a match average score of Rabbitohs 28 – Eels 15
The Eels and Rabbitohs have played a total of 122 games against each other with the Bunnies holding a 67 to 52 win record.
There have been 12 matches between the two teams at ANZ Stadium, with South Sydney holding a 9 – 3 winning record.
The Eels have now played at ANZ Stadium 65 times with a 28 to 36 Win/Loss record. Souths have played 146 times at ANZ with a 76 to 68 win/loss record.
This season, the Eels hold a 5 – 6 win/loss record against 4 – 7 for the Rabbitohs. Parramatta have won three of their last five games, whereas Souths have won only one of their last five starts.
By Quarters
Lets have a look at how many wins these teams have in these time periods of the game.
| 0-20min | 20-40min | 40-60min | 60-80min | |
| Eels | 6 | 5 | 5 | 1 |
| Rabbitohs | 3 | 3 | 5 | 2 |
The Eels have always looked stronger when they lead. For them, a strong start is crucial to their results. It seems that their confidence lifts with an early lead. Conversely, those finishes leave plenty to be desired.
Attacking Stats
*average per game (ranking)
| Eels | Rabbitohs | |
| Runs | 155 (8th) | 154 (10th) |
| Run Metres | 1428 (12th) | 1413 (13th) |
| Line Breaks | 3.4 (10th) | 3.3 (13th) |
| Offloads | 10.0 (9th) | 8.5 (12th) |
| Metres Gained | 1981 (12th) | 2036 (8th) |
| Possession | 49.5% (14th) | 49.4 (12th) |
| Completed Sets | 25.3 (13th) | 27.2 (4th) |
Defensive Stats
*average per game (ranking)
| Eels | Rabbitohs | |
| Tackles | 318 (9th) | 326 (5th) |
| Missed Tackles | 23.9 (8th) | 20.5 (3rd) |
Discipline Stats
*average per game (ranking)
| Eels | Rabbitohs | |
| Penalties Conceded | 6.6 (11th) | 5.5 (6th) |
| Errors | 10.9 (10th) | 9.9 (5th) |
| Incomplete Sets | 9.2 (10th) | 8.1 (4th) |
Both teams aren’t rating high in the stats race and this shows on their ladder positions.
The only significant stats that feature any player from either team is in line breaks. Souths Cody Walker is ranked 7th with 8 line breaks, with Parramatta’s Clint Gutherson rating 9th with 7 line breaks. Cody Walker’s performances have surged since his move to fullback.
Parramatta kickers, Mitch Moses and Clint Gutherson, will need to find the grass for each kick and also kick away from Walker, using the deep corners of ANZ Stadium. This will get their wingers to do the work from deep inside their own half. That kick-chase defensive line will be essential in keeping Souths down their own end. Good game management is easier to maintain when you enjoy that territorial advantage.
Our forwards will need to aim up this week. It’s no secret that the Souths big forwards led by the Burgess boys will be trying to dominate through the middle. Parramatta’s pack did a number on the much vaunted Cowboys a couple of weeks back, and they restricted the usual power of blokes like Taumololo and Hess. Containing the Burgess boys will surely be a big part of this week’s mission.
-Colmac
Champion Data
Stats courtesy of Champion Data. All these stats and more can be viewed on our match centre at http://mc.championdata.com/nrl/ including live game stats.
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The Eels discipline stats are really poor for a team with top 8 aspirations. The Qtr stats are interesting. I would be very happy if they can go out and win the first Qtr.
On the downside is that we will go out with less than a 1,000 games of experience in the run on side for probably the first time this year. Even more worrying is the fact that we only have 108 games of experience in our very young halves.
Good stats Colmac, we are only 2 from 10, but I tend to think the best guide to our head to head is current rosters which says.
Last 4 games we are 2 all with Parra having two good wins and two narrow losses. We have done this with weaker teams overall than what we have fielded this year in spite of our massive injury toll. Parra has been building our team during this period and developing a style of play that BA believes suits our roster.
Souths won the previous 6 in a row from 2011 to 2014 while on the ascendancy working towards and building through to their premiership victory. They are now without Inglis, Goodwin, McInnes and Leary to name a few.
Our much maligned forwards were not overawed or out played by the huge Raiders pack last week and infact lifted after Nathan Brown left the field. i don’t believe Souths pack are any bigger or better than the Raiders pack.
With this in mind, I think we are a big show tomorrow night if everyone brings their dancin’ shoes and the steely resolve we showed over the last 5 weeks (Easts game exclude).