The Cumberland Throw

Post Game Grades – Round 19 vs Bulldogs

Parramatta_Eels_logo.svg  Parramatta Eels 14

 Canterbury Bulldogs 8

The Good:
Well ladies and gentlemen, for just the fourth time this season …

Soak it up, sports fans; we are back in the winner’s circle.

The Bad:
After the season we’ve had, I admittedly absorbed the scenes of tonight’s win through ulcerating rage that gradually scabbed over into deadened cynicism. But hey, we won, right?

It wasn’t a particularly spectacular game by any standard, in fact at times a neutral fan might have described it as boring, uninspiring or even a brutal viewing experience. But an ugly win is worth just as many competition points as a pretty one, so you know we’ll take it.

Other than Tepai Moeroa’s linebreak which set up Kaysa’s try, even the most ardent Eels support would have to admit our attack was still pretty bland tonight. Hopefully tonight’s win delivers some much needed confidence and cohesion ahead of next week’s clash with the Bunnies.

Ps – Who cares? We won.

X-Factor:

 

After the first 7 minutes, we looked pretty disinterested and I thought it was going to be a long, depressing 80 minutes. But the tide turned and we actually kept the Bulldogs tryless for the next 73 minutes. Good defence or terrible Bulldogs attack? Either way, we held on to win, and that’s what we needed. It’s the sorta game that leads to an unusually high number of B minuses in one’s Post Game Grades.

I guess it’s a shame there was only about 6 people at ANZ Stadium tonight to witness this triumph over our traditional foe.

Here’s an additional couple of stats for you to wrap up and take home: the Eels completed at 75% in the first half, 88% in the second; only had 46% possession for the whole game yet ran 2421 metres to the Dogs’ 2197. Good for the Eels.

The MVP:
Although there wasn’t the cinematic highlight reel brilliance of a Jarryd Hayne or Semi Radradra cracker, everyone’s favourite cyborg Nathan Brown played all 80 minutes tonight, putting his hand up for 22 runs,  making a ludicrous 200 metres, a tackle break and 37 tackles. Slap his face on the front of a Nutri Grain box, the bloke’s a deadset Iron Man.

1- Clint Gutherson

Fullback, Parramatta Eels

Well, he was certainly much better than the Gutho we watched last week. Clint not only had zero errors (defusing 5 Bulldog bombs), but also made 16 runs for 146 metres, 2 tackle breaks and 4 tackles. Good to see the King is heating back up.

2- Bevan French

Left Wing, Parramatta Eels

For some reason Bevan French got locked into the idea of trying to constantly strip the ball off the nearest Morris twin, leading to 3 errors and a number of Bulldog repeat sets. However his blinding speed did once again feature heavily, first snuffing out a sneaky Dogs kick behind the line, and then almost scoring one of his own early in the second stanza. All up, his 7 runs for 66 metres, 2 tackle breaks and 8 tackles rounded out a middle of the road sorta game for the Tinghan product.

3- Michael Jennings

Right Centre, Parramatta Eels

Jenko had 5 runs for 37 metres tonight, made 24 tackles, 1 tackle break, and didn’t completely suck. To be honest, with his recent play, I feel like he and I are recovering from a bad break up and I’m not ready to answer his calls just yet; but I’m getting closer game by game.

4- Jarryd Hayne

Left Centre, Parramatta Eels

After Jarryd’s ridiculous game last week, I wasn’t sure what to expect tonight. It was a much more tempered game from Jazz, who came away with a much more mortal (but still very impressive) 14 runs for 126 metres and 13 tackles. Jarryd also had 1 tackle break, which was 11 less than last week.

While I’ve got you here, how about that ridiculous right turning kick he put in early in the second half?

Crazy, man.

5- George Jennings

Right Wing, Parramatta Eels

This world needs more people like George Jennings and his 19 runs, 145 metres and 3 tackle breaks.

6- Corey Norman

Five-Eighth, Parramatta Eels

I thought once again Corey was the more dominant playmaker and the stats agreed with me, with Corey having 42 involvements compared to Moses’ 24. Both halves were probably guilty of looking a little bereft of ideas at different stages of the match, but we still managed to score more points than our opposition, which is all that matters tonight. Corey’s kicking game in particular was on song tonight and in other great news for the Eels’ attack, his running game made a brief reappearance this evening (6 for 67 metres). On the flip side, Normy’s increasingly concerning missed tackle tally also stopped by for a chat (made 18, missed 4).

As I say below, if we want to be anything anytime soon, I suggest we need to look a bit more direct and deliberate in our structures in the attacking 20. But that’s me.

7- Mitch Moses

Halfback, Parramatta Eels

Firstly, good on The Prince of Egypt for catching that loose ball, and then having the pace to run the 90 or so metres to score under the sticks. Mitch also kicked 3 from 3, ran 118 metres (see above) and also made a terrific play to finish the game by booting the leather off the ball, drilling it into touch deep into Bulldogs territory.

The magical, confident combinations of 2017 are still yet to be rediscovered, but a win is always better than a loss, particularly if you wear the number 7.

8- Daniel Alvaro

Prop, Parramatta Eels

The Polar Express almost made more tackles tonight (40) than Payne Haas has hundred dollar bills.

Shine on you crazy diamond, shine on.

9- Kaysa Pritchard

Hooker, Parramatta Eels

It was a mixed return to NRL for Kamikaze, scoring our first half try with some handy support play for our line breakin’ backrower, mixed in with a couple of mistimed or flat out poor passes from dummy half. On the bright side, Kaysa made 4 runs for 48 metres, two tackle breaks and 31 tackles.

Although it might seem like I’m contradicting my own tweet, to be fair Kaysa put himself out there to chase kicks, lead the line speed and put pressure on the opposition; likely leading to some of the negative stats mentioned above.

10- Siosaia Vave 

Prop, Parramatta Eels

The big fella.

11- Marata Niukore

Back Row, Parramatta Eels

Crunch had 7 runs for 59 metres and 29 tackles. I really don’t know what else to tell you.

14- Tepai Moeroa

Back Row, Parramatta Eels

Tonight Tep had 11 runs for 128 metres, 3 tackle breaks, 38 tackles, a linebreak, a try assist, and a partridge in a pear tree. He also went very close to being named tonight’s MVP, but was beaten in the end by a robot of sorts.

13- Nathan Brown

Lock, Parramatta Eels

If we can somehow harness the power of Nathan Brown, the Australian power grid will no longer have to rely on fossil fuels.

Was terrific to see him dive on a bouncing ball to save an otherwise certain try, answering some of his critics from a rare off game last week.

Interchange

12- Brad Takairangi

Interchange, Parramatta Eels

Remember when he almost scored a try? That would have been a highlight. However, his remaining 4 runs for 48 metres and 16 tackles didn’t otherwise really move the needle. That hit up/metres ratio is pretty nice, though.

15- Tim Mannah (c)

Interchange, Parramatta Eels

Even though no one will have any recollection of him being out there, The Big Easy very secretly got through a sneakily impressive 13 runs for 128 metres and 23 tackles and a tackle break. He’s like a freakin’ cat burglar.

17- Peni Terepo

Interchange, Parramatta Eels

Not only did I read the good news today that Peni had re-signed with the Eels, he also led all players on both sides with 5 tackle breaks, along with his 10 runs for 77 metres. According to reports, Peni’s contract extension is for 2 more seasons. Family oriented readers of The Throw will be pleased to note the word ‘contract’ separating those two words in the previous sentence. You’re welcome.

21- Reed Mahoney

Interchange, Parramatta Eels

Reed Mahoney is so young Donald Trump wants to separate him from his parents. Still that didn’t stop him from making 23 tackles, and providing crisp, white linen service from dummy half.

That’s Cash Mahoney, fam.

In celebration of tonight’s victory, The Cumberland Throw is offering one lucky reader a free lunch with Sixties, as long as you sit there and listen to his stories.

Enjoy the win kids. See you all next week.

 

Go you Eels,

Mitch.

 

Sure we may or may not avoid the spoon, but you know what you shouldn’t avoid? Making a discounted purchase from Sportfirst Nambucca. Welcome to smooth segues and The Cumberland Throw.

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Photos courtesy of the Parramatta Eels. Stats courtesy of Champion Data.

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57 thoughts on “Post Game Grades – Round 19 vs Bulldogs

  1. Gem MM

    How good does a win feel! Kaysa busted his gut as usual, but I was a lot more confident when Reed was on the field. Cyborg and Tep were on tonight in a big way. How good!

  2. John Eel

    I thought the forwards were good tonight. Alvaro and Mannah were good in support roles Brown however was special

    1. mitch Post author

      Agreed! I just added this tidbit above – the Eels only had 46% possession for the whole game yet ran 2421 metres to the Dogs’ 2197. Good forward performance against Jackson and Klemmer in an otherwise pretty standard pack.

    1. mitch Post author

      Yeah to me C+ is just he got out there, played and wasn’t really either great or terrible. I love him, just didn’t think he did much tonight.

  3. Trouser Eel

    Yep was my MotM tonight. From the stands he really liked dangerous. Brownie kept hitting them up but rarely looked to do anything more than log his 10m average.
    It was good to win and see so many players take the time to personally thank the crowd after the game. It was nice to see 6 fans in the blue and gold army bar after the game too – the atmosphere was electric.

  4. Anonymous

    Kaysa Pritchard was rubbish.! The players are not 10yo any more. No need to patronise a player. He missed how many tackles.? Yes he scored a try and worked hard but at this level that is not good enough. The try he scored watch it again he didnt even get the ball down. His service is disgraceful and how many times dose he pass the bloody ball forward. Pritchard offers nothing more than enthusiasm.

    Congrats to Brown, Moeroa for great games.

    1. mitch Post author

      Ha I’m certainly not one to patronize, but he was throwing himself around in kick chases, was putting pressure on the kickers etc. Effort wise you gotta applaud that stuff, even when it leads to negative stats. It’s not like I gave him an A or anything though.

  5. Parrastew

    Wow 2 points and Mahoney not on report. It must be a blue moon!
    Seriously congratulations to Reed for making it through a game with no reported incidents significant improvement on the stats now only on report in 66% of games played.

      1. John Eel

        I thought Reed was very good. I do not remember him missing a tackle. Depending on his availability hopefully he will be included in the 17 for the rest of the season

        1. mitch Post author

          Yeah Champion had him making 23 tackles without a miss. Great game, and more astute judges than me would be better able to tell you how he has/is developing his attacking game.

  6. Sack Brad Athur

    Great to have a win but we are terrible with our performances getting worse each week.

    Arthur is trying to employ a dated structured game plan that we cannot execute. He is not Bellamy and we are not the Storm.

    Time for a change and approach. Souths are a good example.

    Is Brad Arthur the right man for the job…..sadly no.

  7. The rev aka Snedden.

    A wins a win no matter how it comes. The rating are good.

    I thought Timmy was not running hard at the line either that or it’s his leaning forward tipe of running style that makes him look slow.

    Peni needs to get more game time his running at the line was good. His improving game by game. I’m expecting good things from Peni next yr.

    Danny alvaro is it me or is he getting less game time ?

    Gennings – brad re-sign him on a 2/3 year deal his making good metres n strong carries. He will be better for the run in the NRL side.

    Brown = robo cop = the terminator. There’s only 1 Floor that has gone that he had last year n that’s his offload.

    Tepi Moaroe his hole hitting n tackles are back to where they should be. Very good to see him back to his best. IMO I thought he was going to score after that line break good speed for a big man.

    Hayne good but quite game. He needs good clean early ball the same goes for M Jennings.

    Moses I thought was ok along with Norman. Still not gelling. They are lost when attacking the opposite try line they just look like they don’t know what there doing.

    #Eels4life#

  8. BDon

    Good summary Mitch. Gennings now needs to perfect that Jason Nightingale spring off the deck ‘ I just got obliterated but i’m not hurt’. Some more random thoughts.
    That had the same feel as the Knights game, it looked like a win was for the taking if we could just get some basics right.
    The Morris twins out wide work well in defence, don’t think we were ever going to go around them easily.
    The Dogs are where we were 2 years back re cap.
    Swings and roundabouts with refs last night, but ask Marata why he was penalised for holding. Lichaa had never stopped hustling forward, dud call. Also Mahoney slow release call was hair trigger nit picking, saw 20 more like it both teams. C’est la vie.
    Hayne did a lot of good kick chasing, an ordinary part of our game. Lead the way Jarryd, others will follow.
    We are kicking more to the corners, the mid field bombs looked better when shortened up to suit our kick chase, but that’s ridiculous isn’t it?
    Marata’s game looked quieter but he doesn’t hold back, good energy with or without the ball.
    Good to see Moeroa clocking up good game time, finding his mojo (ditto Hayne, Gutho next)
    Next week Reynolds/Walker will not be Marshall/Lewis plus Bunnies have 3 Klemmers and D Cook,are we capable of a game plan that hinges on respecting possession?

    Had to listen to some music to get to sleep after the shock of a win. ‘Reflections of My Life’ The Marmalade recommended for Eels tragics.

    1. mitch Post author

      Nice summary mate, I was particularly encouraged from Tepai’s strong game, as he is no doubt a bit under the pump. The kicking game is all well and good but to be honest, I just feel we’re better suited and play better when we kick to the corners and find the grass. I understand the value of a bomb to allow chasers to arrive, but it just doesn’t seem to work out for us IMO.

  9. Colin Hussey

    I didn’t see the whole game, missed around 60 of the first half, what to say and comment on? think you summed up much of what the game was in the player ratings though.

    I was happy to see Kaysa back but just as happy to see the way that Reed showed up as his replacement. Kaysa showed what he has but the missed tackles hurt, same as the forward passes, but was he the only player on the paddock with that issue? maybe just the one who was pinged for them. In the minutes I saw him he seemed to do ok in his tackling and not afraid to take on the opposition big boys either. His speed to score the try and his non stop movement to get the ball down was first class, so for me he earned his spot.

    Reed certainly is the best back up for the 9 spot that I have seen from the eels this year, I was not overtly impressed with his first two games but having shorter minutes to show worked out well and to me he and Kaysa should be the 9’s and interchange going forward.

    Vave, only saw his second stint. What a come down to his game last week, and Gowie was dropped? Maybe the size of Vave got him into the side not sure about his ability though.

    1. John Eel

      Vave second stint was better than his first I thought.

      Col we still have this issue where for whatever reason the Top 30 squad is not publicly available. Therefore we do not know if Reed is available to play off the bench for the remaining games

      1. Colin Hussey

        Hard to know with Mahoney John, with both King and Smith out he can play, but has he been elevated into the NLR side as one of the 30 now that Scott, & Edwards have gone, also there was one not filled….

        1. John Eel

          Colin my understanding is that all 30 positions must be filled by June 30. Therefore players had to have been upgraded by now. It is not compulsory to spend 100% of the cap but they need to spend a figure close to that like maybe 95%.

          1. Colin Hussey

            John, they are supposed to have 30 in the NRL squad by end of June, seems there is no rule that they have to be announced but, according to one report I read that from next year clubs have to announce and give the names of the 30 players.

            Thing is that the club has been saying for some time they had one spot left and money to sign the right player, but nothing has come out, same since Kenny was punted and Beau announced his retirement as of that time, meaning three spots were there.

          2. Colin Hussey

            John, therein is the mystery. All I know is that the NRL did issue a directive a few weeks before the June 30 deadline to remind clubs that they have to have the spots filled and to be notified to the NRL.

            But I saw nothing from the eels or any other club for that matter saying they had any additions to the 30 man squad. If I was to hazard a guess I would suggest Mahoney and perhaps Salmon have perhaps taken two spots, as to the other one, who knows at best perhaps Stone, but given he’s still injured and not back until round 21 its hard to imagine him going up unless he is resigned for next year..

          3. John Eel

            Colin I would agree with your assumption on Mahoney and Salmon. However if you believe any of the other social media there is talk that Salmons form has flattened in ISP. Having said that he is still being named on the extended bench for NRL

          4. mitch Post author

            It’s not an elevation to the Top 30 as such, as it is simply the 30 highest paid players on your roster. That could mean the players you mention, or it could not.

          1. Colin Hussey

            Mitch, I was of the understanding that the top 30 players were basically the primary pool of players that were part of the NRL team as such, and only those who were in that grading could play in the NRL team, unless injuries took out players that were part of the 30players and no other available owing to injuries in those positions.

            With Kaysa, Smith and King unavailable, Mahoney was able to play the two games he was in, up until the dogs match where he was allowed to play again, I would think the aspect of King and Smith being out allowed Mahoney to be nominated for one of the 30 players in the top grading. Same perhaps with Salmon being elevated but not playing.

            That takes care of two spots meaning 29 are accounted for, and one left open.

            At least that is my understanding of how the NRL has brought in the rule for this season and it changes next season as the clubs have to name who their 30 man squad is, and it has to be made public.

          2. mitch Post author

            It is the players available for first grade selection, but it is based on salary, not preference. Getting exemption or clearance from the NRL if a suitable replacement is available in the Top 30 is not based on salary, however.

            So if Reed is in the top 30 highest players at Parra, he is part of the Top 30. However, even if he isn’t and the Eels have a shortage of available players due to injury, the Eels can apply for an exemption to include him, regardless of whether of not he is in the top 30 highest paid players.

          3. John Eel

            Mitch I agree with what you have said that is not in question. The real question for me is there are 30 players available in the squad. Who are they? I can’t think of a reason why the top 30 is not published after June 30. Nothing can change from this point.

          4. Colin Hussey

            Thanks Mitch, that comes in with what I had been saying, thing is I was unaware of the salary aspect of the 30.

  10. Big Derek

    Here’s what I think is honest about last night
    1. Again our forwards struggled to break even, Brown ran for a lot of metres but no pass threatened
    2. Kaysa gets an A for,enthusiasm , and an F for passing and playing dummy half. Proved that King and Kaysa are not NRL standard. We looked much sharper when Mahoney played 9.
    3. Gutho will be much better next year after making a full recovery, he’s not there yet
    4. We are paying for poor offseason preparation. We have looked physically overmatched in every game.
    5. Kicking game is ordinary, at one stage my wife asked if it was game plan to get them to catch every kick on the full so we could tackle them. As Gibson said, kick to the seagull, perhaps as there were no seagulls it wasn’t on.
    6. Steve Murphy is the attack coach, wtf has he been doing, as apart for the sweep play , we have nothing part from 3 up the middle, a sweep, then maybe a bomb on the last. That’s substandard for a 4 year coach.
    7. We have no coverage in the press, where is a statement that we are actively pursuing signings, we dont need names just reassurance that are actually a footy club with aspirations. Newcastle are getting more space in Sydney papers as they generate attention with comments like ” we have cap space and we want to sign an experienced forwards”. Guess what, they are alive and their fans understand they are on the up.

    We need a genuine no 9 , and a couple of good sized experienced forwards to give the club some leadership and size as the younger players come through

    1. Milo

      Some fair points B Derek; no doubt Guth will be better next season and the kicking game at times is not good.
      As for signings i for one am happy fo the club to do it behind closed doors and while i dont care for Newcastle Brown May receive good media for various reasons.

      1. Big Derek

        Of course it is better to conduct signings without fanfare. However, we are in territory where we need to keep some air of enthusiasm, surely something from the club that we are in the market and expect to land some players would give the long suffering an interest.
        This silence is really not palatable, of course it’s understandable but at the same time, infuriating as this underperforming season continues.
        Murphy as attacking coach really needs to be replaced, no change in style or effectiveness for 4 years. Fresh ideas and focus is a no brainer.

  11. Anonymous

    Free lunch with 60’s please Mitch; i will even pay and know a good thai restaurant here on the coast and good pie shop he knows!! Its Milo

  12. Milo

    Happy with the win and the forwards in general; issues around main hooker imo and the fluency of our halves. C’bury only try should never have occurred if we held our defence and kept a simple line. Happy with the win and defence; but souths next week will be a telling tale; if we complete at 80% plus and limit errors we will be in it but our execution at times is slow and not fluent.

    1. mitch Post author

      I’d just like to see us compete next week. For 35-40 minutes of our last contest we were right in it, 80 would be great.

  13. West Coast Eel

    Just glad we’ve got a win to celebrate. Wifey and my daughter will be glad they’ve got a happy Dad this weekend. Going forward, I believe Mahoney should start and bring Kaysa off the bench. If not this year, then next. I reckon Mahoney will be a goodun’!

    1. mitch Post author

      Yeah I really enjoy what he adds, particularly on the defensive side of the ball. I think his running and passing game is obviously still developing.

  14. Tad

    I felt relief that we won.So happy for the players and staff involved with the win and love seeing the kids and players enjoy a win so badly needed to lift our spirits for the remainder of the season. .Always have been a fan of Kaysa and can,t understand how people are blind to his enthusiasm and focus and highlight mistakes. No one seems to put the same microscope on any other player like they do on Kaysa. Most frustrating thing for me is the style of play we do compared to last year. Semi was the go to player and the ball mo event was much more expansive. We seem to have tightened up far too much with one out plays and losing the opportunity for players like French ,Jennings Moses to play to their potential.Would like to see more ball movement and see our sets last a bit longer to take the pressure off being in defence mode too quickly

    1. Milo

      Couldn’t agree more Tad; i like KP too but he seems to have the odd injury etc.
      To me the halves need to be under the pump as they would be the most paid in the squad and lead the team. Our kicking at times is avg tbh and to me the halves should be leading the pack around in terms of second runners etc.
      To me the run before every kick should be a momentum run with either two fwds in pairs etc then get them on the back foot before kicking.
      Our continual bombing is predictable and boring; low kicks are also good and as B Derek said kick to the seagulls.

  15. Parramatta Tragic

    I am also applying for the free lunch with sixties. Mick Cronin’s pub would be great. We have to somehow get back to having a reserve and third grade of some sorts. The game is going backwards at 100 mph under Greenberg and there needs to be a clear pathway structure put back in place asap and the entire referees structure needs an enema. That said, we need a hooker as a priority and maybe cash is the man but it’s too early to know yet. I am prepared to arm wrestle Milo for lunch rights

      1. Parramatta Tragic

        lol. I have to squeeze a lot in as I’m not getting any younger. My last birthday cake looked like an approaching bush fire. I’m not getting any better looking either. Last week I took the family to a freak show and they said I could use the employees entrance. Did I mention my birth certificate was written on coal? It’s been a loooong season……….

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