Parramatta Eels 24
New Zealand Warriors 22
New Zealand Warriors 22
The Good: |
Well, we held on to win by 2 points, and that’s worth celebrating.
I thought once again our halves were excellent, and we are all of a sudden making a habit of racking up close victories. Although shaky at times, our ruck defence was also significantly improved compared to last week.
In other news, the Warriors still have one of the coolest logos in the NRL. |
The Bad: |
Last week it was our aforementioned atrocious ruck defence, but this week it was the inability to complete sets at pivotal times (finishing 32/44 or 73%). We’ve got our fair share of problems, but the fact that those problems often seem to disappear week to week hopefully means it’s just a matter of bringing it all together on any given day.
In other news, the Warriors had more dirty plays in the second half than they do jerseys in their team store. Judging by the comments of the fans around me, Harris-Tavita and Isaac Luke are less popular in Parramatta than Chinese dope Sun Yang. |
The X-Factor: |
You may or may not be aware that despite sitting in 6th position, the Eels currently lead the NRL in missed tackles (30.2, last week we missed 33). Today, in one of the more frantic games in recent memory, we only missed 14. That’s big.
For those who like to keep a Rugby League diary, possession in this game was 50/50 and penalties were 9-2 in favour of the home team (awkward). Odd stat: Today was the first time in 15 years that the team trailing at half time ended up winning in a Warriors Eels clash. Odd stat II: The total point average of the last 11 games between the Warriors and Eels was 46 points. The total of today’s score? 46 points.
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The MVP:
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Clinton Gutherson returned to form, Nathan Brown was at his destructive best, but it’s gotta be the Prince of Egypt today.
It’s not just the try he set up for Gutho either. It’s the kick chase, his new and improved cool demeanour, his symphonic passing game. Our one time, much maligned halfback now leads the NRL in try assists (23, a career high for a single season, mind you), adding another today next to 5 runs for 68 metres, 2 tackle breaks, a line break and 4 from 5 with the boot. Once a mainstay in this section of the Grades, it’s particularly pleasing to welcome my favourite namesake back to the MVP winner’s circle. You the MVP, Mitch, you the MVP. |
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1- Clint Gutherson (c)Fullback, Parramatta Eels |
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| Someone contact the mugs on Twitter, Clinton Gutherson is back to his normal, terrific self. One moment in particular stood out for me today – Gutho surely would have had the nightmarish Trbojevic steal from last week flash through his mind when he heard RTS steaming through to catch a bomb late in the first half. But our Blue & Golden boy from the Beaches not only managed to bring down the ball, he proceeded to spin like a top and evade the NZ fullback, scurrying away an 8 metre dart. King Gutho, we salute you.
The King ran 16 times for 169 metres, had a linebreak, 2 tackle breaks and thanks largely to some Mitch Moses brilliance, was on the end of one of the tries of the season. I’ve never really understood what “Hunkin’ Burning Love” meant until it blared out of the Bankwest Stadium speakers in celebration of Gutho’s four pointer. PS – it’s worth your time to go back and watch that pass for Parry’s try. Just beautiful. |
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2- Maika SivoLeft Wing, Parramatta Eels |
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| Maika Sivo might have had a rocks and diamonds game, but his destruction of Blake Ayshford is one pretty special gem.
In the rocks category, another try opposition scorer that went over untouched on our left wing only adding to the echo of defensive question marks around Sivo’s game. Similarly the dropped offload attempt in the second half wasn’t ideal, although the GIF above probably illustrates why he’s hesitant to pass. I would also criticise his miss on the Isaac Luke 40/20, but watching it again, it was a pretty incredible kick. On the other side of the coin, most of Sivo’s 12 runs were tough hit ups coming out of trouble, and he would have been credited with plenty metres more (97) if he wasn’t consistently forced back by a zealous Warriors defensive line. The stat sheet also credits him with the aforementioned try assist, and linebreak, as well as 4 tackle breaks. He also scored one of the weirder tries you’ll ever see (off a Dylan Brown, Blake Green knock back a thon). Regardless of any negatives, we don’t win today without Maika leaving tyre marks all over Blake Ayshford’s torso, so I call that a net positive. |
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3- Brad TakairangiLeft Centre, Parramatta Eels |
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People have been telling me it might be time to forgive Brad Takairangi for his early season sins, and to be honest, I think they might be right. Ever since BA apparently told him to tuck it the hell under his arm (WHY DIDN’T YOU SAY THIS EARLIER, BRAD?!), Taka has been more than a solid contributor; he’s been a try scoring freak. After scoring only 1 try in 2018, Taka incredibly has 5 tries in his last 3 games, bringing his 2019 try tally to 7. The man Forty has dubbed the Cook Island Control Tower ran 12 times for 118 metres, also getting away 3 sneaky offloads. Keep on keeping on, big guy. |
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4- Waqa BlakeRight Centre, Parramatta Eels |
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It was by no means perfect, but I really enjoyed Waqa’s first game in the Blue & Gold. Sporting a Blake Ferguson-esque stat line, the other Blake ran 12 times for 125 metres including a tackle break, and made 22 tackles (with only 1 miss), several of which were VERY necessary. A big thanks to Penrith for picking up so much of the big man’s tab. |
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21- Ethan ParryRight Wing, Parramatta Eels |
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You know for a rough game under the high ball (3 errors, although admittedly with some questionable attention from the Warriors), Parry’s 16 runs for 165 metres and a linebreak is a very solid showing from the 2 game, 2 try rookie. He’s young, he’s growing, he’s improving: all good indicators for a bright future in the NRL. I also loved how amped he was after scoring in the corner. Good stuff, young man. |
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6- Dylan BrownFive Eighth, Parramatta Eels |
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| Of all the concerns I have about the current state of the Parramatta Eels, it is oh so refreshing for our halves to NOT be one of them. Dylan Brown and Mitch Moses are both a breath of fresh air. Dylan had 6 darts, a tackle break and a couple of kicks, but it was the 21 tackles, many of them on one of the best fullbacks in the game in RTS, that were simply sublime. I’m very much enjoying the emergence of Dyl in Season 2019, but if we can keep Mitch and he together, Seasons 2020 and 2021 will be something to behold. | ||
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7- Mitchell MosesHalfback, Parramatta Eels |
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 Let’s talk about that 58th minute try until we’re old and grey. What a terrific Rugby League moment.
Said try was actually the second time Mitch and Gutho combined brilliantly in the second half, after Mitch chased down a near perfect kick from Gutho, forcing RTS to ground the ball in his own in goal. That was definitely an MVP sorta performance. Much love, little Mitchell. |
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8- Kane EvansProp, Parramatta Eels |
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| A 36 minute stint saw Kane Evans run 13 times for 111 metres, had 3 tackle breaks and made 23 tackles. Good stuff from the tall drink of water. | ||
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9- Reed MahoneyHooker, Parramatta Eels |
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| Reed Mahoney made 51 tackles today. What have you done with your life? | ||
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10- Junior PauloProp, Parramatta Eels |
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| A monster of a game from a monster of a man. In a game highlighted by the battle of the forward packs, both Nathan Brown and this big unit got themselves in the middle and went to work. Mark Junior down for 12 runs, 136 metres, 19 tackles, 3 tackle breaks, 2 offloads and consuming the fleshed remains of at least 3 Warriors forwards.
It’s the Return of the Pack (come on). |
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11- Marata NiukoreSecond Row, Parramatta Eels |
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Marata got through some pretty solid stuff with 9 runs, 85 metres and 34 tackles out on the edge. As an aside, I also love how unnatural Marata looks when finds himself with ball in hand, running down the right wing. I also love how often it seems to happen. |
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12- Manu Ma’uSecond Row, Parramatta Eels |
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| It was a strangely quiet game by Manu’s once monumental standards. I remember a time when Manu would have absolutely relished the tough contest so prevalent in today’s clash: the big hits, the contact, making life long enemies with nothing more than a glance. It’s not that 10 runs for 94 metres is a bad showing, nor the 38 tackles or 3 tackle busts. To be honest, I sorta just wish Manu killed or at least maimed Isaac Luke; I mean is that too much to ask? With that said, credit to Manu for 2 incredibly important offloads, however. The first in the 12th minute that lead to Maika Sivo eating Ayshford for breakfast, the second to Moses for one of the best tries you’ll ever see.
Did you ever pull the wings off a fly as a kid? I heard when he was younger, Manu used to pull the wings off birds. |
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13- Nathan BrownLock, Parramatta Eels |
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| Cyborg went full Terminator today, and didn’t the people love it? A absolutely MASSIVE 20 runs for 166 metres, and FORTY NINE If you don’t love Nathan Brown rushing out of the line and smashing blokes that weigh more than your average car, you don’t love rugby league. |
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14- Oregon KaufusiInterchange, Parramatta Eels |
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| Oregon Kaufusi made a successful return to the top grade this afternoon with a short but effective 16 minute, 5 run and 54 metre stint. Keep it coming, Big Country. | ||
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15- Daniel AlvaroInterchange, Parramatta Eels |
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| Climate change be damned, the Polar Bears are returning. Danny was apparently out there for half the game (40 minutes, really?!) and ran 13 times for 113 metres, made 25 tackles (without a miss) and also used his big padded mitts to get an offload away. | ||
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16- David GowerInterchange, Parramatta Eels |
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| David Gower has been around for so long he dated Old Mother Hubbard when she was a young bachelorette, but The Good Doctor still managed to run 7 times for 59 metres, had 2 tackle breaks and had his face stitched up for about the 8th time this year. Honestly, up close I bet his face must look like a patchwork quilt. | ||
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17- Tepai MoeroaInterchange, Parramatta Eels |
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 The Eels Wallaby in waiting had 4 runs, 28 metres and 16 tackles, including a pivotal error late in the second half. I don’t want to sound too harsh, but I will be pretty disappointed if he is in the team ahead of Oregon Kaufusi or even Peni Terepo next week. He’s not a project, he’s leaving and he’s not particularly effective anymore. I sincerely appreciate what he’s done in his time at the Eels, and you know, I wish him all the best next year. But let’s focus on the future. |
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Refereeing controversies aside, the Eels came away injury free with the 2 points. I’ll take that every day of the week.
I’m very nervous about facing the Dragons next week, particularly after their efforts last night. But this is the Eels, we could still win the comp or miss the finals – who knows?!
I’ll worry about that tomorrow, for now it’s time to soak up a match replay as the Eels have all of a sudden won 4 of their last 5.
I’ll admit it was a bit of a tough call for me to make tonight, so who was your MVP? Tell us in the comments below.
Go you Eels,
Mitch
Photos courtesy of the Parramatta Eels. Stats courtesy of the legends over at Champion Data.
V good win and one we could have lost a few times.
Not sure what to make of this game but we won and that’s important.
Hope we are not too battered for next week.
Great scores Mitch agree on them.
Great game. Totally agree nothing better than seeing brown rushing out of the line and hitting his mark. I just hope the rest of the guys take notice and aim up as well. Moses converting goals like a champion and his efforts on kick chases the last few weeks have been great.
Dangerous game next week dragons are hurting and we got the Knights the following week which makes me nervous but the boys need to just hold the ball and fix a few defensive issues and we can really shake up the comp come September. Up up eels.
No mention of Ma’u’s offload being directly responsible for Moses’ break and, hence, Gutherson’s try?
I believe I yelled “don’t you dare pass!” as he did so.
The absolutely try aside, is that the sort of pass you want him to throw? Who dares wins, I guess.
Best not to think about if that ma’u pass didn’t stick haha
Well, the result was good, Moses may have called for it but Ma’u’s execution may have been a bit off, however it’s the result that matters yeah?
Nathan Brown’s best game of the year by far. He was my MVP. Moses a close second. Pleased to get the win. Sure, we got a few calls today, but there have been plenty of games where we haven’t had the run of the green. In a few weeks time we’ll look back and see the W. It won’t matter how we got it. Like you Mitch, I’m worried about the dragons game. Hopefully Jennings will be back. We’re missing his D at the moment. We’re in 6th spot! Compared to this time last year, we’re in a much better position. Let’s enjoy the ride and see where we finish up. #Parradise
This was a loss game last year, but this year a win, and that’s all that matta’s.
While I did not see the game, for all the commentaries about the refs, and the like, I thought that the RTS no try was a correct call based on replays I have watched, also nothing really mentioned about the knock on two plays prior to an earlier Warriors try, and where was the ball control in the awarding of Luke’s try? As each one of them was subject to discussion with the ABC radio callers today.
While this may sound harsh or hard, I think that with players returning next week especially the forwards, there should be a real look at who gets picked to play, we have two leaving already, in Tepai & Manu, Tepai in particular really is not performing enough to warrant selection eve off the bench, Manu is better but with Lane back, and with Peni also available, both should be picked for the main squad, moreso with Shawn Lane than Peni.
I don’t see Tepai playing good enough anymore to be picked in the 17 squad, we need to keep the likes of Kafusi in the squad instead of Tepai at least. Manu may also be unlucky to not be picked but with Marata playing well also, its a hard call between who to keep up and who to drop
Colin I like your post. I think that BA has a lot to consider leading up to Tuesday night team selection. I enjoyed seeing Oregon short but sweet hit out yesterday. I have a big opinion of this player.
On the Luke try I believe it was a no try based on the botched put down and in my opinion a forward pass in the lead up. If you have a look at the extended highlights on Nrl.com you will see what I mean.
I was out there yesterday great game disappointed with the crowd.
Thanks John, I honestly would likely have been in the coronary ward at Westmead after that game, as what I heard of it really turned me off, to watch it likely looked worse. The ABC commentators were pretty good, each of them mentioned the knock on before Lukes try, also there was ridicule regarding the try itself. If a player lost the ball against his head and it rolled down the arm onto the ground and nil pressure applied, that would constitute a knock on, would it not? But when that happens with the player horizontal on the ground its called a try.
I sincerely believe that with the team siting in the position it is now, BA has to pick the team that he believes can take us further in the competition, to do that he has to replace Tepai, as first call, he needs to go to Wenty until he plays better than in NRL with the eels.
It then comes down to who is left out with Peni back, but he possibly should go to Wenty, as none of the other forwards deserve to be dropped. WIth MJ back (perhaps) then Taka goes back to Wenty and when Fergo back Parry & Hoffman at wenty.
Also some of those names will be on the farewell list as well.
Colin as an aside I snuck into the sheds after the game yesterday with some of the Wags. One of the best experiences I have ever had at the football. I got some photos with my grandson and some of the players.
The thing for me is the size of these guys. Players like Sivo, Kaufusi and W Blake they are very huge humans.But the nicest friendliest people you would ever want to meet.
John, that would have been a great finish for the day for you and your grandson. I still have memories as a kid being taken into the dressing room by my late dad at Cumberland. Even in later years I have to say that I never had any bad experiences with any of the eels players, all of them would do anything for you.
A nephew of my wife asked me if he could get a football autographed for him, he was around 8 years old at the time, he was a south supporter and his brother an eels supporter who had cystic fibrosis, and a bit older. The younger of the two wanted one player in particular autograph on a ball, I got the ball for him, and took it to training one Tuesday night, and spoke to the player and he said ok leave it with me. End of training we went down to the pub, and he gave me the ball with the full squads signatures on it.
Cannot speak highly enough of players in general in their PR aspects.
Great story Colin
Couldn’t agree more Colin, I’d like to see others come in and Tepai / or Manu given a break only because they are not the future.
Milo, would be hard calls in some ways especially as Manu is going ok but sadly I think Tepai is just wasting his time playing atm. In many ways he’s an embarrassment to himself the way he’s going now. He was a player that could have been anything but those days are well gone now. I hope he can pick his enthusiasm up in order to play RU.
Great to see us tough out a game where we weren’t dominating, but weren’t getting creamed either. The Warriors’ very low error rates certainly put pressure on at times, whereas our failure to complete sets after points keeps letting it off. Definitely still work to be done, but that was a huge improvement from last week.
Nathan Brown coming out of the line to smash blokes was hugely popular around me. Dylan Brown looks more confident with each game back. Gutho was much more what we’ve come to expect of the King. Interesting to see him slot into dummy half for the first ten minutes after half time, with Reed having a breather. I know Parry failed to take some kicks in traffic, but I actually thought he looked pretty solid given they aimed their kicks at him. Waqa did have a right go at him for not staying on his man to allow the Warriors to score untouched.
I would like the records to reflect that in two of Parry’s errors under the high ball he was impeded illegally by a Warrior chaser not contesting the catch!
Good, gutsy win from our boys in spite of atrocious officiating against both the Eels and Warriors. It will get lost amidst all the hullaballoo of the RTS forward pass call but both teams deserve credit for playing a tough and fast game.
This is the time of year where the big time players need to make the big time plays. Blake Ferguson did it for us before his knee injury and today Mitchell Moses, Nathan Brown and Clinton Gutherson lead the way for our team.
I thought our prop rotation was miles better this week as opposed to last week at Brookvale but I would have liked to seen more minutes out of Oregon while Polar’s concentration lapse leading to the costly strip soured an otherwise positive return to first grade.
In the end though, we took care of business and that is all that I can ask for from a team that is probably over-performing more often than not this year.
So which wisky was it last night 40?
I was a bit stunned when I got home from the game and found out the Warriors were apparently dudded by that one line-ball forward pass call. Not sure I can agree, given the apparent knock-on in the lead up to one of their tries, and the question marks around Isaac Luke scoring (you can maintain position with your chin now can you?!). And I’ve no idea how their players managed to stay on the field, given the precedents for the sin bin in… well, every other game the past few rounds.
I do agree with Kearney that the stripping rule is a farce. You could clearly see their players attack the ball with two in the tackle, then yell at the other bloke to let go. It’s a crap shoot trying to pick up whether the second player was still in there or not. (But I really wish we were better at exploiting it, instead of consisting having the ball ripped off us). I’d add that the current obstruction ruling also blows (Manly should’ve had that try last week). And the 40-20 kick is exciting, but it penalises the defensive team for a good set, so I’m not a hug fan of that either. Aren’t I the grinch?
While I’m on a roll, I’d also like a grumble about how they had a player go down injured and play needing to be stopped, on three separate occasions when we had momentum. To be fair, two of them left the field. But it completely interrupted the game flow, and it was only the first of them that actually required a stoppage as he was in the way of play. I grew up with it being play on, and the defensive team just having to suck it up. I’m not sure how you best address these to be fair to both teams, but they clearly weren’t player safety issues, and they definitely disadvantaged us.
The strip rule is so horrendous I keep saying it that this game is so fragile you can’t just change things all the time because nobody can ever keep up. I hope they do something about the strip it’s truely ugly but the won’t because they’ll have to admit they’re wrong.
Maybe the strip should only be allowed when the tackle is one-on-one start to finish. This orchestrated fall off tactic is starting to cough up too many split second calls that only the video room could properly adjudicate, and do we want that?
That was the old rule wasn’t it? Much clearer for the refs, and a lot more clarity for the player who has the ball too.
Yep, the players who peel off also may be the reason the ball becomes insecure, so the gang tackle has had its effect, the bloke who snatches the ball cops reward more than his own effort.
Missed the game today, so enjoyed the grades and insights. Good to see we ve got an improving spine and a positive intro for Waqa Blake. I watched some brief highlights, I bet that first Warriors try got some eye rolls, I stuck it on repeat and we seemed to get done for numbers really easily with the problem taking shape back infield vía a simple lead runner. It’s starting to happen regularly. Maybe MJennings is needed as already suggested by WCE.
Moeroa again being the worst by a long shot. Luckily Lane and Terepo slot right back in. Who do you drop btw? Evans, Kaufusi or Alvaro? Alvaro was outstanding and Evans will always make me nervous. I guess Kaufusi will have to bide his time or leave Terepo out.
Agreed, Moeroa really didn’t have much impact. I’ve not been a fan of Evans, but thought he worked hard in attack today. I’m surprised by your assessment of Alvaro – I barely noticed him out there. I was hoping for him to come out and really try to stamp some authority on the game, to show he should be back in first grade. Can someone slip him some of Browny’s angry pills and fire him up? He’s not looked the same since he got knocked senseless in our first (real) home game of the year.
Yeah I’ve seen some say Alvaro was ok but idk I think he was really good and steady and a lot better than he did earlier this year. Great stats off the bench and ran hard and pushed hard on contact rather than his hit and fall to his knees like he usually does.
I’d say Alvaro’s 42 minutes for 13 runs, 102m and 25 tackles was a strong effort. The only real glitch was that strip.
I thought Evans was great in the tough early minutes (along with Jr).
Very impressed with Parry, mostly solid under the High Ball (when not illegally taken out).
Must admit to getting frustrated with Moses, and the number of times he just put up the bomb and hoped for a result , but his assist on the Gutherson try was a thing of beauty.
In the forwards , Dylan Brown has to be the Terminator, no human could do what he did to a much vaunted Warriors pack.
Good win by the Eels. I thought the forwards grafted well and absorbed a lot of pressure from the Warrior. Paulo was a hand full, Nathan Brown was in everything so agree with their A gradings. Reed and Alvaro were also caught my with big contributors in the forwards.
Our defence is still brittle, particularly for the first 20 mins when it seemed that Reed was leading the defensive line in the middle but not getting enough support from Evans and Paulo, noticable improvement when Gower and Alvaro came on and worked with Reed.
Overall I thought the Eels were composed and backs went about their business with a quiet confidence which is a good place to be at this stage of the season.
Thought Waqa was seriously underdone.
PS The 40/20 was Luke not Green
Ha that’s weird, when I was watching the replay last night I actually realised my error, went in and changed it but I must not have hit update. You are 100% correct though.
Re Waqa, it was his first game in 6 weeks or something, and he did run 12 times for 120 metres (almost indentical to Taka’s numbers but with 7 more metres) and made 15 more tackles than Taka? Just a thought.
Still thought our forwards were dominated particularly earlier in the match. Btw since when have you been allowed to pick a player up and carry him back down field without the ref calling held? Warriors did that multiple times plus leg pulling and working the tackled player over with impunity.
Why does it seem we are always short a man on our left side? Sivo always seems to be marking up on the opposition’s centre with their winger free. Memo to our wingers, stay on to your opposition winger, please, when they have possession close to our line!!! Great game to watch but not for the faint hearted.
Agreed Glenn we often seem to be caught out down that side and tries leaked, Missing Jenko a lot imo, and with Fergo out we miss that exp.
The warriors were v physical and knew this was the way to go; lots of niggle and to me we need to build our forwards like when we had Pay, Dymock etc. we were not messed with. I miss that era.
Brown for us was excellent. Nathan I mean and Dylan was good.
Milo, I seem to recollect over many years we have had issues on at least one wing with players that have that inwood move problem, its not just the left side either. I still have the horror memories of last year against the bunnies when the two eels Jennings allowed the bunnie brudder to get 5 tries down the other wing side.
I would love to see Dymock offered a position on the coaching staff here at the eels, especially with an emphasis on defence, he was tops in that area as a player and a willey reader of the game in game plays as well.
What was missing on the left side was M Jennings. Anticipate that he will be back and available next week. We need to put someone reliable inside Sivo to plug that hole. Absolutely can’t wait for Ferguson to get back and hook up with Waqa Blake
Also with the forwards coming back next week looking forward to our next game.
The best analogy ever … “If you don’t love Nathan Brown rushing out of the line and smashing blokes that weigh more than your average car, you don’t love rugby league.”
Very good grades Mitch. The fend by Sivo was hands down the best fend I have ever seen. If we can hang on to 5th or 6th place we get a home semi and we will win it. Injuries etc will determine how we go from there. We are shaping up for a big finish. All players back next week hopefully and we looking very good. Add Semi (if possible) and nothing is out of reach. I bumped into an old school friend of yours Mitch and she told me you were so popular at school that your graduation photo was horizontal. Great reading as usual.
True Parra Tragic, that fend of Sivo was superb. Made me smile and also the way he kept going to off load was superb. He will learn in terms of holding the ball correctly to pass on the right side etc. was great to watch.
I just hope we can be consistent over the next month and strong a few wins together as a win over Saints will have us one step closer to a top 6 as i think top 4 is a little out of reach at the moment.
A great effort when you consider we were probably missing 3 players who i would rate in our top six best plus Peni.I would not like to have 3 of our best out last year and think of the result vs Warriors.I cant wait to have Lane ,Fergo,Jennings all in together.
I think Kane Evans deserves more credit. His post contact metres on nrl.com say he made 68PCM, by far the most of any Eel.
Yeah, I agree Rob. I’ve not been a fan of Kandy since his arrival but he has certainly made an impact in most games this season. I really hope that it’s not a contract renewal effort we are witnessing.
Jonboy above.
Great grades and extensive coverage of how they were achieved Mitch.
I would only ask, how does Oregan get a B when Manu made a much greater contribution and received a B- ? My score would’ve been. Oregan B- and Manu B+
In respect of Tep and that last error which nearly cost us dearly? He has obviously been dreaming about a Waratah debut and what would happen if he didn’t release the ball in the ruck when on the ground in front of the posts 30 mtrs out and only two points ahead with a minute to play. For those who don’t understand that other silly game it goes like this. Ref calls no holding the ball on the ground. Penalty! Any bloke in the opposition (they all kick) steps up and bangs it over. Two points behind become one point in front, aaaggh! The crowd cry “Go back to rugby League Tepai”!
Great win and as usual great summary. Our edge D is a real concern on both sides imo.
Not sure who was man of the match, but the moment of the match was absolutely Gutho’s kick and Moses chase to trap RTS in goal. From that moment Nathan Brown fired up in both attack and defence and the team followed him. Until that moment I always felt we would not win and then all of a sudden we had a chance, the crowd got involved and the game was on.
For all it’s faults I loved the game. One desperate team trying to keep in the hunt for the 8 and one desperate team trying to atone for the terrible effort the week before. It’s a shame it has been lost in the media dribble.
The media coverage is infuriating isn’t it? All about one 50-50 call that the refs were at least in good position to make, and even the non-biased fans can’t agree on. Ignore every other dicey call at any other point during the match (and there are always several each way), as it doesn’t fit the narrative.
If any team should feel robbed this round, it’s the Dragons. That last pass for the Souths try was very clearly forward out of the hands. But no, the commentators are too focussed on the glorious narrative of winning on the last play to call it out, so it flies under the radar. Can you imagine the hullaballoo if they’d called that one forward! How dare the refs spoil the moment? Nobody’s here to watch them! etc etc
Your last paragraph says it all Shelley. There’s a report in the SMH this morning regarding the forward pass and other areas regarding coaches venting their fury over decisions on the weekend
https://www.smh.com.au/sport/nrl/annesley-to-face-grilling-over-refs-after-weekend-of-disputed-calls-20190729-p52bmu.html
The warriors are up in arms so part of it says, but if Annersley sits down and reviews this particular match and the penalties given then it should shut the media circus up. Note SHOULD but it wont.
Some coaches take these things on the chin, ours is one of them but would love to see him make more comments about decisions more often though. We got the rub yesterday and the Warriors should consider themselves very lucky that that they did not get players in the bin, and maybe Annersley might point out the line ball calls that went their way along with tackles that were made and not penalised when they should have been, maybe the match review mob could be looking closely at some of their tactics as well.
The problem is that you can’t just look at that one incident. Further it is never going to be overturned. There are problems every round with forward passes.
If they check this incident they would have to check the entire game and every game of every round. We copped plenty in the past and I am not convinced the referee got it wrong.
A bigger area of concern for me is the new rule for one on one strips. I said before the season began that the only thing this new rule would achieve is to reaffirm why the no strip rule was introduced in the first place. All it does is make the referees job harder.
The change to the stripping rule is ridiculous and was unnecessary. It is why I shudder whenever I hear the NRL say we are going to change this rule because it will make it better. Apart from the goal post rule change what change in the last few years has made the game better? None. Last year play the ball and the entertaining warning captains, this year late tackle, sin bin for dangerous tackles ( sometimes that is) and one on one strip, a couple of years ago discretion with obstruction. All these have failed and made a simple game very hard to understand at times.
They are talking about allowing little knock ons in try scoring opportunities next year but what is a little knock on, what constitutes a try scoring opportunity? Way to subjective, they will create more trouble for themselves.
My view is to leave the game alone, it really is not that bad.
I can tell you what a little knock on is. Look at Luke’s try Saturday.
Listening to Griffin yesterday his view is to give the benefit of the doubt to the try scorer. On Ponga he said that it is a collision sport , there will be accidents, people will get hurt does not mean they should be sent to the sin bin.
John, after reading the various RL pages on the net with Annesley’s explanations, gives me absolutely no satisfaction at all, his non commitment re the GB pass also is a disgrace. There is now a big call for McCallum to be brought back on the match review committee. Out with the old and in with the older, so it seems.
For the first time in many a year, I am in all honesty sick of the game, I watch or listen to games with little real interest or enthusiasm and for me its become almost totally boring compared to how the game used to be played.
The old term that described RL as Running Wrestling comes very much to the fore, despite some exciting tries and moments in the game, it usually follows endless minutes of struggling wrestling tactics by multiple players and its totally boring. The many and various different interpretations by the refs, also contribute to what is becoming a real nothing game.
My PLC membership still has several years to run, but I am once again wondering if there’s anything really worthwhile in being a member.
Colin you need to renew again. Currently there is a shortage of quality members at the moment you can tell by the voting.
You are right about the wrestle it is killing the game with the Storm at the top of the tree. The other thing that I am hating at the moment is the one on one strip. All this new rule does is put further pressure on already under pressure referees.
Just watching a replay on Nrl.com and Waqa Blake played a better game than I realised. He is a good runner and has good hit and stick. At the end of the game he got RTS after 3 others missed him.
Also while Ethan Parry made a few mistakes he did some good things otherwise. I think he has a future
John, I guess if I was able to get to matches it would be a bit different, thing is that while I enjoy and really excited at the prospect of the eels playing finals football this year, which I thought we would only get close to it, just miss I think my words were, the overall aspect of negativity is terrible, reminds me very much of the movie Neverending Story, where the Nothing was taking over the world.
Seems that if we lose, then the team and coach has done nothing, if they win in tight games, they were lucky, if they win by big scores, its a one off. Likewise the coach has done nothing to improve players, the coach has not done this or done that. If we won the premiership this year, the cries would be it was not by enough or the other mob were robbed.
Worst part though, is that it has affected me with some negative posts, but I aim that at the assistant and more especially the defence coach who seems to have not really achieved his contract requirements or something.
I will be like the old British Paints motto, keep on keeping on/
Colin you need to stick to TCT. There is a good range of views that are objective. Some of the highs on here can be over the top but who cares. At least the lows are not personal and based on good analysis.
Besides when Sixties isn’t watching we can stray a bit off topic.
Best rule change ever was allowing the corner post to get knocked over and not being called out
Loved that run from Moses for Gutho’s try. I didn’t know he was so fast! We definitely need to use his pace a bit more, especially with Gutho able to chime in as an extra half.
I thought I was reading Cliffy Lyons’ half-time stats when I saw “Dylan had 6 darts”.
I spoke to Issac De Gois on Saturday and he was looking great. For such a small man he played really tough. I really loved what he brought to the Eels.
I asked him what he missed about not playing and he made it clear it was the companionship of being around the group.
I was elated to meet him.