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Sixties and Forty20 return for one last time in 2020 to recap all the happenings in the preseason for the Parramatta Eels. Bernie Gurr drops in to help the boys tackle some holiday themed footy questions before TCT’s resident talking heads take a look at the big talking points and burning questions for the Eels with the new year looming.
On the docket for this episode is the departure of workhorse prop-forward Daniel Alvaro, how the Eels will address the absence of Michael Jennings and the major highlights from preseason training for Sixties.
The boys take an early crack at their starting line-up for Round 1 with Sixties throwing out some head-turning selections before Forty20 and Sixties bounce between the gauntlet of holiday themed questions they threw at Bernie earlier.
To all our listeners and readers, we hope you have a safe and merry Christmas and a fantastic end to the year. We sincerely thank you for listening to two Parra tragics prattle on every episode!
Forty loved the podcast and I do enjoy hearing from Bernie and his passion for the club. Love hearing you and Sixties reminisce on all things Eels
My New Years resolution is as a supporter to steer the the Eels to a GF. Once you are there anything can happen
There has been a bit of commentary around MM during the lead up to the new season. Some commentators saying that BA needs to get MM firing
Given his great form of 2019 it is hard to believe that he slipped in the current season without there being an injury problem. I am talking something more than the calf injury.
There was some talk during the season about a rib cartilage problem but the story died. There may however have been some truth to the story. If so it may go some way to explain the loss of effectiveness. You do not go from Dally M half to a shadow of that without there being a problem
Anyway I am tipping MM to be back to his best in 2021 and steer the Eels with there bolstered bench into the GF. Mitch to have the most Try Assists for 2021
Cheers John. Honestly never heard or saw anything about a rib issue. But the calf was causing concern for a while. Mitch is much tougher than people give him credit for.
Send me an email Sixties
Always a pleasure to read your replies, John. I too think Mitch will bounce back in 2021 and if he and the rest of the spine stay healthy then we will be set to make a legitimate push in the postseason.
Great podcast as usual!
40/20 mentioned Marata won’t be available round 1 due to suspension, however won’t he serve his final game by missing a trial? That’s what has happened in previous years.
I am always mixing up whether trials count towards suspensions! If that happens to be the case then that is a massive boon for the Eels.
Our halves back rowers combinations will need to improve out of sight if we really expect to improve on 2020. They offered virtually nothing this year.
Very informative podcast and an enjoyable listen lads.. Bernie always specks well and has good Rugby League knowledge…seems to be very updated with what’s going on at the Eels…Does he hold any current position at the club?
No Ace, he doesn’t. But Bernie loves his footy and has the amazing depth of knowledge and analytical ability that you get from a lifetime in the game, as a player and administrator. He’s passionate about the future of the Eels and I reckon this comes through in our chats. I’m very grateful that I’ve got to know Bernie over the years. We catch up when we can and I’m certainly more informed about our game as a result.
Anon, I think it’s fair to say that Shaun Lane’s form didn’t quite hit the heights of 2019, and we will probably be looking for greater strike on the edges in 2021, but we did finish the regular season in third place. Let’s call what you are highlighting an area for improvement.
Which language are you learning, Forty?
Pou we don’t hear enough of you lately. I enjoy your analysis
I’ll second that!
Cheers guys. Regarding getting value out of the current recruits, I’d say Papali’i has been signed as a genuine top 17 player, with salary to match ($200k+). He’ll definitely add something. Obviously Cartwright is a potential Origin player, so has the biggest upside. Roache is also possibly worth $300k+
Blokes like those two could be the difference between brave-but-not-classy-enough and genuine premiership contenders.
How brilliant that all of those players have been signed for less than the value that you have placed on them Pou. That’s being clever with targeted signings.