There’s an old saying about a week being a long time in rugby league.
People refer to that hackneyed phrase because so much can change in that time, and it often does.
Then again some things don’t change – like the Melbourne Storm pushing the boundaries and certain officials being apparently oblivious to their ways.
That seems like an appropriate place to start this week’s column, but there’s no shortage of other talking points around our mighty Eels – especially after that glorious win over the premiers.
Bumpers Up!
Felice Explain
We all know and understand that refereeing is a tough gig. There’s been something like 14 or 15 rule changes over the last two years, and not all have been the wisest choice.
The refs don’t get too much of a say in this – they are simply expected to apply all rules.
Consistently.
Therein lies the concerns for teams and supporters.
What the… (image via Channel 9)
When Felice Kaufusi cocked his elbow and pulled the trigger to drop it on the head of Ryan Matterson, the evidence was captured live, and then on video replay, for everyone at Bankwest Stadium. That included all officials.
On the basis of this evidence Kaufusi was placed on report and a penalty awarded to the Eels.
Ryan Matterson was concussed and removed from the field. He did not return. At this stage, we do not know the outcome of his injury.
In the past, we’ve seen players sent to the sin bin for a reportable foul that resulted in the replacement of their “victim”.
Back in 2019, Michael Jennings was sent to the sin bin after his high tackle on a falling Isaah Yeo. The review of the tackle saw the subsequent try disallowed and Jenko’s dispatch to the bin.
In a post match commentary, journalist Paul Kent had this to say:
Jenko binned for this (Image via Fox Sports)
“The rules now state that if you injure a player and he has to be taken from the field in what’s a foul tackle, you can be sin binned. That’s textbook.”
Apparently not Kenty, because that act on Thursday night looked like a textbook deliberate blow to Matto’s head.
Perhaps the rule is too discretionary? Maybe there was some doubt as to Kaufusi’s guilt?
Spectators on Thursday night had no such doubt.
The trouble is, there has always been inconsistency in application of this rule.
On Saturday, Dallin Watene-Zelezniak was sent to the bin for a high shot on Nathan Cleary that was not anywhere near the severity of Kaufusi’s elbow to Matto’s head.
What hope have we got when the rule can’t be consistently applied over one weekend, let alone a season!
It’s not good enough. The players who rely on the rules to have their head protected, and the spectators who support the game, deserve so much better.
I’d Like To Be De-Kleined
Let me again repeat that refereeing is a tough gig. It’s also mostly thankless due to the microscopic scrutiny to which they are subjected. Supporters are probably unaware of the level of preparation that goes into each season and then each game. These people are genuine athletes. With respect, referees of yesteryear don’t come close to the current standards.
When you have a terrific game of football, like Thursday night, it’s often partly due to the way it was officiated.
But Thursday’s game was the exception to the rule. It was a quality game in spite of the officiating.
Ashley Klein (image via NRL)
For all of the deserved praise for our modern officials, a poor performance like that from highly trained individuals must at least rate a mention.
The failure to send Kaufusi to the sin bin was not the only example of the confusion caused by referee Ashley Klein’s decisions.
The slew of forward passes mostly from, but not restricted to, the Storm were completely missed. These were not line balls. They were blatant forward passes that could even qualify for a penalty under the old offside pass rule.
We also witnessed cannonball tackles, wrestling, obvious slowing tactics in the ruck – even when the tackled players weren’t grounded, and a defence line that was rarely back the requisite 10 metres.
The officiating wasn’t of a first grade standard, and certainly a long way from that required for a clash that was arguably the match of the round.
Ashley Klein wasn’t solely to blame. A particular sideline official probably missed most of those forward passes too. However, if Parramatta can avoid Klein’s appointment for the rest of the season, I’ll be a very happy man.
New-Kore?
Brad Arthur’s selection of Marata Niukore as the replacement for the injured Waqa Blake has rightly been praised.
But there is some background behind it.
Marata
Firstly, Marata came to the Eels from the Warriors as a back rower/centre. He has since matured into an impact middle forward.
We have seen instances (see last year’s finals match against the Storm) where Marata has covered for an injury out wide when the bench only carried replacement forwards.
Similarly, when the squad has been involved in opposed training, and a centre has required treatment during the session, it has not been unusual for Marata to jump in there. Manu Ma’u used to be utilised in the same way.
In such a short week, and with literally no preparation time available besides jumping in when the injury occurred, the match day selection was only a partial surprise. But one that paid terrific dividends.
Whether Niukore retains that position remains to be seen, especially with a long turn around till the game against the Sharks.
Centre Depth
The potential future selection of Marata at centre does pose a question.
Do the Eels have enough depth within the squad to cover the centre position?
Unfortunately, the Eels are still required to carry Michael Jennings in their top 30 listing. That means that their current squad of 28 is really 27.
New signing, Michael Oldfield, is currently unavailable.
Young gun, Will Penisini, is coming off a 2020 season of GPS rugby, and his very first NRL preseason. His potential is undoubted, but he didn’t even play in Round 1 as the Eels had a bye in the NSW Cup.
Could Penisini be expected to advance directly from Schoolboy rugby to NRL? He was literally a team mate of Joseph Suaalii last year. His selection would garner massive media attention.
Haze Dunster
Haze Dunster was mentioned as an option. He played in the centres during his younger years, but has trained exclusively as a winger over the last couple of seasons.
It was also suggested that Dunster could be selected on the wing with Ferguson shifted to centre, a position he has also played during his younger years. But again, you are looking at a stop gap measure.
Perhaps the more likely long term scenario is Tim Lafai who is currently on a second tier contract with the Eels. Whether it means elevation to the top squad, or an application for dispensation to select him remains to be seen.
The answer is probably dependent upon how long Blake will be unavailable.
The Real Deal Eels?
Premierships aren’t won in March. That’s a given.
Nonetheless, successful teams usually maintain a healthy ladder position throughout the season, so picking up premiership points remains important.
Furthermore, you also want to see certain traits in your team.
I like to see effort on effort from individuals, commitment to one percent moments, composure from playmakers, solid game management, defensive resolve and an effective kicking game.
Getting the job done in tight games and under pressure is another key indicator.
These things are all about the attitude and character of the team. Some might use the word culture.
Right now, those early signs are positive.
The NRL season is like a gradual reveal. It has its ebbs and flows, and sometimes injury and circumstance become an unfair factor.
Each year, between 4-6 teams show themselves to be genuine contenders. They are described as being in a premiership window.
I maintain that the window opened for the Eels in 2020. Though they were criticised for bowing out in straight matches in the 2020 finals series, circumstances were not kind and there was a distinct difference between their 2019 and 2020 finishes.
After watching their preseason, I was convinced that the Premiership window remained open in 2021.
Beating the defending premiers this week, in such a high quality game, said plenty about the character of the Eels.
Backing it up next week will say more.
The Value Of A Strong Pre-Season
As someone who attends and reports on the Eels preseason every year, I obviously place great value on what I witness.
What transpires during the season preparations is important to individual players and important to the team.
I can’t make comparisons to other teams. I’m sure every one of them have exacting programs that they go through.
Parra Papa
However, followers of my reports will readily recall that Papali’i was an absolute standout during the field sessions. He has since been a revelation for Parra fans, but not for regular visitors to TCT.
Followers also read that both Sivo and Fergo had responded to the challenge issued by Haze Dunster. In my opinion, Haze was the number one winger through the first half of the preseason. He never let his standards drop, but the two incumbents lifted to the point where BA couldn’t omit either.
Another to make an impression during the preseason was Oregon Kaufusi. He too has earned plaudits for his impact off the bench during the first two rounds. Had Bryce Cartwright been available, I’m certain he would have earned selection and continued his outstanding training track form.
Besides these individual performances, the team enjoyed what was arguably the best preseason that I’ve witnessed. The conditioning work was intelligent, varied and engaging for the players. The opposed sessions were an incredibly high quality.
I believe that the Eels have prepared superbly for the season ahead. How far that takes us will be answered as the year unfolds.
Inner Sanctum Vision
Last week, TCT proudly presented a video montage – Eels Junior Reps: A Week In The Life.
The SG Ball captured celebrating in the sheds
Filmed by SG Ball Strength and Conditioning Coach, Neil Dunkley, it provides a snapshot of the Monday to Saturday program for the team.
The Eels Junior Rep teams and their coaching staff dedicate incredibly long hours of preparation each week and it deserves recognition.
We are very happy to have had so many views of this short video across our platforms.
If you haven’t checked it out, I highly recommend it for some Sunday viewing.
New Match Day Presentations
The ten thousand hardy souls who ventured out in rain to Bankwest Stadium were treated to a new light display which forms part of the 2021 pre-match “show”.
When it comes to these presentations, there has been much publicity around the removal of the Parramatta Cheerleaders, themselves a tradition of around fifty years at the club. Not everyone has been happy about this decision, and their feelings are understandable because tradition is at the core of rugby league.
However, the rationale of the club has been that match day presentation would be taken in a different direction this season. Thursday night was our first glimpse of that.
Home matches in 2021 have been grouped into themes. “Thursday Night Lights” kicked off as the first theme, with the light show, the pyrotechnics and new hosts Katie Brown and Zac Bailey all part of the new format.
Conditions were not kind, so kudos to all concerned in the staging of the first match. I’m not sure whether there were any aspects of the evening that couldn’t be staged, and I would imagine that match day presentations for a stand alone game would be different to having two or three grades of footy on the day.
Back on the hosts, I’ll give them a big tick for their energy and importantly, the clarity of their voices. But I do have one proviso going forward.
I’ve gone on record as being no fan of MCs urging the crowd to start cheering when the ball is in play. It doesn’t mean that MCs can’t bring some hype – it’s all a matter of timing.
The response of the crowd to on-field action is a beautiful and organic part of our code. It doesn’t require manufacturing.
I hope that our new hosts are cognisant of that.
The Tip Sheet – Live!
The Cumberland Throw was privileged to kick off the pre-match entertainment on Thursday afternoon with our live podcast at Parramatta Leagues Club. The weather forced our move from Eels Lane to indoors at Pablos, but the capacity crowd of Eels supporters brought a terrific vibe to the venue.
TCT with Brett Kenny at Parra Leagues
I’d like to thank the club for hosting our podcast. Further thanks to the Eels supporters for filling the room with an amazing atmosphere, and a special thank you to PLC Marketing Manager, Sarah Young, for organising the event along with the fantastic TCT banners.
Of course the real stars of the show were our guests – Mary K from Ladies Who League, Joey Grima from the Eels, and Parra Legend, Brett Kenny.
It’s a bumper podcast that you can still catch via the recording of the show. We captured Mary’s thoughts on the Suaalii ruling and future NRLW expansion, then Joey discussed Junior Reps, his star-studded 2004 team, and impressively nailed his prediction of how the Eels would beat the Storm.
Finally, we had the honour of sharing air time with the legendary Brett Kenny as he recounted tales of his time at the Eels, including stories from behind the stories.
It was the prelude to a great evening, capped by the Eels victory.
What a day! What a week!
Eels forever!
Sixties
As the game speeds up I wonder if fitness and fatigue factors into the referees aswell.
The fitness of officials is elite but at some point it has to catch up with them aswell
Excellent point Offside – well worth monitoring.
How disappointing yet predictable was Annesley’s response to the non sin binning of Kaufusi, particularly when every other incident this week has resulted in a sin bin. Is there some sort of reluctance to criticise/punish the Storm for indiscretions, the forward passes, concerted efforts to actually injure the opposition seems to escape officialdom.
The masters of staying down or questioning decisions to get breather and reset their defence is legendary, and yet some knobhead from ABC media Canberra immediately writes an article on Gutherson and his treatment for the ankle injury. Surely these things are not coincidental 🤔
No mention of papan whatever faking injury trying to milk penalty mentioned though
Of course not!
Yeah, that article annoyed me. Claimed his ankle wasn’t taped after half-time. Yeah idiot, it was taped -under- his sock, because they’d had time to do it properly – you can see it in the post-match footage. But hey, don’t let the facts get in the way of a (not good) story.
Well said!
It was almost like the shadow of a certain bloke still hung over the game.
Good & thoughtful post sixties.
With the reserve game cancelled today (so I heard) it takes a bit of a swipe into the Centre position problem. While I have not see Penisini play except in trials, for him to be remotely picked as replacement for Waqa for me is a cruise downhill with gear in neutral. I do not mean to put any disrespect on to him but I think too soon to try him there until he at least has a few full matches in the reserve grade. Not sure about using Haze there either but he at least was training in top squad last year and did well in his first game though.
I would be happy to see Marata left in the 4 spot, and if needed we do have Stone who could readily take a bench spot in the forwards, he has the experience of NRL standards, and would be a good move to help to adjust him back out of the DH substitute and concentrate on his hard forwards position.
Papa, & Oregon will do me for first up replacements, & Will should retain his subway role, along with Stone.
Coaches will solve it col !
True Swing!
My apologies for having a say, make sure you also match other supporters with similar inputs with your esteemed post.
It seems like the most likely solution at this stage.
Firstly as we are continually told , referees do not cheat or show bias ,they do not follow particular teams and even if they do they do not
show favoritism,so me totally believing all of the above can only come up with total INCOMPETENCE as the reasons the PAYING public has very little to any faith in the standard of the weekly adjudication of the game we love , it did have some creditably when players were in the bunker but the nrl decided the last thing needed was people who actually played and understood the game interfering , so its back to refs adjudicating then referring upstairs to retired refs to back them up overseen but another retired referee who controls the whole system ,that seems fair to me .
I certainly don’t believe in any bias there, just that the officiating from this bloke was not up to the standard required. And it was so obvious to anyone who watched the game. The subsequent of DWZ was surely an insult to the Eels.
A question, did our other favourite ref sitting up in the review box have any input? Seems that with the on field ref and dear Henry having a hole in his bucket as well did not help either. Should have had Alisa somewhere on the night with a say.
Love to see statistical breakdown of the referees game thursday night , that would tell a better story than the teams or players stats , storms somewhat favorable decisions , illegal tactics , cheap shots ,general thuggery , count and position of 6 again , blocker plays not to mention smith tackling maika 12inches in mid air no penalty as opposed to papa 1inch of ground getting penalty ,the list of inequalities in the game must be endless “rub o the green “, storm must be a predominantly irish side , st patrick was at his best ,
A bit went their way didn’t it!
Id like to see stats on every game ashley clown adjudicates of ours , that would be an eye opener .
I have watched him control other teams too, and I reckon there’s a few teams with concerns. I honestly think he cannot maintain the standard required.
My bugbear for the game, other than the ridiculous forward passes (why do we bother paying touchies?!), was Munster continually standing in the way of the defensive line when the back three had taken a kick. He stood still to avoid being too obvious, but in a position which impeded the defence.
It’s those little things that make everyone else hate Melbourne – but it is the fault of the officials who allow it to happen.
You weren’t the only one to notice that. When it happens once, you take it as a spur of the moment action. When it happens multiple times, it becomes a tactic.
Gets worse , lattrel mitchell 10 in bin for bumping into evans , explain mr annesly how thats worse than than the filthy coward shot by kafusi , actually he will as healways does , zero credibility !!
You just knew that there would be sin bins that flew in the face of Thursday’s decision. That doesn’t fix the situation. It makes it more infuriating.
So presuming its incompetence its alarming that he saves the majority of it for parramatta or is that just coincidence ?
Just coincidence 🙄
Both Kane Evans and Marata Niukore got rubbed out last year for marginal offences. Evans was too rough and Marata became judiciary pin up for crushers when both times he clearly avoided putting his weight on the neck when he realised he was in a bad position. He demonstrated responsibility but no Marata, your initial intent looked wrong in a split second, 3 man tackle.Kaufusi’s intent is clear and no avoidance action there. Careless, reckless,dangerous and arguably intentional.
Spot on!
Ashley klein is the premier referee according to his boss , that does give others hope though , its not like the standards high .
I’ve watched the replay on Fox and then on 9 after being in the stands. Both made multiple mentions of the forward passes but there was no comments about the off side play that has caused me to have no voice for 3 days. It often hard to judge on the replay so I’m keen to see how many others who were at the game agree?
The other thing I have now noticed on many occasions is big NOS running into the defensive line with fore arm up and ready to use as a battering ram?
They were offside all night mate. I’m hoarse for the same reason. But the camera angles on tv are tighter so you don’t get those views.
I just rewatched the game and my take firstly Kafusi actually lifts his elbow then drops it into Matto very deliberate.Storm have started holding the player whilst standing ,so marker with hands on the arms or ball just a couple of seconds each time but slows the play the ball .Defense ,fitness and long kicking won the game,Storm were in it all the way, and for most of the game looked more likely and there were a few pushed passes and drops which invited them back in,it was wet though.A big run by RCG which gave us field position before the kick for last try. .There were multiple forward passes let go as we know and a couple of 6 agains which I could only assume was for not back 10 because there was nothing in the tackles.
Great victory,but as Storm get Grant back and some fitness they will be harder to beat next time.Will be a cracking game next week GF rematch,as Storm dont lose 2 straight but Panthers running hot.
You mean kept in it dont you ??
🤣
Eggman, it would be hard to pick too many pushed passes or dropped balls when both completed at over 80% in the wet. I agree about the threat of Harry Grant, but they are blessed with having someone like Hectic Cheese to fill that role. We still had to beat the premiers who had (Without Grant) been impressive in beating the Rabbitohs
Losing a centre late did not help our cause. Especially when it is on top of losing arguably our best centre.
Agreed John, and not to mention how its taken the authorities to check MJ second drug sample.
To me the game has become worse since video / ref spotlight / extra scrutiny etc, Klein for me has been and is an avg ref but this is because he has allowed to be avg…enough said.
The amount of rule changes over the yrs to me have been done bcasue our referees have NOT endorsed the rules. Take the new scrum or no scrum rule. Referess failed to hurry up teams to begin scrums and this again has made a new rule a bad one….we don’t need touch football type rules, just common sense from the games leaders, and I am afraid we do not have many leaders. Scrums are part of the game and in one off season the so called brains trust have taken it away…and for no benefit to me.
If Penisini is good enough bring him in. Mind you Marata was superb!
How long does the MJ second test take? That is another farce….bit like the Melb govt quarantine for so long but that is another story.
Milo you might need a Bex and a good lie down after that lot.
However you are right. I am beginning to believe that the rules are being changed because they can.
Unless there is a screaming need don’t touch them
Hi mate, hope you are well. I have actually never had a bex but remember those adverts when I was a kid.
I guess the amount of new rules etc. John makes me question the policy on run administrators and what they actually know.
Thanks again and Hope you are well….
Valandys has made his reputation on sports administration. He is one of the best administrators I have seen.
However by him moving into the area of leading the games direction on playing philosophies and strategy. Well that in my opinion seems to be getting away from his strengths.
John, I tend to agree with you on this, but having a bob (not bex) each way on this, I have to say I am not fussed with the new scrum rules at all, while I can accept that there was/is a need for some changes the current ones are garbage and doing nothing for the game.
Personally I would like to see the old rules brought back and that is to feed the middle of the scrum with the ball and make a contest of it. To help with the speed of the game, no reason why when a scrum is called for that the clock is used and the scrum has to form within a set time, with the main clock stopped, but have a 30second count down for the scrum to be set and ball feed has to be done within that time frame or 10 seconds with the scrums formation.
Spot on about the scrum rules Milo. Let’s see how many tries are scored off the play the ball which has replaced the scrum!
I noticed on the journo’s discussion on 9’s footy show yesterday, they all agreed he should of at least been binned. Andrew Webster said he should have been sent off & queried what constitutes a send off offence these days? At least someone gets it.
Gil, I have a suspicion about which team will feel the brunt of what might be a short term overreaction!
i hope the NRL realise that we don’t need a knee-jerk clampdown. We don’t need grey area incidents suddenly dealt with severely. We just need the rule applied consistently – if a player has been put on report for an incident that led to a player needing to leave the field. That’s surely black and white.
When the Storm coach said he did not see much in the elbow slam, well, I can tell you that comment needs investigating. That’s complicit with the action.
Well said!
Regarding the light show, I thought that worked well, despite the weather. One issue I had however was the handing out of the glow sticks. Every one of them ends up in landfill. At least in previous seasons the mobile phone light show was much more sustainable. Need to be better here Parra!
I do get the feeling that we are still a few players short, with many of our backups having very little game time over the past year. Any further injuries could be really problematic for the team, and I suspect that we’ll see a few newbies in the 17 before long.
I have expressed concern about only effectively having 27 players on the roster. With the injuries we are skinny in some positions.
Any updates on how long Matto & Carty might be out? On the eels injury page shows Carty return rounds 4-6 hopefully round 4 may be a good sign.
I sincerely hope that Matto is not rushed back, if we lose another forward, would think that Hollis may get a bench spot.
No idea on Matto. Last year he had a rest for a couple of weeks and you’d have to think that the club would be very conscious again of his welfare. I don’t like to comment on injury progress of players but I’d suggest Carty will likely return as predicted, which means Round 4 or 5.