NRL Team List

Sixties wrote about it earlier this week and we both spoke about it on our instant reaction podcast but Parramatta’s inability to reproduce to match the intensity of lesser fancied rivals is well and truly approaching Achilles’ Heel territory. While their loss to the Rabbitohs was nowhere near as ugly on the surface as the ones suffered at the hands of the Bulldogs and this week’s opponent back on Easter Monday it still stung nonetheless.

Normally, we should be wildly confident heading into this sort of clash. The Wests Tigers are not a good football team. They are amidst a coaching crisis and are the owners of a four-game losing skid but that almost makes them all the more threatening given Parramatta’s frustrating ability to let these teams punch up to them.

The Eels will be without one of their best on Saturday with Junior Paulo heading to Brisbane to try and secure a series win for the NSW Blues. Reagan Campbell-Gillard was bizarrely overlook, much to the Eels’ benefit and he will anchor the front-row with Marata Niukore. Ryan Matterson is currently named to play at lock forward but given how tricky rib injuries can be you would have to expect some sort of contingency plan to be in place.

That means that Nathan Brown could be in line for a recall to first grade but there are other options available for Brad Arthur should he be so inclined. Ofahiki Ogden is a better fit for a high impact role from limited minutes while Wiremu Greig posted a monster game against the Rabbitohs in the NSW Cup last week.

If Parramatta are without both Paulo and Matterson then the rest of the forward pack will have a heavy burden to share but the positional unit with the most to prove this week will be the spine. Following a lacklustre effort across the board against the Rabbitohs, the Eels desperately need their playmakers to control the game against Wests Tigers.

I am expecting a vastly improved performance from the Eels this weekend but it will go little way towards proving anything. As it stands even a strong win over the Tigers would be another case of yoyo-ing for the Blue & Gold and until they can string together comprehensive victories then fans should have every reason to be frustrated.

The Parramatta Eels take on the Wests Tigers at 7:35PM at Leichardt Oval on Saturday.

1. Clinton Gutherson (c)
2. Maika Sivo
3. Will Penisini
4. Waqa Blake
5. Bailey Simonsson
6. Dylan Brown
7. Mitchell Moses
8. Reagan Campbell-Gillard
9. Reed Mahoney
10. Marata Niukore
11. Shaun Lane
12. Isaiah Papali’i
13. Ryan Matterson

14. Makahesi Makatoa
15. Tom Opacic
16. Oregon Kaufusi
17. Ky Rodwell

18. Nathan Brown
19. Jake Arthur
20. Sean Russell
21. Wiremu Greig
22. Hayze Perham

NSW Cup Team List

The Eels posted an important victory over a South Sydney side laden with first grade experience last week. It pushes Parramatta back into the hunt for the Top 4 and they get a terrific shot to build some momentum as they tackle the team running second last on the ladder in the Magpies.

Toni Mataele will make his NSW Cup debut for the Eels after a string of bad luck with injuries. He jumps right into the starting forward pack on the edge and is joined by Samuel Loizou as a Jersey Flegg call up. Loizou replaces the suspended (cannonball tackle) Solomone Naiduki but the big story for mine will be how Mataele handles the jump on Saturday. He could be very well be a bolter for NRL duties down the road and I will certainly be watching him closely.

Otherwise it is business as usual for the Eels. Captain-coach Jordan Rankin will be pursuing the team’s 10th of the season although the Tigers have some notable players in their ranks including James Roberts, Oliver Gildart, Tyrone Peachy and Alex Seyfarth.

The Parramatta Eels take on the Western Suburbs Magpies at 5:05PM at Leichardt Oval on Saturday.

1. Jordan Rankin
2. Samuel Loizou
3. Zac Cini
4. Hayze Perham
5. Sean Russell
6. Jack A. Williams
7. Jake Arthur
8. Ofahiki Ogden
9. Mitch Rein
10. Wiremu Greig
11. Elie El-Zakhem
12. Toni Mataele
13. Nathan Brown

14. Brendan Hands
15. Tevita Taumoepenu
16. Luke Bain
17. Jayden Yates

Jersey Flegg Team List

A much needed win over the last placed Rabbitohs pushed the Blue & Gold back into the Top 8 in they Jersey Flegg. This week they get the chance to claim a Top 5 scalp in the Wests Tigers and they certainly have the troops on hand to pull it off. Corey Fenning’s triumphant return last week came at the expense of Dantoray Lui who evidently got banged up at training. Thankfully, Lui is back to give the Eels a fully loaded backline while their forward pack also enjoys some continuity outside of the promotion of Toni Mataele to the NSW Cup.

Parramatta prevailed by 2-points in a high scoring 30-28 affair back in Round 6 when these two teams first met. Hopefully they can cobble together a similar result and complete the regular season sweep of the Tigers in 2022.

The Parramatta Eels take on the Wests Tigers at 3:30PM at Leichardt Oval on Saturday.

1. Corey Fenning
2. Arthur Miller-Stephen
3. Lachlan Blackburn
4. Dantoray Lui
5. Matthew Komolafe
6. Jabriel Kalache
7. Ethan Sanders
8. Taylor Mauala
9. Kruz Niutili-Schmidt
10. David Hollis
11. Ryan Jones
12. Felix Niutili-Schmidt
13. Brock Parker

14. Jacob Davis
15. Nikau Wrathall
16. Larry Muaguatutia
17. Saxon Pryke

If you liked this article, you might consider supporting The Cumberland Throw.