NRL Team List
Round 3, 7:50PM, Thursday 16th March, 4 Pines Park
Having dropped two extremely winnable games against admittedly decent opposition it now falls upon the Parramatta Eels to get the job done against the Sea Eagles in Round 3. Brook no fails at Brookvale as it were. Of course that is easier said than done given that Manly have played the Blue & Gold fiercely in recent meetings. Speaking of the Silvertails, they enter this match fresh from a quiant Round 2 bye – a quirk of the 17-team format. Prior to that though they comfortably despatched the Bulldogs.
With injuries keeping Shaun Lane and Sean Russell out of selection consideration and Ryan Matterson serving the final leg of a 3-game suspension, coupled with an out-of-sorts reserve grade team the Eels don’t exactly have the resources on hand they would prefer. Perhaps in light of that or perhaps in an Arthurian show of good faith, Brad Arthur is rolling out the same side that couldn’t close the deal against the Sharks.
Either way the pressure is surely on both the team and individuals this week to heed a very simple creed. Do your job. That is what it boils down to now as the club looks to fight its way back from a 0-2 start. Make your tackles. Hold onto the ball. Finish your opportunities. There have been plenty of flashes of the greatness this team possesses over the first two games but it has been muddied heavily by a failure to execute basic defensive and offensive principles. In particular, our left edge needs to shape up fast because the kind of lapses happening down that side are picked up very quickly in this league.
That is really it this week. No major milestones to speak of. No dramatic team list shake-ups. Just 17 blokes that need to stop hamstringing themselves. The trip to Brookvale is not an easy assignment but nor is it a mammoth undertaking. The team themselves will decide if they want to keep playing the part of Sisyphus or if they are going to actually take part in the premiership race.
| Parramatta Eels | Manly Sea Eagles | |
| Clinton Gutherson | 1 | Tom Trbojevic |
| Maika Sivo | 2 | Christian Tuipulotu |
| Will Penisini | 3 | Brad Parker |
| Waqa Blake | 4 | Tolutau Koula |
| Bailey Simonsson | 5 | Reuben Garrick |
| Dylan Brown | 6 | Josh Schuster |
| Mitchell Moses | 7 | Daly Cherry-Evans |
| Reagan Campbell-Gillard | 8 | Taniela Paseka |
| Josh Hodgson | 9 | Lachlan Croker |
| Junior Paulo | 10 | Jake Trbojevic |
| Bryce Cartwright | 11 | Haumole Olakau’atu |
| Matt Doorey | 12 | Kelma Tuilagi |
| J’maine Hopgood | 13 | Josh Aloiai |
| Interchange | ||
| Jirah Momoisea | 14 | Kaeo Weekes |
| Jack Murchie | 15 | Ben Trbojevic |
| Wiremu Greig | 16 | Ethan Bullemor |
| Makahesi Makatoa | 17 | Sean Keppie |
| Reserves | ||
| Jake Arthur | 18 | Toafofoa Sipley |
| Haze Dunster | 19 | Cooper Johns |
| Ofahiki Ogden | 20 | Morgan Harper |
| Ky Rodwell | 21 | Karl Lawton |
| Isaac Lumelume | 22 | Ben Condon |
NSW Cup Team List
Round 3, 7:30PM, Friday 17th March, HE Laybutt Field
While the winds of change didn’t blow through the NRL team list this week there was something akin to a very stiff breeze in the NSW Cup with Nathan Cayless ringing in a series of changes designed to arrest a bog average start to the season. Arthur Miller-Stephen makes his NSW Cupo debut at fullback which in turn pushes captain Jordan Rankin into the halves alongside Jake Arthur. Brendan Hands in turn slides into dummy half while the series of cascading changes ends with Jayden Yates at lock and Dan Keir on the left edge. Ky Rodwell is out (unsure whether it is injury or suspension) which sees Luca Moretti showing his versatility as he takes over in the middle.
I am not really sure what to make of all the changes. Clearly something had to give following a wasted chance against the Raiders followed by an insipid effort against the Jets. Hopefully it is enough to kickstart the campain for our reserve grade squad.
One positive piece of news is that Daejarn Asi is fit and will make his club debut in the centres. Whether he is an out and out option in the NRL at the position remains to be seen but he potentially offers some nice backline versatility with his experience in the halves. A second bit of positives team news is the promotion of Brock Parker to the squad. Parker has been extremely reliable for the Eels in the Flegg and gets a chance to make an impression against the Blacktown Workers this week.
| 1 | Arthur Miller-Stephen |
| 2 | Isaac Lumelume |
| 3 | Daejarn Asi |
| 4 | Zac Cini |
| 5 | Haze Dunster |
| 6 | Jordan Rankin © |
| 7 | Jake Arthur |
| 8 | Ofahiki Ogden |
| 9 | Brendan Hands |
| 10 | Luca Moretti |
| 11 | Toni Mataele |
| 12 | Dan Keir |
| 13 | Jayden Yates |
| 14 | Mitch Rein |
| 15 | Tevita Taumoepenu |
| 16 | Niko Apelu |
| 17 | Brock Parker |
Jersey Flegg Team List
Round 3, 12:20PM, Saturday 18th March, HE Laybutt Field – per Parramatta Eels
OR
*Round 3, 6:00PM, Friday 17th March, HE Laybutt Field* per Manly Sea Eagles
Like Cayless, coach Craig Brennan is making adjustments this week – albeit a couple forced by NSW Cup promotions. Lindsay Munroe replaces Miller-Stephen at fullback while Parker is still named to start at prop and that will likely depend on how many minutes the young middle forward plays on Friday night. Will Latu starts at centre for Ned Hicks with the latter included on the interchange bench.
Jacob Davis gets his first start of the season at dummy half but Nicholas Lenaz isn’t demoted by any means. Rather, he moves to lock forward as the Eels get more speed around the ruck this week. As with their two senior teams though, ultimately it will come down to executing fundamental aspects of play far more effectively.
| 1 | Lindsay Munro |
| 2 | Beau Newlands |
| 3 | Will Latu |
| 4 | Turoa Williams |
| 5 | Lene Feterika |
| 6 | Mac Puafisi |
| 7 | Riley Lack |
| 8 | Brock Parker |
| 9 | Jacob Davis |
| 10 | Jontay Junior Betham Misa |
| 11 | Jock Brazel (c) |
| 12 | Max Topou |
| 13 | Nicholas Lenaz |
| 14 | Noah Reed |
| 15 | Lachlan Mears Crabb |
| 16 | Nikau Wrathall |
| 17 | Ned Hicks |
| 18 | Tyson Chase |
Thanks for your efforts forties. I just hope Arthur is capable of giving a really emotional pre game rev up from time to time. A real expletive laden call to arms. More than front load effort boys. I want to see the boys running out breathing fire.
Also hope they listened to your interview with Graeme Atkins. he is spot on with the futility of 5th tackle bombs that don’t give the boys time to contest. try croos field grubbers , chip chase
I know we came extremely close in those 2 losses, but gee it’s going to be tough to get a win in Brookvale, which will make for a dreadful start to the season. This is certainly the best team we can field at the moment so no surprises there. I’d love to see some of our experienced players start coming back soon.
I agree I think it will be a massive assignment
A win at Brookvale is a rare commodity. As rare as a trebble by Waqa (sorry not that rare. I don’t think hes had a trebble).
Motivation: 36 missed tackles, 16 errors 66% completions
Rockin horse shit
Lol now that’s rare 🤣
ahah
I can’t remember Daejarn Asi playing in the trials. If so people calling for his inclusion in this side I thought was wide of the mark.
This is pretty much the side that was expected. With injuries and a suspension and an injured Brown moving on there was not a lot of room to move.
The only one that would have had any chance outside the 17 to push for a spot would have been Haze Dunster.
From the footage I’ve seen of him playing 4 the warriors I reckon he has real footy nous
You might be right. I hope that you are right. But memory tells me the game on the weekend is his first for 2023. I could be wrong.
lets hope he can overperform the expectation John Eel
Hi just a question about our juniors. In the recent team lists where are the likes of Cody Parry, Richard Penisini, Blaze Talagi. I cant remember of any other high potential player missing in the team lists.
Richard and blaze are both injured. Cody Perry in sc ball
all injured and in sg ball
Do you have any confirmation about Russel being out for the season.
Where is Loizou and Komolafe. I hope to see Rankin out of the team. Asi and JA be the halves.
Oh boy, I knew Blake and Simonsson were bad last week, but… https://twitter.com/LeagueEyeTest/status/1635394618232827904/photo/2
I understand picking them again, given the injuries to others, even if I don’t like it. I’m still hoping they spend the week training with Blake at wing and Simonsson at centre though, and that’s what we see come Thursday.
maybe haze gets elevated
He played last week. Another big body
i was unaware JE did you see the game at all?
Well it’s absolutely no surprise that BA has kept the same team.
Waqa Blake must do some amazing things on the training paddock or perhaps he’s some sort of Svengali, being able to argue against his demotion.
I mean, just how many chances does an athlete get before there are consequences for his performance ?
Look I get the fact that he’s on a good salary and we are really struggling with injuries and the fact the club doesn’t answer to the fans but … fair crack of the whip ! It just doesn’t pass the ‘pub’ test.
Waqa has been poor for at least 18 months now and there just has to be a time when BA must stop being a mate to his team and make a decision that’s best for that team.
Waqas continued selection is a shocking decision and sets the bar very low.
The problem with setting the performance bar this low is that more players are going to aim for it – it’s just human nature.
Whats your answer , tell us how you would fix it ???
Nothing destroys a club faster than the imputation that players are picked either on reputation or being one of the coaches favourites.
BA has waxed lyrically about Waqa in the past but the past is the past and in Waqas case – the far past.
Performance on the field as a professional should be the only barometer used for a player.
This player is paid handsomely to produce a product and he hasn’t done that.
It must kill a player like a Cini or others who bust their ass to get anywhere near the team when someone like Blake is not held accountable for his performances and like a cancer, this sort of ‘jobs for the boys’ wrecks the club.
Perhaps if BA produced a standard and made that standard applicable to ALL players and not just some, then we could move forward.
Blake can play but for whatever reason, whether it be training or application, he is not producing.
What would I do ?
I would have demoted Waqa and wouldn’t have him anywhere the NRL until he produced.
An athlete of Waqas ability should absolutely dominate at Cup level and until he did that consistently, he wouldn’t get anywhere near my team.
Hahahaha, step away from the mirror .
You still havent told us your team solution for this week ???
You didn’t ask me to comment on this week.
But now you have , I would place someone into the centre role that hasn’t had countless chances and consistently failed.
Hell I would even play Jake Arthur in the centres before I would play Blake there. Not because I rate Jake as a top notch footballer because at the moment, I don’t but Jake whilst possessing only a fraction of the talent Waqa has, gives 110% every single time he plays a game.
Waqa Blake is a wasted talent.
i reckon blake has very little footy talent. Gus Gould made that point many years ago , citing his very late arrival to the code and that he was from WA. he’s uncoordinated and froths around before the line bamboozling himself more than the opposition. needs to run a line and develop a swerve al la brett kenny. I will say he is a good athlete but he has lost some critical speed. Also he does show passion and tries very hard and gives lots of moral support to the team. I think mostly that we have all wanted him to succeed but he will need to get it right soon.
Perhaps. Anyway I’m hoping that he will see the light and go to the Super League.
It is rather telling that he’s at the end of his contract and his manger has not had one NRL club even nibble.
Hopefully, we really arnt that stupid to offer him another contract – at any price.
Unfortunately Blake and Baily will continue to get picked because we have zero options.
This club that calls its self a development club doesn’t produce alot of quality players and sure as shit don’t keep them.
Our reserve grade isn’t putting any pressure on the 1st grade we will drop more games then we win this year the way thongs are looking.
Then the club in all’s its wisdom will sign BA up for more seasons in a bid to keep players Here players that chockef in the GF and Players that can’t get it done this year.
We may not be at the sky is falling levels yet but it’s close
I am happy with our teams loses at the beginning of the NRL Season and not at the Finals End, it doe’s really show how much they are missing Big Centres that Lane and Matterson have given to their Attack and Defence plays. I am Tipping Brad will do a Marata Niukore with Matterson when he is back in the team. Watch Manly Hammer Blake and Simonsen on the weekend. I am Still Very Loyal to our Team on the paddock no matter who is playing. 💙💛 Go Parramatta Eels
Manly look full strength, and Parra isn’t. Manly ambush coming up.
Not really an ambush when the bookies hve Manly as favourites.
nah this ain’t it.
I will be at the game on Thursday. as a lifelong Parra supporter who has grown up on the northern beaches, I have one standard I wish for any Parra team – do not lose to Manly. Sadly I think I’m going to be copping it from all my mates as Garrick runs in his 5h try of the night.
The reality is this; Bailey Simonnsen does not know how to play wing – he doesn’t finish well in attack, he doesn’t position himself to contest catches well, and his philosophy on defending seems to be to shoot out of the line no matter the position on the field. If I know this, you can be guaranteed that Manly knows this, and the Schuster -> Turbo -> Garrick combination already troubles good defenses. The question then becomes; Why does our coaching staff not know this?
Sean Russell injury really is terrible scenario for us because it seems like we suddenly have no depth (although hoping for a surprise Dunster call up). I don’t fully understand the selection criteria with the top 30 players but there seems to be some driving factor there why we keep having to select Bailey Simonsenn and Waqa.
In the meantime i think we need to consider swapping Waqa and Simonsenn. I saw glimpses of potential in the final two games of last season when Simonsenn filled in for Opacic – if only that he made no glaring mistakes. On the other hand, Waqa is a real ball hog in attack and if you want to play that way when you have a player like Sivo outside you then you should be the last person receiving the ball. Sadly we are all quite aware of Waqa’s misgivings when trying to catch a ball – but its no worse than Simonnsens. There are no real winners here, but there is a definite loser if nothing continues to be done about these players – Parra.
Why don’t we move Waqa to the right centre position. Change it up a bit
Switch the centres a dozen times during the game. No one will know what the hell is going on. It just might work.
Always a tough venue. It’s a crap venue tbh.
If we don’t aim up in defence and our spine fail to take control we will be in for a tough night; along with issues from last weeks defence. Forwards and bench need to have some oomph and the bench need some time on the paddock.