Another week, another tough watch for Parramatta fans as the Eels simultaneously fell to pieces against and gave a scare to the resurgent Newcastle Knights. 24-10 may as well have been 50-4 halfway through the second half given the momentum of the contest, but a couple of tries and shock, actually kicking some goals, left the Eels with an unlikely chance to tie it up late. Alas, without a general the Blue and Gold army couldn’t pull it out in the dying minutes and another win went begging.

It was a case of same old, same old for the defensive deficiencies. Some of those edge efforts were embarrassing, the right side in particular may have been tempted to come out in the second half with paper bags over their heads. I’d call the second Dylan Lucas try one of the softest defensive efforts I’ve seen, except it was somehow better than the earlier attempts on Lucas’ first try and especially the solo try from Harrison Graham, who the Eels made look like not just Harry Grant, but Harry Grant playing Parramatta.

I’m at my wit’s end for the defensive efforts, but the scrappy attacking football I can be slightly more forgiving toward, though I admit I used some very unpleasant language in the wake of Joash Papalii’s halftime forward pass. There was little experience and raw combinations across the park, and given Parramatta’s reliance on Mitchell Moses it was a solid effort to post up 20+ with our third and fourth string halves, backup hooker and a fullback who hasn’t played in months. The terrible defence has drawn attention away from a side that is attacking fairly well given the injury crisis continuing to batter the club.

The simple fact is the second half error rates were too high for the Eels to get a win while they defend like this. It felt like the whistles were relatively friendly and the opportunities were there, but a shocking inability to defend basic edge shapes and hard running at the halves, one that has been present through multiple combinations of players, continue to let us down.

Mitchell Moses is back next week, but once he returns this is the group that needs to get it done for the remainder of the year. A few years ago if you’d told me the return of Mitch would boost us defensively I’d have had a giggle, but not only has he grown immensely as a defensive player but the dropoff to his replacement is a chasm deep enough to hold our premiership drought. It’s all on this group now.

There is hope for next week, but for now let’s dish out some frustrating grades.

 

 

 

Decent effort from Iongi on return, scoring one and breaking the line twice while getting through plenty of work. There were a few clunky moments in the shifts to the right, especially costly as any decently executed play has a chance of breaking through Greg Marzhew, but the combination of his layoff and the fresh halves meant that expecting perfection was expecting too much.

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It was a big day for BK and he delivered, playing a good attacking game in his 200th first grade appearance. He’s always going to be a “heart in your mouth” kind of player but he’s producing enough of those elite attacking moments that the Eels have lacked from their outside backs for a long time that I am able to forgive the errors on both sides of the ball (which are far less frequent than I’d expected).

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The beak of the week continues to make a strong case for a more permanent first grade spot out in the centres. Things just happen around Samrani, this week it was a runaway intercept that opened the doors for an unlikely comeback. While pre-season I was chomping at the bit for his move to the back row and potentially a more permanent role in first grade, instead he’s been thrown into the centres and proving himself more than up to the task.

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I thought Rusty was returning to form before the bye, but this week wasn’t his best. His running numbers are notable for how much more work the rest of the back five get through, while his inability to stay behind the kicker on a set piece cross-field kick took a try off the board, a lapse in concentration a side like this just can’t afford. Even with Will Penisini out long term, Russell might be hearing Araz Nanva’s footsteps getting closer in the halls of Kellyville.

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The Fox looked rejuvenated after the bye, putting his rib injury behind him and showing far more pep in his step. Those setups where Addo-Carr was standing two-in will be lethal when he can get space to isolate a defender, and if that look can be combined with a Kautoga offload then we could see Fox breaking into open space on the regular. If only we could set up some kicks for him to chase as well and utilise that speed.

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Jason Ryles will have Joash Papalii dropping for 20 pushups after every no-look pass he throws at training this week, because butchering a play like he did with a minute to go in the first half is simply inexcusable and on a lot of his passing errors he’s looking his defender in the eyes instead of his receiver. I’d like to see him be able to utilise his footwork more often too, though how many chances he gets once Moses returns is a big question mark.

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It might not always be entirely Volkman’s fault, but the freeze frame on nearly every line break down the right edge will show Volkman marking up against air while the second rower breezes by. Maybe with a stronger partner on the inside he’d be a capable first grade defender (he did a good job defensively in the Bulldogs game) but right now that edge is a bright red, glowing, flashing weak point that any competent opposition will relentlessly target. He filled in solidly for Moses in terms of kicking and attacking direction, but this week was the straw that broke my back on that edge defence.

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27 minutes for Moretti, who was solid rather than spectacular in his stints and did little wrong. Without Junior in the pack Jason Ryles is going to need to change the balance of his middle usage, and I don’t think he got it right this week.

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Tallyn clearly watched Origin I, where kicking in behind the line was the fastest path to points and so it proved for an ever on the spot Dylan Walker off Da Silva’s clever grubber. I’m sure he appreciated Harrison Edwards taking the fiery opening stint but aside from that kick his attacking game was fairly reserved.

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Where for some players time appears to stand still as they break the line, for Jack Williams this weekend he appeared to panic every time space opened up in front of him. A horrible rushed offload bombed one chance, but he found space a couple more times and just couldn’t find the right option. His workrate was good and his numbers solid (the missed and ineffective tackle counts aren’t great but I didn’t notice him as a defensive liability in the running) but as one of the few veterans (and captain this week) he needs to nail those spots.

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Kelma Tuilagi is a great advertisement for grading both attack and defence separately. He picked out Sandon Smith and made a pancake of the Knights half several times, which looked spectacular but rarely led to plus attacking outcomes unfortunately. It was some of his hardest running this year. Then we have all of those breaks down his edge, with six missed tackles being kind compared to the eye test. He’ll never be a scary defender, but he’s proven capable at this level with the right partner. He and Ronald Volkman are oil and water in that regard.

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Kitione Kautoga was a giant amongst men in the first half, completely untackleable and offloading at will. He couldn’t quite keep that fire going through the second half, but he’s barely played for two months and I imagine destroying worlds would tire any man. That missed tackle number is alarming (21 made, 8 missed) but like Jack Williams, I didn’t notice Special Ks as a problem. Support players will be sniffing breaks every time he runs for the rest of the year.

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Jack De Belin left the running to his fellow forwards, but he’s rock solid in defence and doing veteran work without the ball in a team that desperately needs it. He put a hit or two on but most importantly, is where he needs to be.

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A very Dylan Walker game, where he was in plenty for attack and on the spot for a try. Just doing what you do isn’t the way to get your name in the headlines, but Dylan Walker remains the most important player in our side after Mitchell Moses.

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Nice debut from Edwards, who proved more than capable of good service and solid defence as starting hooker before doing a short stint in the middle that is too brief to properly grade. Given that is where his likely future in Blue and Gold lay when the injury crisis finally subsides it is too early to gauge his long term impact, but damn, if we needed a bench hooker with extra value we’d sure have our man.

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A paltry 14 minutes for Toni Mataele, who never got the chance to continue on his run of strong form. He was fine in his time, but I’d have hoped he would be rewarded for his recent efforts with a bit more responsibility, especially now there is a Junior sized hole in the pack.

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Sam was the only bench middle to get a reasonable rotation with 36 minutes, and he made the most of them with some hard running and tough defence. For his first game in a minute, this was a strong start and I’d hope he is starting sooner rather than later. It’s so good to have him back.

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I didn’t expect much going into this game, which is what makes getting close and once again being our own worst enemies so frustrating. If the side could have kept things clean to start the second half and not let 12-10 turn into 24-10, this contest was theirs for the taking. That it wasn’t just some of the worst edge defence you’ll ever see, but blown chances and missed opportunities, just makes it all the harder to swallow.

There’s a half decent football team lurking under all of this, and hopefully we see some of it against the Bulldogs on Monday. They’ve got their own injuries to worry about, particularly targeted at the very area the Eels are weakest: the back row. With fresh combinations and backup forwards coming in, this is shaping up as a very winnable contest for the Blue and Gold.

Until then, stay slippery, Eels fans.

Gol

Stats and images provided by NRL / Eels media