Effort marred by errors…and some crumby calls – it sure sounds like the themes of 2026 as the Parramatta Eels fell to the Dolphins in Round 25. As they have for some time now, the Eels showed plenty of ticker against their far more favoured opposition but it wasn’t enough to overcome defensive lapses, sloppy errors and yes some dubious calls. Sixties and Forty20 break down the Round 25 result as always in the Instant Reaction Podcast.
This preview to what potentially is our 2027 line up besides a backrower and a temporary number 6, and some additional players that are unwanted by other clubs in the next few months, we are in a bit of a hole, I am not sure if Rules and co can get us out of this mess, but we need to keep positive I guess!
The Dolphins played well. Managed to keep a good eight metres, tackled well, and threw the ball around like real contenders.Maybe only the Roosters would have had a shot at them tonight.
The 14th man, Kline must have had a bet on to play that well.
Anyway, I’ll cop some hate for saying that Kelly was his usual terrible in defence and didn’t counter in attack.
Twidle isn’t a fullback and it showed.
Moses and Williams played their guts out and Penisini is obviously angling for a juicy new contract at last.
On the night, we were beaten by a real contender.
If we ignore the desperation lapse at the end and the obvious error with the Isaako try, we were only outplayed by six points.
I’m proud of them for playing uphill and against the wind for 60 of the 80 minutes.
John summed it up we have an industrious backline with almost no X factor , until we get a quality centre where not competing with the top sides in this comp , to ryles credit he’s got everyone giving there all but we need an X factor backline player
We were beaten by a superior team last night.
We would do anything to have one or two of those backline players in our team.
The NRL continues to kill itself however. How Klein continues as an official is astounding.
Hes not even hiding it anymore.
Officiating pretty ordinary. The Cobbo and Isaayko tries in the first half were head scratchers – the ball from Herbie to Cobbo was about 3m forward, and Isaayko was sent up no try and there were plenty of angles that showed him bobble the ball. There was 1 angle that made it look like a potential try but wasn’t conclusive.
Our biggest issue remains management of the ruck. Every time we make a tackle it looks like a bunch of ten pins scattered all over the place. There’s no tackle dominance and we lose control of the ruck. Plus I totally agree with 60s comment about hot potato footy. Sides invariably score whenever that happens and as soon as it starts you just think “oh shit, here we go”.
We missed 49 tackles; they missed 24. You won’t win a game in the NRL with a statistic like that. I agree that The Dolphins were gifted two tries through referee error; that seems to be about par these days when a lower-placed side takes on a contender, but our number one goal for next season needs to be to tighten the defence to a Dolphins standard. Funa can tackle; it’s a pity he chooses to amble back into the line after he’s made a tackle; an astute cummy half will expose him shortly if he retains that habit.
I was close to turning it off last night, a first for me. We need first of all to become a fierce, consistent defensive side that only rarely misses a tackle.
The Isaayko try awarded by the bunker needs to be addressed, we failed to address the Kelly bin in the souths game, the Williams loose carry in the Tigers game and there were a few more that probably cost us the game, this latest one didn’t cost us the game but we cannot have incompetent officiating at this frequency it’s simply unacceptable
There should be zero controversial decisions from the bunker, there doesn’t seem to be many rounds this season where there isn’t controversy surrounding the bunker- I think there needs to be a much greater investment in resources and oversight to the bunker if we are going to have it- why don’t the bunker officials face a judiciary after a bad game?
Klein should be looking at a 10k fine for last night’s effort and maybe a week stand down.
The point is there’s currently no accountability for the bunker clangers
Any new signings yet? No? Great, just great. Really looking forward to the ‘27 season, if we aim up maybe we can avoid the spoon.
Given we are playing for nothing but pride, i challenge some of these fans to try just watching the Eels players and stop watching the refs. Refs are making far fewer errors than our team.
Watch TDS slide off tackle after tackle and not get back to dummy half till tackle 5.
Watch Moretti stand on the spot after he plays the ball on the last, leaving a giant hole for the fullback to slide back up through and get fast play the balls.
Watch Katonga miss tackles and just not try. Watch the no-try before half time when he races out of the line, misses, the play gets passed him, then shifts back and he is still standing where he missed the tackle. Then watch him do it again on the first try after half time – despite the coaches message “to stay in the play” – and watch JAC giuve him a spray. Then watch him not even try to tackle on the Plath try before he gets hooked.
Watch Volkman drift to the outside and get no runners
Watch Russell do tap on plays when he has time to catch the ball
Too many of you think every 50-50 call against us is rigged and every call we get is warranted (i.e we get no 50-50 calls). In and of itself, that is the bias you accuse refs of. One week its Gough is biased, Then it is Todd Smith, then it is Sutton, then it is Klein. Well maybe it is our team?
The reality is, if the passes stick the Dolphins score 50 tonight. Our players are the problem. The officials are not perfect, but they are not the problem…. Not our problem anyway
Agree with much of this. The Officials are terrible but our defence is putrid. Our props and backrowers are especially putrid in defence – poor defensive reads, lack of inside pressure, lack of effort on effort, lack of agility in defence.
The ruck control is non-existent and middle is so porous. We overrate our young players – moretti is a reserve grader and lacks so much defensively. Tallyn is good but struggles with tackle technique and contact. Williams gets tired and misses tackles. No wrestle or ruck control. Opposition players standing in tackles. Markers can’t work to get back and set. Rinse and repeat.
Jeziah was out of his depth last night but hopefully he is better for the experience. He is a ways off first grade based on the small sample size.
If we improve our defence (ie line speed, contract, reads etc) we might then be able to better call out refs (don’t get me wrong, I like the fact Ryles has become more vocal as BA was on a hiding to nothing with his lack of ability to call out refs nor engage in wrestle for ruck control). But Ryles calling out refs needs to be paired with better defence. Seems we can only win one way: ie a 32-30 game like last week where option also decides defence is optional at best.
I accept there’s no solution to this defensive problem we face other than recruitment. The middle really lacks athleticism/dynamic power for other players like Williams etc to piggyback off and generate fast play the balls themselves. Lenui (even though he has a poor gas tank and lacks defensive discipline) and another power middle (eg if tuivati develops with teancum) are a necessity for next year to give us punch in the middle. We are just too soft/weak in the middle and the problems domino outwards.
None of this is news to us nor Ryles but recruitment and retention needs to address the middle and centre options. We are currently playing bottom of barrel for both
Great analysis, hand grabs, lazy efforts and basic skills are just a few of our dilemmas. We have had this squad under Ryles for 2 years now, and whilst we have marginally improved , effort alone is not enough. Better fitness, use of bench, positioning, skill set, the list goes on. A few new recruits will not fix all these issues, ” Houston we have a problem”
I wasn’t and I doubt other fans are making excuses. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out after 3 years of being also-rans that we have problems of our own making more than anything else. There’s nothing we can do about that week to week really. Addressing the fundamental capability shortfalls is another 2+ years of work – both recruitment and experience.
Week to week though, the officials should be able to address these basic shortcomings. Particularly the bunker. The reality is we lose more often than we win, and we concede more points than we score – and a chunk of those points should never have been put on the scoreboard. We’ve obviously had calls go our way – I remember when we played the chooks, the first try (only?) we scored came off a forward pass. It made no difference to the game – the chooks flogged us. But if you’re a chooks fan, you’d barely care when you win by 20+. For the eels though, these things are the difference between tight wins/losses. Not saying last night was a tight loss, but if you take 12 off the Dolphins in the first half, the second half suddenly starts very differently. We lose that game anyway, but the way we go about chalking up the loss is very different.
B.A everyone knows we have problems with fundamental errors the roster and everything in between.
When the bunker shafts a team (any team) then for what purpose should we ignore it, if we want the officiating to improve then it’s not going to happen if we all stay silent.
Two things can be true at the same time and we copped the blowtorch last night from the ref & bunker, I’m not saying they are our biggest problem but it’s a problem nonetheless.
Bob: Yeah – the bunker is a dogs breakfast and on field officiating can vary from one week to the next. I don’t think (most) refs are to blame, i think it is the constant tinkering with rules and interpretations, that come from Head Office so that they get the stats and the game they want to market.
We are 10th for average ruck infringements per game and 15th for average peanlties given away per game.
But for podcasters and comments people every week to jump straight out of the gate with the “we were robbed” narrative is just stupid. If a coach does that – it is called making excuses. Want to talk about controversial calls – of course – that is part of the game, but we can’t say it is the cause for all our losses, week in and week out. Then when we win, well refereeing is just a secondary story….
So if we can’t seem to control the ruck and hold them down in tackles, why do repeat sets keep being called against us?
I saw one last night where Saxon held onto Herbie holding the ball in one arm so that he couldn’t offload because he’s so good at it and we get called for a six again. Please explain.
Pet hate…and Herbie hadn’t stopped jostling forward, if Saxon was not releasing, Herbie was walking off the mark. I’m waiting for the day the whistler pings the bloke with the ball, better still judge it as co-contributors and move the ball carrier back to the mark.
We are 10th for average ruck infringements per game and 15th for average peanlties given away per game.
My point is EVERY team deals with the same issues. There isn’t some mass consipracy against us.
What didn’t surprise me was that the Dolphins scored 2 tries after two of their three six-agains (leg-ups, in my opinion) and it was no surprise at all, well it was also predictable, in my opinion, that the Eels got their first and only six-again with 10 mins to go and when the result was already decided. Why do I say no surprise? Because you only need to go back to some other Eels games to see what has happened under this official.
Six agains aren’t the fault of referees. Thryre They’re the fault of the administrators.
If there was no “six agains” rule, only the most flagrant ruck insurgents get penalised. Now tackles in the grey area do – and the grey area is vast which is why it is so hit and miss.
But if you honestly think Sutton spends his week plotting to bring down Parra, … I don’t know what to tell you…
..other than, we don’t need his help to sabotage our games, we do a pretty good job of it on our own
Thanks for the podcast fellas,
I’ll put my hand up and admit I was the one who approached Chris in the Milton Rooftop Bar. I saw a chap walk in with a mate and said to my son that looks like CRicketts from TCT, pointing out the tattoo and unusual Eels jersey. My son said
“No, he looks too young for the bloke on TCT”. After we walked past when leaving my son turned around and said I’m wrong he definitely looks as old as the bloke on TCT. So I decided to ask. It was nice to meet someone else from the TCT community in person.
I went to the game with my wife, son and his girlfriend. My first NRL game since 2010 and second this century.
In the end a disappointing night. We started ok but as mentioned it never really seemed we were in the game. So many errors. The Fox must have upset a few team mates during the week – no on wanted to pass him a decent ball.
As Noel noted, we missed nearly 50 tackles. Enough said. Although I’m still trying to assess which one was worse, the tackle misses or the poor passing.
The Isaako try was interesting. I was sitting amongst a large contingent of Eels supporters on the opposite corner. After watching the replays all seemed satisfied it was a knock on in goal. Then the try result came through. I’ve never heard so much swearing since my catholic schoolboy days – and I might add mostly justified.
I won’t dismiss BA’s thoughts or others regarding the referee nor the fact the boys should not have any feet because they do really shoot themselves in the foot. Missed tackles, dropped balls, balls over the sideline etc. However, even blind Freddy would agree the team gets a rough deal from the referees. Not all the time just most of the time. Why is this? Could it be they are tired of the incessant whinging or complaining from the captain. I know Gutherson never let up and Moses has been known to be abusive. What I cannot dismiss is that the referee in most games allow the opposition to lay over the tackled player while Parra cannot get away quick enough. The six again is blight in the game!! It is an opportunity for the referees to pick on a whim. Too many times over the past five years and even longer the referees have decided the outcome of games. Too many times. How can we have faith in the referees when our senior referee had a gambling problem. Once admitted he should have been removed. And can we really have faith in the bunker. The obstruction rule is a mess, the tackle in the air is a mess. Understanding of their interpretation changes from week to week. The worst thing for me is you have a man in charge who may never had played the game. And sets the rules. The players association should be lot more vocal about the direction of the game. When taking over Ryles made the mistake of not better utilizing the more experienced players rather than off loading them. He should have kept those ones and slowly but surely introduced the new young ones. Rather he put them in the deep end and they are barely treading water. They will get better but we do need some decent motivated players. I wasn’t happy about Luai but he does give it his all and hopefully pass his skills on. Sua – providing he is injury free will help. And csn we actually someone who can kick goals.
A massive issue with the six again issues we have is we simply don’t win tackles or dominate the middle. This gives the impression to the referee that we are holding on to slow the ruck which a lot of the time we are.
We’re the softest team in the middle of the park bar none. This has to massively improve for us to ever get the rub of the green from a six again perspective.
The other major issue is this club needs to fix is there first up contact in defence. I’ve never seen a club struggle so much with a team going out of structure and throwing the ball around. We simply don’t make tackles we fall off them the minute a team start moving the ball we just grasp at air.
A lot of this is attitude but some of the techniques are simply not good enough
100% Parra 1990.
Footy is a simple game; you run hard; hold the ball and make your tackles. Its generally the game – we competed well for about most of the first half but the yardage hurt us and then the errors / compounded by the additional 6 agains etc. We found it hard to compete with a stronger type pack; we need to be honest here we have less bigger guys as in terms of height too. Moses kicks helped us out of strife.
When i was at the Penrith game back on 23/7 i said to my wife how much stronger Penrith players looked – muscle and size. Our pack is notably smaller in height, but I am happy to be wrong.
I know we have some young guys but the lack of muscle type physique on a few of our players is noticeable – and I know muscle doesn’t tackle etc. but strength helps.
As others have said we need good additions – but just look at the Dolphins pack the other night…just strong guys and without copping the discrimination card most of their pack was balanced between anglos and pacific islanders with probably more anglo type players. They just play hard and have the backline flair too with strong running centres,
We had better have some decent new additions but importanly guys who dig in and play hard.
Can I also add the recent news report about the CEO role and the team of 4 or so to look at this. Seriously, you need the head of the Board, Ryles and someone with good footy nous…..the club should lending an ear to Sterlo here on his thoughts. Not the 4 man plus Beech group…with all their agendas. You name the top 5 on a coaster….Cameron, O’Sullivan, Ponnisi for a start.
Our defensive structure to me looks way better than it ever was under BA. Except when we have players in the bin (which sadly is all too common this year) we seldom seem to get stripped for numbers – we always conceded this way under BA. But our context and middle D is heaps worse. That’s probably on the individuals for mine.
I think I’ll reserve my judgment on Ryles until next year when he’s had a chance now to put some game time into a few of the younger forwards, he gets a half decent 6 again to compliment Moses and we get a few important player back from injury including in my opinion Simmonson who at least has pace.
81, I spent 3 or so years commenting on our inability to handle the teams scoring wide shift training run tries. Could never understand why BA allowed it to persist. Some of our very knowledgeable commenters said BA installed a tight middle/edge defence that needed to adjust laterally when the shift occurred, sounded fair to me but the adjusting always seemed missing. At BankWest one day in 2021 v Manly I was sitting close to the southern line/corner, we handed over the ball on the 6th a mtr out from Manly line…Fergo called his inside players across to cover vacant land from the goal post to sideline but Turbo had already organised 3 Many blokes and on the 2nd play left Fergo still screaming for help, Turbo ran 80 then Morgan Harper flopped over our line. 2 observations there…no adjusting, and we made Morgan Harper look good and later signed him.
Yeah we had a real up and in defence. I sometimes think it led to unfair criticism of players like Maika Sivo who I think was a very good winger but often got caught out on the jam when he was only following instruction.
Overall I think our defensive structure under Ryles is better unfortunately the actual defenders, so far anyway, aren’t.
I actually think at times we show a better attacking structure too but again we are lacking that class in the backline to capitalise