Exciting Fijian winger Maika Sivo will make his debut for the Parramatta Eels against his old club, the Panthers, in Round 1 of the National Rugby League.
The Eels ranked last in terms of their ability to make metres from their back three last year, but they will instantly go from the cellar to the penthouse, with the wing pairing of Sivo together with international winger Blake Ferguson.
There is still some uncertainty with the Eels pack, with Junior Paulo named as a reserve with Tepai Moeroa taking his place as a starting prop. Presumably, Paulo will be subject to a late fitness test to see if he can run out, in what would be his return to the Blue and Gold.
Brad Takarirangi has won a centre position while Shaun Lane will make his Eels debut. The potential loss of Paulo, together with the injury to Manu Mau has given Kane Evans the chance to impress, while the ever-reliable David Gower again steps up to fill a void in the Eels 17.
Parramatta Eels
1. Clint Gutherson (c), 2. Maika Sivo, 3. Michael Jennings, 4. Brad Takairangi, 5. Blake Ferguson, 6. Dylan Brown, 7. Mitchell Moses, 8. Daniel Alvaro, 9. Reed Mahoney, 10. Tepai Moeroa, 11. Shaun Lane, 12. Marata Niukore, 13. Nathan Brown, Interchange: 14. Will Smith, 15. Tim Mannah (c), 16. Kane Evans, 17. David Gower Reserves: 18. Josh Hoffman, 19. Oregon Kaufusi, 20. Bevan French, 21. Junior Paulo
Penrith Panthers
1. Dylan Edwards, 2. Josh Mansour, 3. Waqa Blake, 4. Dean Whare, 5. Dallin Watene-Zelezniak, 6. James Maloney, 7. Nathan Cleary, 8. James Tamou, 9. Sione Katoa, 10. Reagan Campbell-Gillard, 11. Jack Hetherington, 12. Isaah Yeo, 13. James Fisher-Harris Interchange: 14. Wayde Egan, 15. Tyrell Fuimaono, 16. Moses Letoa, 17. Hame Sele Reserves: 18. Jarome Luai, 19. Tim Grant, 20. Liam Martin, 21. Malakai Watene-Zelezniak
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Comments
Sivo's debut excites me. Almost as much as Dylan Brown's; one of our most talented juniors, since Hayne burst into first grade some 15 years ago.
Sivo and Fergo will add much needed muscle, grunt and go-forward. Along with Junior, whenever that tank makes it back on the paddock from his stint in the garage.
Sivo might occasionally struggle to meet the intense demands of first grade. Even Semi had his issues at the onset.
But gees, he could be something. I hope he continues to apply himself.
I think we can safely say that application won't be a problem given that he has climbed through the grades from Sydney Shield. The fact that he is a bit older, a bit more mature than Semi was might also work in his favour.
Very good points Brett. As usual. I'm seriously stoked Sivo is there.
Also, I assume he must be over his injuries, or mostly. From memory, it was barely 3-4 weeks ago when he started full contact at training. But don't quote me on that.
He looked good in the trial
Run Maika, run!!!
Can't wait for him to run with a bit of space to get those oak thighs pumping.
If he can catch the ball we're half way there.
Can’t wait, would be a miracle if we found a player so similar to Semi in a short space of time. Teams wait over a decade to find such players.
Semi was one of a kind. As was Hayne in his heyday. Semi had extra-ordinary athletic gifts, speed, an uncanny, unpredictable ability to slice open any defence in open space. I think Melbourne's Fox also has a bit of that too. We never saw and may never see the best of Semi. Before he left he was also developing skills to create tries and opportunities for support players.
Still, I am damn happy with Fergo and Sivo's potential and what they add to the team. Great additions.
Vinaka @joel_caine "Little fact for you @TheParraEels fans on debutant MAIKA SIVO....The last 3 seasons he has scored 85 TRIES!!!!! (No Typo)
Not @nrl BUT Tryscorers are Tryscorers @FijiNSWRLTeam'
Mr Anaylst: It must be a typo.
85 tries in 3 years. Krist Almighty.
Okay, okay, maybe, just maybe, he might end up a Semi-God-like winger lol.
Always wondered why they never bothered to go to Fijiand Hunt this talent down earlier.
Oh well maybe now that world rugby has bent over and screwed the islands the NRL clubs will finally get up there and plunder talent like rugby has for decades.
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