Eels Blogs

I would be surprised if any NRL side has ever gone into a new season with so many questions and uncertainty surrounding their club and their roster. Even picking a 17 is difficult, never mind having any degree of confidence in how that 17 will perform. News players, new coach, new administrators. Here we look at a dozen big questions that will decide if the Eels can turn their fortunes around.

QUESTION 1: WHAT ROLE WILL HAYNE PLAY?

Since 2010, it’s been the most debated issue in the Parramatta club. Hayne is a brilliant fullback, who has a played as a quasi-playmaker for the past three years. It’s hurt his game, it has hurt the Eels. Brad Arthur single biggest challenge is to find a role for Hayne that helps the team, not hinders it. Hayne needs to either get back to playing as a straight fullback or he needs to make a permanent switch into the halves.

QUESTION 2: HOW WILL BRAD ARTHUR STACK UP AS A COACH?

Brad Arthur gets a lot of plaudits as an assistant coach, but the reality is he is untested as the go-to guy. Has he surrounded himself with the right assistants? Will he be able to form a relationship with Daniel Anderson? Can he motiviate a team or come up with the tactics to win consistently. We simply don’t know.

QUESTION 3: CAN CHRIS SANDOW JUSTIFY HIS CONTRACT?

There have been games for the Eels where Chris Sandow has been scintillating. They have been in the minority. Faced with playing for his future, can Sandow produce those kinds of games week-in, week-out and can he hold his place in the defensive line?

QUESTION 4: HOW MUCH FOOTY DOES WILLIE TONGA HAVE IN HIM?

In an ideal world, Willie Tonga gets in a great pre-season. He gets over his injuries problems and rediscovers the form of a couple of years back. We would have two genuine rep centres. Unfortunately, Tonga’s time with Parramatta doesn’t do a lot to inspire belief in such a scenario.

QUESTION 5: HOW WILL JACOB LOKO RECOVER FROM INJURY?

If ever there was a player built to an NRL superstar it is Jacob Loko. However, Loko would not be the first talented player to have never got the opportunity to reach his potential due to injury. I believe Loko has the potential to be as damaging as any second-rower in the competition, if he makes it back to his prime condition. More importantly, the potential of he and Tanginoa to give us a pair of powerful fringe forwards could be transformative.

QUESTION 6: HOW GOOD ARE OUR KIDS?

Kelepi Tanginoa could be anything. Junior Paulo may continue to surprise everyone. Can Joseph Ualesi continue his run through the grades. Will Kaysa Pritchard or Zach Dockar-Clay emerge as NRL hookers? Can Pauli Pauli take his junior grade talent and produce it against men? Can Ken Edwards bring his NSW Cup form up into the big league. Will Peni Terepo keep getting better?

Parramatta has some undeniable weaknesses in our pack. If we get even a few yeses out of our emerging forwards, it’s going to make a big difference to the strength of our roster.

QUESTION 7: HOW GOOD IS WILL HOPOATE?

I don’t think it’s a question of whether Hopoate will come back to the form he showed before he left the NRL. The question is how good might he be, and how quickly can he get to that point? What Hopoate achieved at such a young age, was incredible. He literally could be anything - and having two genuine superstars in our side could make a marked difference to the Eels. Or maybe Hopoate is just a very good outside back?

QUESTION 8: DO OUR NEW RECRUITS HAVE ANOTHER GEAR?

No doubt that our new recruits have demonstrated some talent, but the reality is that the likes of Corey Norman, Nathan Peats, Justin Hunt and Liam Foran, didn’t establish themselves as first graders at their previous clubs. You can argue they had established players in front of them, or you can argue that they just weren’t good enough. Certainly, all will have opportunities at Parramatta - but can they use that to find another level to their game?

QUESTION 9: CAN OUR YOUNGER BACKS STAND UP WHEN NEEDED?

The likes of Vai Toutai, Semi Radradra, Brayden Williame, and Api Pewhairangi all got to taste first grade - and all, to some extent - struggled. No doubt they will be called on during the year again, and we need to not bleed points when we need our fringe outside backs to come into the team.

QUESTION 10: CAN OUR FORWARDS GET TOUGH?

For the last couple of years, I’d argue our forwards haven’t been poor - they just haven’t been great. Our pack generally competed in the middle, but almost never dominated. Line speed was always ordinary to average, and we seldom got a role on. Players like Darcy Lussick, Tim Mannah and Mitchell Allgood need to learn to start hunting as a unit and see what our backs ca

QUESTION 11: CAN WE UNLOCK JOSEPH PAULO?

Just because you made it this far, let’s also throw Joseph Paulo in as a bonus conundrum. Paulo is one of the most unique players in the competition. He’s built like a prop but probably has greater skill-levels than half of the halves Parramatta has thrown into action in recent years. He also has the tendency to completely turn off defensively and make appalling defensive errors. Having taken a leadership role at the World Cup, it’s up to Paulo to make next season the one where he delivers on his gifts, and it’s up to Brad Arthur and his coaching staff to find the right role for him.

QUESTION 12: HOW MANY GAMES WILL WE PLAY AT PARRAMATTA?

There is only one thing that matters at Parramatta right now. And that’s getting competition points. If Parramatta continues to play home games away from Parramatta, where their record is abysmal, especially in comparison with their relatively good home record, then our administrators need to take personal responsibility for any losses recorded at what should be home games. If we want to start building a winning culture, let’s start by declaring that the Stadium is our fortress and we will play there at every given opportunity.

IN CONCLUSION...

When you look at all of these questions, the reality is Parramatta could easily finish with the spoon again. If you were objectively framing a market on many of these questions, the more likely results are the negative ones. However, it’s not beyond the realms of possibility that a lot of these things do click into place, and Parramatta stuns everybody. There is raw talent there. There are a lot of players who should be really, really motivated because many are drinking in the last-chance saloon. And footy is a funny game. When you get a roll on, and good things are happening, it seems to lift everything else. While there are a lot of questions, I don’t think there are too many excuses left lying around. Either the people within this club are up to it, or they aren’t? In the end, that’s the one big question that is to be answered.