The Kaizen Way 改善. Constant Improvement. All for One, One for All.
That journey continues tonight against the high-flying fifth-placed Broncos on a five-game winning streak are looking to win five-straight against the Eels for the first time since 1992. Perhaps, triple-five is the new triple-six as the Eels battle to dodge the dreaded spoon.
Reinforcements arrive. The Broncos gets Haas, Jensen and Arthurs back. The Eels regain Penisini, Moretti and Mitchell Moses for his seventh game this year. Momax is back. Still Warming up. It helps ease Eels pain of losing Iongi. This season appearing destined to be one where a full-strength Eels squad is less sighted than Bigfoot.
Team Lists
Brisbane Broncos vs Parramatta Eels, 8pm AEST, Friday July 24th, 2025, Suncorp Stadium
Weather: Some cloud cover, rain unlikely (unless you're an Eels' fan), around 15˚C, 6-11km/h winds, 68% humidity
Ground: Expected to be good
Sportsbet: $1.21 Broncos, $4.45 Eels
Referees: Todd Smith (on-field), Phil Henderson (touch judge), David Outram (touch judge), Ashley Klein (senior review official, bunker)
Broncos: 1. Reece Walsh 2. Josiah Karapani 3. Kotoni Staggs 4. Gehamat Shibasaki 5. Jesse Arthars 6. Ezra Mam 7. Adam Reynolds 8. Xavier Willison 9. Ben Hunt 10. Payne Haas 11. Brendan Piakura 12. Jordan Riki 13. Patrick Carrigan
Bench: 14. Billy Walters 15. Kobe Hetherington 16. Corey Jensen 17. Jack Gosiewski
18th man/reserves: 18. Tyson Smoothy
Cut: 19. Deine Mariner 20. Selwyn Cobbo 21. Ben Talty 22. Jaiyden Hunt
Eels: 1. Joash Papali’i 2. Zac Lomax 3. Viliami Penisini 4. Sean Russell 5. Josh Addo-Carr 6. Dean Hawkins 7. Mitchell Moses 8. J’maine Hopgood 9. Ryley Smith 10. Junior Paulo 11. Charlie Guymer 12. Jack Williams 13. Dylan Walker
Bench: 14. Tallyn Da Silva 15. Luca Moretti 16. Matt Doorey 17. Sam Tuivaiti
18th man/reserves: 19. Jordan Samrani
Cut: 18. Dan Keir 20. Bailey Simonsson 21. Toni Mataele 22. Dylan Brown
Recent History Grimaces
Eels have lost 4-straight to the Broncos.
Eels have conceded almost 40 points per game in last three clashes vs Broncos (38pg).
Eels average losing margin vs Broncos is 22 points over the last three games.
At Suncorp, the Eels have lost 5 of their last 6; Broncos have won 7 of 10 there this year.
Milestone Watch
Addo-Carr: Will he break the drought? He needs one more to hit 150 NRL tries. He hasn't scored in a month since R17 (see above, Getty Images).
Reynolds, Captain Courageous, needs 14 points to hit 2500 career points (Getty Images).
The rejuvenated journeyman Shibasaki has 8 tries in his last 6 Suncorp games (centre above, Getty Images).
Edge of Disaster
Get the fire extinguishers ready.
Statsinsider shows the Broncos right edge (Staggs' bull-like charges, Arthurs' hair, Reynolds scheming) seems lethal, and should pose issues for the Eels' left-edge (Hawkins, Russell, the Fox). But it's the Broncos left-edge (Karapani, Shibasaki, Mam) where the points have been scored, while the Eels leak the most on their right (Moses, Penisini, Lomax).
Broncos
Score: 55% left / 19% middle / 27% right
Leak: 39% left / 22% middle / 39% right
Eels
Score: 42% left / 11% middle / 47% right
Leak: 34% left / 16% middle / 50% right
Joash Papali'i shifts from six to one, while Dean Hawkins steps into six (3 NRL games there v Joash's 2).
The Future is Still Now, With a Plot Twist
Ryles is sticking with the Kaizen Future is Now theme. There's no going Back to Brown for now. But Ryles never said never. Dylan still claws onto a possible inclusion come the final hour in the top 19.
This week it's Hawkins turn at six with Joash returning to his more comfortable fullback position. Another candidate? Last week, Ryles praised Joash for doing ‘some good things’ at six. He’s shown a deft short-kicking game (setting up Russell last week in the 37'), but it's a bit unrealistic to expect too much of the 21-year-old. Additionally, Joash’s explosive Cup-level running game hasn’t yet translated into first grade. At times his defence has been found out when isolated. But, not something unusual for a rookie with a handful of games.
So what are Joash's 'Future' prospects at six? The 'Now' has mixed signals. Or is he depth cover for one? A future utility? Will the future six be Hawkins, Twiddle, Hunter, or another unforeseen rookie? It's too early for Iongi to be considered. Or does the answer lie in a yet-to-be-named recruit?
The Goethe Dilemma
In the 18th century's Wilhelm Meister’s Apprenticeship, Goethe warned that 'too many options and choices can lead to confusion and indecision'. Cohesion alert.
The young Wilhelm, not unlike Joash and a few of our rookies, is trying to find his way amidst the illusions of freedom and an abundance of tempting directions.
In a way, the Eels mirror Wilhelm’s journey: full of youthful exuberance, potential and artistic expression. Expansive footy. Pretty. Young. Brave. But like Goethe's protagonist, often betrayed by harsh real-world realities.
Poor ball-handling and error counts (top-four highest for both, via nrl stats). Poor completions (bottom five). Getting dominated through the middle (bottom four for run metres per game). Getting pinged more by referees these days (seventh-highest for penalties conceded). Playing on the back foot exposes our kick chases, which are still far from Panther-esque. We're often losing the grind, despite staying in the arm wrestle until exhaustion.
Doorey makes a linebreak but his lone support is too far behind (Getty Images)
Small Moments, Big Consequences
Here are some missed opportunities last week. What is the common theme in each? Check the highlights and compare our busts to the Raiders.
- 10' The Fox almost scores after picking up a sublime Hawkins kick as he's held up; naturally there was no effective support.
- 11' The Fox makes a 60-70m linebreak with only Papalii late in support and in the wrong position, swamped by Green jerseys.
- 16' Dylan Walker busts the line, but has no support as he's mowed down 20m from the Raiders' line.
- 22' Lomax takes an intercept, then jags and weaves 70m upfield, UFC wrestling a Green-army, looking for support no-where to be found before getting swallowed whole by Green jerseys 30m out.
- 31' Doorey makes a 50m break from the Eels red zone off a deft Hopgood short ball; running like a pepped-up-gazelle checking left-right side mirrors for non-existent support with Da Silva late to the party.
- Note: The Raiders made 8-0 linebreaks in the second-half, with 4 of those in the final eight minutes (nrl.com). The second-half was an Eels' horror-show (32% territory, 35% possession, 217-123 tackle-count against us via Foxlab).
Hypothetical. We convert three of those five opportunites and we're leading 34-22 (instead of behind 22-16) with eight to go. Better Support. Better execution. More ball for us, less for them. Less tackles for us, more for them. Less fatigue for us, more for them. More wins.
Lomax played Prop last week
Second-Half Collapses
Over the last two weeks, rounds 19-20, the second-half scoreline hasn't been an oil painting. 20-0, 28-0. End-of-season fatigue setting in? Fitness issues? Mental issues? Is 2024 returning where we practically lost every last quarter?
Let's stand back.
Those last two games were against the Raiders (1st) who have won 13 of their last 14 on an eight-game winning streak and Panthers (6th), four-peat champions on a six-game winning streak. Against the Panthers, it was 22-16 with under 8 minutes to play before the spectacular seven-minute nose-dive.
Overall, we've lost about half (8 of 17) of our second halves this year. Almost all of those second-halves lost (8 of 9) were to the current best-nine teams (Canberra twice, Penrith twice, Dogs, Cronulla, Dolphins, Manly).
In contrast, most of the second-halves we won (5 of 8) were against current bottom-eight team (Tigers, Knights, St George twice, Titans). Only three times have we won second halves against top-eight teams (Melbourne, Manly, Dogs).
Takeaways? It suggests is we're not able to keep up with the best often enough. Ergo, rather than being a 2024-like perfected habit of second-half implosions, we more often than not get out-grinded by the best even when we're in the arm wrestle.
Final Word
Goethe's rookie Wilhelm Grew. Matured into Reality. Small changes. Gradually. Eventual Transformation. He was Kaizen. Maybe the Eels will too. Iongi, Joash, Smith, Guymer, Tautoga, Da Silva, Tuivaiti are the future with more to come. There is improvement. A faithfulness to The Kaizen Commitment. But we need more. To own the scoreboard.
Meanwhile, tonight looms. It cares naught for future nor ideology. History suggests more pain against yet another team running red-hot. Still, Wilhelm can't ever surrender hope nor fight.
PS: Currently, Sportsbet has the Eels as second favorites for the Spoon ($5.50) after the Titans ($1.72), while the Rabbits ($6) and Knights ($7) round up the top-four shoe-ins.
Replies
💯 Tad, Moses kicking game like we know is first class - a great kicking game can save a poor set . Also, you'll notice Moses is extremely vocal and its his team - leadership skills improving game by game, defensively we have improved out of sight- they slide at the right time, line speed is energetic, love the way we are defending and credit to Jason and the coaching staff.
Yes Mick I am liking what I am seeing. They should review that game this week with particular emphasis of the mental side of the composure needed at different stages. How to refocus after a mistake is made and how that can continue if not addressed by leadership roles in the game. Don,t fold into a weak mindset and how to refocus. Knowing how to breath can refocus discipline and remove errors in your game Breathing after an error is simple.Take a deep breath and hold it in for a few seconds before letting the air . Hold that for a few seconds before taking in a new breath out can help you remove negative energy. Do it for a few times and move on
The longer you take before sucking in new air the better
Look before you suck is good life advice
TAD, you, NOS, and even Mick and POPs might be interested in the 'mental' side behind the Kaizen Way. A driving ideology of the Ryles era. It's not "tokenism" or the murals in our sheds or COE
Ryles regularly talks about small steps of "improvement" — he did it again last night in the pressor. Those hourly, daily weekly one percenters which is at the heart of Kaizen.
The improvement isn't just performance-focused. It's becoming a better person. For your family. For the team. For the Club. For Life. Becoming is an eternal proces, not a destination.
There is improvement in most players, team camaraderie, attitude and even fan-engagement under Ryles, even if the scoreboard results aren't all there yet. Even our pinata punching bag, Sean Russell, has shown some. Tuivita and Smith have come out of the blue to become important cogs in firsts. Even Junior has improved playing more minutes than he has in over six years or so. Williams is showing he's more than a useful bench player.
It all comes down to habits, right now. Not expecting perfection, though. Things you do right now.
Real-time decision-making. The Future is Now theme, resists short-term fixes like going Back to Brown at the first opportunity when Iongi went down. Ryles said it was easy decision dropping Brown as it was the best for the team, and Club in all likelihood. It's akin to resisting a sugar hit when you're down, knowing sugar ain't the way to good health.
You saw how deeply-felt Little Paps inconsolable horror was after that almost fatalic-error. It shows deeply he cares. You can't act and fix habits if you don't care deeply.
Kaizen also aligns with many of core the best sports psychologists and teaching 101. Drilling is about good habits.
It parallels Dr Jauncey's core philosophy. A man who has stood side by side with Bennett since his Broncos days and Saints day and all the premierships in tow. Dr Jauncey isn't one for "mental motivation" jazz. He's one for doing. Action first. Fix your habits first. Regardless of how your mind feels about it or any motivational jibber jabba.
Dr Goldman, the renowned US sports performance mentor who mentors the best in the business in NBA or NFL, superstars like Stephen Curry, is another who is about fixing "average stats" — which reflect habits. Actually, we're using Goldman's AI player assessment tools for some of our juniors. Fear not, it's not Artifical Intelligence related. It's Athletic Intelligence Quotient (AIQ). An assessment tool measuring things like spatial awareness, decision-making, reaction-time, and impulse-control. A High-tech intelligent SWOT of sorts. The old sagely wisdom "Know Thyself".
Basically Mental Habits — things you do right now — trump Mental Hype and Motivational Jazz.
Unpacking Kaizen, Japanese in origin, it's probably around 2,000 years old. So, let's move on and leave the history lesson in the bags.
There's an old saying, "we don't decide our futures, we decide our habits, and our habits decide our futures." The Future is Now. Kaizen to the core.
Excellent post HOE. The Kaizen Way is not compatible with criticism of individuals it is all about encouragement. You don't learn anything if you're self esteem is low. The Psychology of coaching is a huge factor to energize a willingness to self improve. Creating a collective consciousness is difficult if you don't understand how to do it with out damaging the process. . Ryles and team leaders should be very aware about how they manage their own behaviour and thinking. Mental energy is contagious. You have to learn the importance of that if you are in a leadership role.
Ryles and team leaders should be very aware about how they manage their own behaviour and thinking......Hypocrisy is "Kaisen" Kryptonite, ..and it's a long-ass winding road with potholes aplenty and a plethora of opportunities for your actions to diverge from your rhetoric.
If Ryles pulls this cultural feat off, If he embodies it with consistency, he will beat a path to greatness.
Interesting, Randy, TAD. I'll chew on your insightful comments some more.
Not sure about the criticism angle though. It's The Human Way. A reality.
I suppose the key is not losing your way or mind, at least for not too long haha, when — not if — others criticize or throw sheet your way.
And two, dissecting the criticism into what is useful constructive criticism (more SWOT-like) that you can learn from and the throw away excrement which teaches you about the excrement thrower as much as anything else.
Kaizen is probably about facing reality head-on, even conflict, rather than avoidance of the crap that reality throws at us.
Although, I'm not sure how all that ties into Japanese and Asian culture which is more indirect and concerned with 'face' and conflict avoidance and sensitive-to-criticism at times. It's probably more hidden. Perhaps, my views are bias confirmation-ist. Still, be careful with your words and deeds is the more universal lesson — both a tool of destruction and creation.
My wife and I have this thing we do, quite regularly, where we tell each other about the good things and crap things we have done. Usually, gently. I actually quite like it, even if it ain't always the most pleasurable of things to do.
Keeping the right circles you can largely trust is a big help. Best not hang around with the regular excrement throwers. They're that way for a reason, and there's nothing you can do about them. Generally speaking.
For most people I think it is difficult to accept criticism ( a damaged ego which will resist). It's about personalities involved. Trust and honesty between people helps.. Great if you can select people around you who can see things as an opportunity to learn and value inputs. Not many around.Probably experience with constructed parenting upbringing helps for some.
Brilliant post here HOE, and contributions Tad & Randysaurus.
It’s so good to hear the Eels are using the AIQ. It's showing.
What was so positive last night, outside the result, was the fact this team turned up with the same energy & fight they have for the past month - despite tough losses against the Dogs, Panthers & Raiders, where they’d fought so hard for no reward.
When the Broncos got in front 20-18, there was every excuse in the book for this team to be run over.
They found a way to control those doubts, control those poor habits, those slips in focus, despite being here over & over again the past month, and falling short.
That to me is an incredible turn around from previous seasons where you, Tad & I, amongst many others, spoke in length about the frustrations of the teams mental fortitude.
We are seeing small steps in many areas, but this particular one in 21 rounds of footy, has actually been a huge step imo & Ryles & the coaching team deserve a lot of credit. As do the players.
HOE, it feels like Ryles is very onbaord with everything you are saying here, and man, has been so impressive in how he is trying to build this team from the ground up - those habits, fundamentals.
He is echoing similar thoughts to Adam Druissi & Ciraldo? Beallmy in the past…. About reviewing every aspect, club wide, and evolving every aspect, even if 1% at a time.
I'm not a fan of Mick Ennis, but he made some really great comments about the Eels in the post game wrap last night. A lot of credit towards Ryles.
Small steps HOE, but they are undoubtedly steps in the right direction, unlike the past two seasons?
When our biggest issues are errors, not attitude, not how we turn up, not how we fight or stay motivated, it feels like we are in good hands.
This team, despite all the inexperience & injuries, took it to the Dogs, Panthers & Raiders for 70minutes against a lot of possession.
This week they found a way to go 80. Next weeks game actually becomes interesting? The Storm are battered & aren't as fluid as they were early in the season.
A long way to go, of course, but we also need to try and enjoy these small steps? Last night as enjoyable as it was for us, it was also so good to see that for the players & JR.
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