The sample is small — six games in all — but the evidence is overwhelmingly in Parramatta’s favour as they head to Brookvale Oval for tonight’s game against arch rivals Manly.
The Eels got the better of the halves carve-up which sent Kieran Foran to Parramatta and resulted in Daly Cherry-Evans inking an eight-year contract extension worth upwards of $10 million with Manly.
Foran missed the opening round but has starred over the ensuing five, captaining Parramatta through a salary cap scandal while at the same time maintaining a lofty position on the ladder.
He has done it with a dodgy hamstring and limited preparation. His time on the training paddock has been restricted as the club has nursed its talismanic five-eighth through the week, saving him for when it counts most.
Foran has made the most of it. His three try assists are two more than Cherry-Evans, his long-time friend and one-time foil. Where Foran will walk into the New Zealand side next month, Cherry-Evans no longer figures in debate about Test football.
Nor has he attracted any comment over a potential Queensland recall despite the unavailability of Ben Hunt and Anthony Milford.
Talk is that Canterbury’s Moses Mbye has jumped him in the Maroons’ pecking order. Cherry-Evans’s cause hasn’t been helped by bedding in a new halves partner in Dylan Walker, a player whose entire first-grade career before arriving at Manly had been as a centre.
Foran has had the benefit of walking into a situation where Corey Norman was already an elite NRL player. As a result, he and Norman have meshed quicker than many expected, fuelling suggestions that the Sea Eagles kept the wrong player.
Manly powerbrokers believe they had convinced Foran to remain at the club only to be stunned when he elected to follow former Sea Eagles assistant Brad Arthur to the Eels.
The Sea Eagles then devoted their energies to ensuring Cherry-Evans stayed, convincing him to backflip on an agreement with the Gold Coast Titans. Injury has stopped him rewarding the club with performances this season.
In Cherry-Evans’s absence, Api Koroisau has shifted to halfback with surprisingly good results, the one-time hooker starring over the past three weeks. The Sea Eagles have looked a better side in the absence of their highest-paid player.
Regardless, Manly coach Trent Barrett will rush Cherry-Evans back into the starting side when he is fit, meaning Koroisau for all his efforts will likely be forced back to the bench given the form of hooker Matt Parcell.
Foran returns to Brookvale tonight looking to remind Manly officials and fans of what they lost.
“I don’t think it was the wrong (call) at all,” said Barrett, whose appointment came after Foran had announced his departure to Parramatta.
“I am really happy with how we’re going at the moment and we have to keep rolling on.”
Asked how much time had been devoted to discussing Foran’s return in the dressing rooms, Barrett said: “None to be honest. One, we haven’t had time and we haven’t spent a lot of time together this week.
“We have a lot of new people in our squad who weren’t here last year. It is not really an issue for us. Kieran is a terrific player, we all know that.
“We have to worry about ourselves and do a job. They have a really strong side, Parramatta. They’re up there with the form two or three sides of the comp.”
In Cherry-Evans’s defence, he hasn’t played since his side’s loss to the Sydney Roosters in round three. Yet up until then, his form was under the spotlight, prompting some to question whether he was worth the $10m price tag.
Replies
Look at some of the crap the silverturds website spew on about. They have such a hard on for us Eels its a amazing here are some of there blogs. They actually believe the NRL love us we are the darlings? What!
http://silvertails.net/threads/cheats-chant.48865/ We are cheats and scum.
http://silvertails.net/threads/lol-parra.47979/page-54 Oh don't forget to check there wonderful chants in the lol at parra blog. If you have a sleeping problem this blog will cure it.
Poor old Manly think its 2008 dear oh dear.
Loobs is a manly favourite on the site who really likes the lube a lot!
Haha, i hope they do chant 'cheats' as we run out, that will fire the lads up, that will be reason enough for us to put 30 on them.
Its imbecile central on the silvertails, theres one Blake too many.
Let's see how crap we are after the game tonight - he'll be eating those words.
"fortress Brookvale" LOL
Best thing about going to Brookie is you never feel intimidated,. It's just a bunch of nerdy mummy's boys. And most of them look like Jamie Lyon - poor fuckers :)
Eh...Brookvale? Is that also known as slum city with the playing surface looking like a garbage tip?
I'll make a prediction. Manly wont score more than 10-12 points. We will beat them. We've beaten them with weaker teams and we'll beat them tomorrow. The only place I reckon his hard playing at is Brisbane with the 30K+ crowds they get.