Corey Norman's departure from Parramatta on Wednesday afternoon came as a shock to his Eels halves partner Mitchell Moses.
A few hours before Norman and the Eels settled on a deal to allow the 28-year-old five-eighth a release from the final year of his contract, Moses told NRL.com at the Emerging Blues camp that he was unaware of his teammate's impending switch.
Norman's departure leaves the Blue & Gold without a recognised playmaker to play alongside Moses but the halfback said he was confident rising stars Dylan Brown and Jaeman Salmon had the talent to become first-grade regulars in the 2019 Telstra Premiership.
Moses said the two youthful duo had been pushing him and Norman throughout the off-season for a crack at the big time so he knows they'll step it up another level in order to claim Norman's vacant No.6 jersey.
Salmon played five matches at the end of last season while Brown is yet to make his NRL debut.
"They've been pushing Normy and myself at training all year which is what we want and it has kept us fighting for our positions," he said before news broke of Norman's release.
"They are both determined young boys who have shown they are deserving of their position in the squad – Jaeman played a handful of games last season so he will be eager for more."
Although Parramatta would like to sweep their 2018 wooden spoon under the rug, Moses said the club had taken away some valuable lessons from their dismal season and since returning to training on November 1 the squad was already showing positive signs.
"It was a season we want to forget, but also remember how much it did hurt to lose all those games that we did – we learnt from the experience," Moses said.
"You can already see the difference at training now compared to this time last year. Everyone has come back with a new-found attitude towards training.
"In a way I'm happy it happened early on in my career, hopefully there are better years to come and that doesn't happen again."
Blake Ferguson is already starting to make his mark at the club after joining the squad for pre-season on December 3.
Moses said the former Roosters winger would give the Eels another imposing presence out wide.
Ferguson undecided on rep future
"It was great to see Fergo come out of the back field at training," Moses said.
"We missed someone like him in the team last season and I think with Fergo coming it takes a lot of pressure off George Jennings who was running for 150 plus metres per game for us last season.
"[Jennings] was a big help for us but I think you'll see a much better George Jennings with Fergo there as well."
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