Eels Blogs

So we have broken the cycle. This was our loss week, yet we won. The end is near. Was it a good win? Ehhhhhhhhhhhh.......I mean i guess? One thing i thought of the way home from the game last night was "Was that a better performance than the one against Wests?" I slept on it and came to the conclusion that very ever so slightly it was. Though it was very similar. Started off pushing their line for numerous sets in a row, Warirors had the ball once in the first 8-10 mins, but couldn't score. Finally breaking through with Waqa. The opening was different to Wests as we were down 12-0, where is we were up 10-0 beofre Montoya got over. The second half was very similar, we dominate by scoring a few times, though it took a while for our third try. Get to a big lead, then fall apart in last 10 mins letting in two tries, two weeks in a row we have fell asleep in last 10 conceading points. 20 points we have let in, in two weeks. That 20 points would put us at +56, Brisbane are +57, might be more after they play Gold Coast tonight but still would have gotten us closer to being level to Brisbane where we can go win for win with them and can still leap them.

In terms of stats for the game, we were surprisingly pretty even. Warriors had more possession, 51%, though our completions were better with 80% to their 76%. Though we had less ball we still ran for 150 metres more. 3 line-breaks to 2 in our favour. We also had 19 tackle breaks to their 17. Similar in offloads, us having 6 to their 5. 4 repeat sets to their 1 was a nice stat and something we need more of. Warriors had 19 missed tackles to our 17. Both teams at 92% for tackle effeciency. Warriors 13 errors to our 11. Honestly it was a case of both average as one another, talent just prevailed. If the score stayed at 28-6 at full-time i think a fan who didn't watch the game would have thought we were just too good in defence and the Warriors mistakes were more costly than ours. Yet 28-18 made it more even in line with the stats, where we just had a more talented team and it prevailed. We shouldn't rely on talent however, 28-18 at home i think really made us look more vulnerable to be honest. Only thing i will say that is positive to that is we had one eye on Brisbane late and BA will have us buzzing and ready to go for the next fortnight, sort of had us middle of the range to not have us peak to early and hoped our talent would get through Wests and the Warriors, which it did. Brisbane is the big test. The last two games were a test to see how we go against lower teams, but now we see if BA has been holding us back either in a good way or bad way. Good way holding us back in that prepping us to get by then getting us raring to go for the big teams, or holding us back as to it is getting stale. After Penrith in round 20, we will have a good idea where we sit, whether the last 2 wins were early signs of issues and winning masked it or those two games were simply part of the plan and went according to plan to get the wins and having eyes on the top tier teams.

Before i move on, i will preface JA will not be in my most disappointing as he was fine. What can you do in 11 minutes playing hooker closing the game out? He was fine bar one bad defensive read where Tohu Harris simply dummied and ran through a massive hole left by JA. But he was ok, though the decision to have him there anyway i will mention though.

Maika Sivo: My man of the match, 183 metres on 8 runs, including a wonderful run for his only try of the night and a great intercept to set up Waqa for his brace. Maika seems to be getting back to full fitness and confidence. Though a lower quailty team, nice game to hit the attack running.

Isaiah Papali'i: Man Wests fans will be happy to have him next ye......oh sorry. I troll we do not know that yet, but Ice was great tonight, very busy off the ball too. Wonderful X play set up by Reed having Ice running full pelt on an angle, scoring with a cool super saiyan celebration. His stats weren't ground breaking, 110 metres on 10 runs, 36 tackles, 3 tackle breaks and a try but it was steady, stable and confident.

Reed Mahoney: Good ol' Judas, had one his best in a while tonight. His kicking was great and well timed, his movement around the ruck catching lazy markers was wonderful early on giving us early momentum. Setting two tries running around the ruck. He looked confident tonight and seemed the game was in slow motion for him to move and do what he wanted. Hopefully these players are slowly starting to peak for the run to the finals.

Shaun Lane: Sneaky good game from Shaun. Hard runs, 174 metres from 16 runs, 3 tackles breaks and 31 tackles. Very nice from the giraffe.

Honorable mentions: RCG, Blake, Makatoa.

Most Disappointing: 

Marata Niukore in the middle: He had a fine game, but just think Marata is not a middle forward, as beneficial as he is on an edge. Feel he is not as powerful as say Ice with his running in the middle, tonight his stats werent too bad, 123 metres, but i just find that he is wasted in the middle, he gets brought down quick and doesn't bend the line as much. Don't hate me it's not Marata more so where he is playing.

Bailey Simonsson dropped ball late: He was haivng a good game to that point, soured a decent performance from him.

The short drop out: I mean, the hell. You are leading? two weeks in a row now they do this, why hasn't BA told them to stop it, surely he would've mentioned last week that was a dumb play. But they do it again. If anything it leads to the opposition thinking you do not back your defence, adds sort of belief to them in that they have you at that stage, you do not want any of that. Had we been behind, fair enough go for it. But leading is just asinine, cocky and stupid.

Refereeing and touchies: Forward passes galore, ruck infringements galore, head high's galore. Not a good game from the officials, on both teams.

Offside on the kickoff: That is under 8's stuff, that was simply "We've won now, we can switch off and autopilot to the end" It showed mentally still not there to be an 80 min team. We are up by 22, you put the foot to throat more and continue until you cannot go anymore, you don't get to halfway and say "That'll do". Just poor, I do not want to bash BA all the time, but what is he doing to them mentally, it is not a surprise we do this stuff yet he doesn't address it or he does and it doesn't work.

Fans booing JA: Right, i make jokes when there like no way i was missing JA play etc. But in what world is it ok to boo a player in your own team before a match has started? JA is not at fault for being there last night, BA has that choice, not JA. If he has a poor performance, fair comment on that, but he had yet to justify his decision to be in the 17, let it play out then judge.

BA naming JA: Now to the other end, saw the result and ask what was the point? So wondered all week how JA was going to be used, was he going to be put at 6 and Brown shuffled to Centre? Play as a designated Lock? I saw him warm-ups passing from the ground to Brown and Moses as they warmed up their kicking, thought usually Reed does that, must be just helping out as he can pass, well you would hope so playing Halfback. Then after Moses converted Sivo's try i said "Bring Moses off now, let JA ease the game out" Then looked over to see JA already out there thinking where is he playing? Realising i couldn't see a white headgear, he was playing hooker. To which made me realise too he was planned all along to give Reed a break if we had a lead. So right, you planned on giving Reed a breather leading into the next 2 months, fair enough good conditioning and looking after players. One question, why not play Rein who is your back-up hooker with over 200 NRL games of experience who can also fill in as a designated forward if desperate? Instead you name JA who has never played hooker in high level, has not got the speed nor size to play hooker and would have no future or ambitions to be a hooker in the future? Having Rein on the bench made more sense than JA, 11 mins for Rein is the same as JA getting 11 mins, so why not just name Rein? What possibly could JA get out of playing 11 mins at hooker instead of defending in the middle? It was pointless and honestly a slap in the face to Rein, having the plan to play JA at 9 all along is an insult to Rein, if it was last min then fair enough but he was warming up as a hooker.

That is it for 6 days, until Brisbane on Thursday. I am excited for it, see where we stand leading into the semi's. Are we middle of the road, worse than we thought or better? Changes well Matterson will be back i believe, meaning Niukore will go back to the bench for JA you would expect. If BA chooses to go with 3 forwards and back/half option and keep JA then could see Makatoa or Rodwell miss out, hope not but he seems to be all for having a non forward on the bench so JA might get another week.

Enjoy the weekend of footy, go the EELS.