Another Nines tournament, another couple of finals appearances. The Eels are quickly becoming a Nines powerhouse, with the club making the finals in every edition of the competition so far, winning the final in 2016.
Parramatta came into the tournament as favourites according to the "pundits". They did pick one of the strongest teams on paper, mixing a good amount of size, speed, experience and youth into their squad.
Although they got off to a slow start, going down 13-10 to the Bulldogs, they won their next match against the Dragons 15-7 to move into the knockout tournaments. I could crap on about the lack of a third round of pool matches but I already did that on Friday.
They took down the impressive Newcastle Knights 14-7 before falling short against the Dragons in the semis 8-6. Again, I could mention the NRL's terrible scheduling which led to us playing St Merge twice in the space of about four hours, but I digress.
Overall, the side was impressive. Unlike in previous editions, we're we relied on some freakish play from a Semi Radradra or Bevan French to see us home, this was a side more invested in a collective effort, with Mitchell Moses often providing a spark to get the side going.
A lack of a recognised hooker was a concern going into the tournament and I feel it did impact the side somewhat, particularly towards the end of the tournament, where some dummy-half runs could really have opened up the middle. That being said, Rhys Davies, Ray Stone and Jaeman Salmon all did a serviceable job.
David Gower was one of the side's standouts. He seemed to relish being an extra ball player and his footwork through the middle opened up space out wide.
The real positive signs for this side though, was the attitude in defence. They conceded just 35 points across their four games. Grand finalists the Dragons conceded 63 points in five games while winners the Cowboys conceded 46. Fellow semi-finalists the Titans conceded 42 points.
Of teams to qualify for the finals, the Eels conceded the second-lowest number of points per game, allowing just 8.75. The Knights conceded 6, the Cowboys conceded 9.2, while the Titans were at 10.5, Penrith at 11, Manly at 12.6, St George at 12.6 and Souths at 15.
While the NRL-proper is a world away from the Nines, defence is all about attitude, and the Eels had a large number of their top 17 in the tournament. For an Eels side known to have a soft underbelly, the steel in defence was a welcome sight.
Overall I rate their performance an A-. Semi finals were an expectation of the side and they met that, they also exited the competition with no injury concerns to key players and played attractive football with Jaeman Salmon's try against Dragons in the final netting the try of the tournament.
Replies
Better concepts than trials and nines. What my post was about..
Nobody seems very impressed with the nines or trials due to possible injuries etc.
Showcasing the young talent for the first 2 rounds and for points, means no more 'Mickey Mouse' comps and if injuries happen, at least they occurred season proper..
One of the things that the NRL does poorly IMO is preseason. So my preseason would look something like this ...
Charity Shield, (Grand Final replay played at the defending premiers home ground). Obviously the NRL would have to "buy" the rights to the Charity Shield from the Rabbitohs & Dragons. The Dragons are pretty well cash strapped all the time, I don't think it would be an issue. Make it the traditional season opener like the Community Shield in English football. Played as four quarter football due to the heat.
The Nines. I would return the Nines to Eden Park in Auckland. So many more positives having it in Auckland. Slightly cooler, great timezone, natural fan base, and it would be an event that belongs exclusively to Auckland / NZ. 4 groups of 4, everyone plays 3 games & then playoffs.
Then, instead of trials, I would have a "lightning" style competition played in regional centres that don't see NRL footy regularly, eg Wagga, Coffs, Dubbo, Toowoomba, Mackay etc, call it the "Country Carnival". Again, 4 groups of 4, each team plays 3 games, games played over 50 minutes, 2 x 25 minute halves, double headers at each venue. Each group moves to a different town every 3-4 days. Each team would play three 50min games over a 10 day period. That's not terribly taxing given that they could give their entire roster game time.
The top 2 from each group would go into a preseason knockout competition with the final played in Alice Springs the way it was in the early 90's. Again it would 4 quarter football due to the heat.
That's about a 6 week preseason that builds up to a shorter 20 week regular season.
The regular season would be broken up into two 10 week blocks, with a 6 week mid season rep schedule in between, and a 4 week postseason.
I would get rid of the World Club Challenge & repurpose the All Star game into an an end of season "Pro Bowl" style All Star game to be played the week before the GF.
Yes, that would have to be taken into account. Maybe the youngest 7 backs and 6 forwards, youngest reserves but from the top 35? It would still be better than the nines and trials, particularly when it's for points.
I can’t remember the last time I read such dribble.
You must of missed Super's blogs and posts about how great Steve Sharp and Parra first were going to be for the club a few years back , they are legendary.
Super is one of the great thinkers .
lol
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