If Brad Arthur were deposed tomorrow, you'd hardly find an Eels fan who would disagree.
Only 18 months after a somewhat unexpected grand final appearance, Parramatta's fall from grace has been swift and brutal.
A massive injury toll cruelled their 2023 season, despite showing glimpses of the side they could be. Despite a pre-season that promised improvement, the side has done nothing but regress, and now the pressure mounts on head coach Arthur.
While injuries to Mitchell Moses and Clint Gutherson have had, and will continue to impact the side, they have been no excuse for some of the insipid displays put on by the blue and gold.
Two second half maulings at the hands of the Raiders and an extremely under-manned Dolphins led Arthur to state his side were only part-time footballers.
A more spirited yet still mediocre performance against Manly showed there was still some fight in the side.
More than there has been at fellow cellar dwellers Souths, anyway.
But as much as Arthur has called on his charges to step up, the calls for Arthur to change aren't quite as loud, nor is he being quizzed about it in the media.
Arthur's classic tactic is to bash and barge using his middle forwards to plow a hole through the opposition's centre. Maybe he's a student of the likes of Alexander the Great, or Napoleon, who would famously use their most damaging weapon (For Alexander, his cavalry, for Napoleon, his cannons) to attack the opposition's middle and cause them to break?
However, he probably wasn't paying full attention as both legendary generals were known for their flexibility and adaptability. For Alexander it was his ability to draw out and decimate the Persians at Issus and Gaugamela, for Napoleon, it was his ongoing battles against Austria and the 1st and 2nd coalitions where his manouevrability allowed him to separate and demolish opposing armies.
There have been valid criticisms over Arthur's squad. Concerns over the ages of his middle and edge forwards, while in the backs they haven't replaced those that have come before.
But further thought should be given to how Arthur is using the players at his disposal.
A lot of sides are moving away from having their forwards doing all the dirty work. Penrith use their back 5 in yardage to allow their forwards to attack in good ball, and pile on defensive pressure, the Raiders did the same to great effect against the Eels.
Parramatta is clearly vulnerable both on the edges and, as the game winds on, through the middle, particularly around the ruck.
Arthur could try to assuage this by either copying the same tactic, or reduce the minutes of his ageing middle forwards and use some of the younger cattle such as Wiremu Greig and Luca Moretti to inject greater energy into the side.
Plenty of focus too should be on Mark O'Neill. He may have been the one in charge when Parramatta executed a squad refresh in 2019/20, but you can't rest on decisions made 5 years ago.
A cursory look at what the best sides were doing last year should have been enough to realise a change in both tactics and personnel were needed to pick things back up in 2024.
Alas, none of that has happened.
Arthur's current strategy is like trying to use the Schlieffen Plan when Blitzkrieg is far more effective.
The coming month could very well decide Parramatta's future and Arthur's fate. Brisbane, Melbourne, Souths and Cronulla. Only against the Rabbitohs would the Eels be favourites and there's no guarantee they will actually show up.
Replies
I just am not sure where you go if you cannot get Bennett.
We simply can't continue with BA , if you can't get Bennett or another high profile coach like Bellamy then you give one of the up and coming coaches a go. Obviously taking on a rookie coach would be a risk but no bigger than giving BA another year.
The floor is lower with a rookie is all.
You sure about that?, BA has already delivered one wooden spoon and more are a real possibility.
As in with BA he could get us to a finals appearance in next 3-4 years. Rookie could have us in bottom 4 for next 3-4 years.
Have you not noticed under BA we are trending down not up, any kind of success under BA is likely to be short lived, he has never won more than 6 in a row and has done that only once in his 11 years.
Bellamy was once a young coach and Melbourne took a punt on him in 2003. I think it's worked out pretty well.
Quite a few young coaches have made an impression the last few years, payton, fitzgibbon, Webster and even cirraldo is starting to do a good job at the dogs.
Well we CAN get Bennett. Our stupid board just decided not to pursue him and that tells you all you need to know about us.
Justin Holbrook ?
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