Eels Blogs

In the 140th clash between these two, the Roosters, as the top attacking team at (29.7ppg) should have too much firepower for the Eels holding the third-worst defence (28.9ppg).

Both teams lost in their last starts and had all the opposition tries scored down one edge.

But tomorrow night, the Roosters have more on the line. The Eels are playing for pride. 

If the Roosters lose, and the Warriors and St George win against the Storm and Manly respectively,  then it will push them out of the top eight. They will be desperate and welcome back their four Origin guns and versatile starting rake.

Teams

 Date: Saturday, 15 June 2024 , 7:35pm
Venue: Commbank
Sportsbet: Roosters are warm favorites $1.44-$2.81
Weather: Partly cloudy, possible showers

Eels:

1. Clinton Gutherson 2. Maika Sivo 3. Viliami Penisini 4. Sean Russell 5. Blaize Talagi 6. Dylan Brown 7. Mitchell Moses 8. Reagan Campbell-Gillard 9. Brendan Hands 10. Junior Paulo 11. Kelma Tuilagi 12. Bryce Cartwright 16. Joe Ofahengaue Bench: 14. Daejarn Asi 15. Shaun Lane 17. Makahesi Makatoa 21. Ryan Matterson  Reserves: 20. Joey Lussick 22. Luca Moretti

Cut: 13. J’maine Hopgood (back/nerve) 19. Morgan Harper 18. Wiremu Greig

Roosters:

1. James Tedesco 2. Daniel Tupou 18. Michael Jennings 4. Joseph Manu 3. Fetalaiga Pauga 6. Luke Keary 7. Sam Walker 8. Jared Waerea-Hargreaves 9. Connor Watson 10. Lindsay Collins 11. Angus Crichton 12. Victor Radley 13. Naufahu Whyte Bench: 14. Sandon Smith 15. Spencer Leniu 16. Nat Butcher 17. Terrell May  Reserves: 19. Sitili Tupouniua 21. Ethan King

Cut: 5. Dominic Young (minor hamstring), 20. Zach Dockar-Clay, 22. Siua Wong

Blaizing fullbacks

• Eels winger Blaize Talagi has scored five tries in his first eight NRL games.
• Roosters fullback James Tedesco has scored six tries in six games at CommBank Stadium.
• Eels fullback Clint Gutherson has scored a try in his last three games against the Roosters.

Roosters have wood over the Eels, recently

• The Eels have only won 2 of the last 10 games against the Roosters.
• The Eels have lost the last two-straight against the Roosters conceding 62 points.
• Two years ago (R15, 2022)at Commbank was the last time we beat the Roosters (26-16)

The R14 Monday King's Birthday loss wasn't the best way to honour King Gutho's 200th NRL game.

Last Starts

Left and Right 

• The Cowboys scored all their three tries on the Roosters' right-edge where Walker is - with the wining try exploiting an isolated Walker.
• The Dogs scored all their four tries on the Eels' vulnerable left-edge, taking advantage of compressed inside. The attacking prowess and speed of Chrichton (a double), Wilson (a double) and Tracey proved pivotal and exploited the speed-challenged Asi who playing out of his regular NRL position.

Eels v Dogs L22-18 (R14)

• The Eels had the lion's share of possession 53% (especially first half 56%) and territory battle (60%), offloads (12-2), more opportunities in the Dogs' red zone (33-22 tackles in 20m), and won the penalty count (9-4).
• The Dogs did more with less ball they had winning linebreaks (8-4), and tackle busts (34-26).
• The Dogs did better defensively, missing fewer tackles (26-34), despite making more tackles (338-296).

Table: Points margins; the red dot (Eels errors) showing momentum shifts.

One of the fatal flaws the Eels face is a lack of sustained resilience and their inability to defend their errors and mistakes. It changed momentum twice (in particular Cartwright and Dylan errors) and it snowballed.

When the Dogs were put under enormous pressure mid-way through the second half - through sin-bins and a mountain of errors and penalties - with the Eels seemingly in some control of the game at 18-10, they were able to defend their way through it.

Sustained leadership was another game changer. Chrichton's leadership was also pivotal, as he was barking orders all game long. He's more than just a weapon on their right edge.

In comparison, our halves turned off somewhat during the second stanza.

There was also a moment of dignified, inspirational sportsmanship by Joe O. 

Roosters v Cowboys L18-16 (R13)

• The Cowboys had more possession (53%) and territory (58%), more linebreaks (6-4), more opportunities in the red zone (37-20 tackles in 20m), less errors (7-9), and penalty count (8-4). 
• The Roosters missed less tackles than the Cowboys (31-47) despite making for more tackles (359-317), got more set restarts (4-0) and made more tackle busts (47-31). The Roosters, unlike the Eels, can often handle-less possession and lower completions backing their defence.

Roosters perform well after byes, recently

The Roosters have won 7 of the last 9 times they've come off the byes over the last seven years (since 2017, losing only to the Panthers and Storm).

Commbank helps

 The Eels have not beaten the Roosters outside of Parramatta since 2008 - for sixteen years.

The Eels have also only one won game outside of Parramatta since mid-2023 (after R17).

So, it's good we're here.

The Eels have won four of their six games at CommBank this year.

The Eels win around half of their games against the Roosters here, in recent times - winning 2 of the last 4. That trend has continued for the last 16 years, since 2008 (Eels 6 / 11 wins at 55%).

Barrett: on the Chooks and the Elephant in the Room

Trent Barrett, yesterday, said he believed the Roosters have one of the best if not the best rosters in the competition.

"Their back five is big, their middles are big, and they've got a couple of good halves in there, and the Australian Captain is the fullback."

"We're going to need to be at our best to beat them."

"But the last two weeks we've been pretty good. But, we've still got to improve in a few areas."

"This game, in the context of our season, is massive for us"

"Leading into a bye, it's a big one."

The Eels are six points outside the eight with just 4 wins and 9 losses all season. To have any hope of sneaking into the top eight, they'd need to win 9 / 11 games which is an unlikely chapter in most fairytales.

They face the Roosters (twice), Storm, Panthers, Broncos. Although, they did in 2009 when they were also 3rd-last (14th) at round 15, the Hayne Plane is not around.

At not far off full strength, albeit without strike wingers Dom Young and Joseph Sua'ali'i, the Roosters should account for the Eels who may offer a spirited 50-60 minutes.

For the Eels to win, almost everything to go their way, balls will need to stick and for the Roosters will need to be below their best to stand a chance. 

When asked about the "elephant in the room" - the ongoing head coaching saga and his own job - Barrett calmly glanced it down to fine leg for a soft four.  

"That's not my concern. My job is to make sure the players are focused on what they're doing. And to make sure we prepare them well," Barrett noted.

"They've (Jim Sarantinos and Sean McElduff) been really good with their communication and everything. Jim and Sean are doing a good job, and they've got a job to do as leaders of the club. They're doing that and we understand that."

"We just have to make sure we win. We Owe that to the club and the fans."