The Commbank crowd, the second-largest of the season, rose as one, applauding. Ryley Smith’s passion-drenched face said it all as the Eels closed the year winning five of their last seven.
It summed up how Eels fans felt watching the 66–10 annihilation of the Knights. A win that not only shattered records but lit the fuse for next season.
It was the Eels' biggest-ever win over Newcastle (founded in 1988) eclipsing the 50–0 of 2005.
It also marked three straight victories, something not seen since mid-2023.
The win came despite some flaws. More errors (10 v 6). Worse completions (76% v 86%). Some wasted chances down Penisini’s right edge, and again points conceded down that edge where most have been this year. To be fair, the Knights end with nine straight losses were on their worst stretch since the spoon years of 2015–17, post-Wayne Bennett.
The Eels’ turnaround this season has been Kaizen in Motion.
A horror start: 1 from 5, rock bottom, 17th.
A mid-year crawl: 4 from 12, up one to16th.
A blazing finish: 5 from 7, climbing to 11th. A season high.
It was seeded from mid-last year when the club and Jason Ryles, architect of one of the club’s biggest-ever clean-outs, set a simple plan. Leg speed. Skill. Constant improvement: A commitment to Kaizen muralized in the sheds and at the COE. To becoming better players, better people.
So out went 1,500 NRL games’ worth of experience: King Gutho, RCG, Joe Ofahengaue, Ryan Matterson, Bryce Cartwright, Shaun Lane, Brendan Hands, Maiko Sivo, and Bailey Simonsson now on the outer. In came the energy of youth in rookies such as Iongi, Ryley Smith, Jordan Samrani, Kitione Kautoga, Sam Tuivati, TDS, Joash Papali’i, alongside experienced recruits like Dylan Walker, Jack Williams, The Fox, and JDB (arriving next year) to fill the experience void.
But The Plan was swiftly put to the sword in the first forty minutes of the season.
"It was 46-6 at half-time in Melbourne (Round One), and it's something I'll never forget to the day I die," Ryles confessed in the post game pressor tonight. A moment Jim Sarantinos called the Mike Tyson moment: "Everyone has a plan, until they're punched in the face".
What changed? They got back up. And kept getting back up after every fall. They stuck to their own plan. Kept working on the the little things. Defensive grit. Top-four over the last seven weeks. Hungry support play. Desperate kick chases. Hunting in packs. Belief. And a few more balls have stuck.
"She was a wild ride early on, but we just had to hold our nerve," Ryles explained.
"And that wasn't just me. That was the whole footy club. CEO, GM, Chairman. We're very aligned in regards to what we want to do."
Internal alignment is everything, regardless of external noise and circumstances. But the work must continue. The War, The Rise, has only just begun.
A picture tells a thousand words: round 27.
The Fox celebrates another hat-trick. 14 runs. 194m. 2 linebreaks. Hopgood joins in the party. 72 minutes. Eels top tackler 38 tackles. 1 miss. 14 runs. 114m.
Zac Lomax, the Lion-hearted Warrior who wears his heart on his sleeve (Getty). 23 runs. 211m. 70m post contact. 4 offloads. 1 linebreak. 13 tackle busts.
Moses' celebrates his first NRL hat-trick with the Hayne Plane (Getty).
Dylan Brown kicks the last goal, for a proper send-off, before greeting his new team mates who thanked him for the spoon.
Eels' Highest points scored
| 1 | 74 points | 23/08/2003 - Eels 74 - Cronulla 4 |
| 2 | 68 points | 18/07/1999 - Eels 68 - Wests 10 |
| 3 | 68 points | 02/09/2007 - Eels 68 - Brisbane 22 |
| 4 | 66 points | 07/09/2025 - Eels 66 - Knights 10 |
| 4 | 66 points | 29/04/2001 - Eels 66 - Wests Tigers 12 |
| 6 | 64 points | 17/03/2002 - Eels 64 - Penrith 6 |
| 7 | 62 points | 20/08/1978 - Eels 62 - Newtown 18 |
| 8 | 62 points | 29/07/2001 - Eels 62 - North Qld 0 |
| 9 | 60 points | 06/09/2024 - Eels 60 - Wests Tigers 26 |
| 10 | 58 points | 15/09/2019 - Eels 58 - Brisbane 0 |
Eels' Biggest Winning Margin
| 1 | 70 points | 23/08/2003 - Eels 74 - Cronulla 4 |
| 2 | 62 points | 29/07/2001 - Eels 62 - North Qld 0 |
| 3 | 58 points | 18/07/1999 - Eels 68 - Wests 10 |
| 58 points | 17/03/2002 - Eels 64 - Penrith 6 | |
| 58 points | 15/09/2019 - Eels 58 - Brisbane 0 | |
| 6 | 56 points | 07/09/2025 - Eels 66 - Knights 10 |
| 7 | 54 points | 29/04/2001 - Eels 66 - Wests Tigers 12 |
| 54 points | 10/08/2002 - Eels 54 - South Sydney 0 | |
| 9 | 52 points | 12/08/2005 - Eels 56 - Bulldogs 4 |
| 10 | 51 points | 11/04/1982 - Eels 54 - Canberra 3 |
Stats are sourced from nrl.com (game day) and The Rugby League Project. Images are from Getty Images.
Replies
Great summary.
"A commitment to Kaizen muralized in the sheds and at the COE."
Is that really true? I thought this kaizen thing was something you made up.
Thanks, Obums.
I can’t take any credit for it whatsoever. Ryles and the players made a commitment to Kaizen in the off-season, and that’s why the theme of “improvement” keeps coming up.
It’s simple, yet wise. Focus your habits and actions on being better than yesterday’s version of yourself. It’s an effective use of energy. Onto controllables rather than wasting it on things you can’t control. Too often, we burn energy comparing ourselves to what others have, do, or say.
This approach also lines up with leading sports psychologists. Dr Phil Jauncey, Bennett’s long-time co-pilot and one of Australia’s best, stresses positive actions rather than chasing positive mindsets or motivation, which he sees as illusory. Also, Dr Scott Goldman, the NBA Warriors’ performance guru, who is all about raising baseline performance. We’ve even started using his assessment tools with our juniors. A good move.
I don’t know if we’ll break that title drought, a cursed albatross drought we carry, but we’re on the right path.
There was a photo during warmups that showed a big Kaizen banner in the sheds earlier in the season.
Amazing end of season result BUT....next year will be the litmus test, expectation is high, and when expection is high at Parra the team has folded everytime.......next year is an unfortunate milestone year 40 YEARS, we have a lot of hope now, 2026 needs to deliver at the very least a top 8 finish................lets see how this squad reactes to expectation and pressure..............its a make or break year 26 no doubt about it...........lets see what magic MON can deliver in recruitment and see how our roster is bolstered and what lays ahead in 2026 because at the moment the jury is still out.......
PG, absolutely fair point.
In the NRL era, it's rare for us to win three-straight or more to end the season (3 from 28 years). 2001, 2022, and now 2025. Rarer than a blue moon. We fell away the next year (1st to 6th in 2002, 4th to10th in 2023).
But 2022 gets over-romanticised. Even Moses admitted we were up and down, just “content” and "surprised" to make the GF. Jeckyll-Hyde. Classic BA era. Our decline was really years earlier than the grand final. Our defence, the attitude gauge, peaked in 2020 then kept falling until hit rock bottom by 2024.
We’re finally starting to turn that five-year trend around, but yeah 2026 is big. If we treat the end of a season like a GF, or get carried away, we risk crashing. Think the Souths game or second-year syndrome.
The real window opens 2027–28 when the cap clears. That off-season is when we can build proper coherency.
That was a fun game to watch. Eels were toying with the Knights who had clearly given up. Sometimes a team needs one of those games to inspire confidence and provide some fun in the group. This will be great energy to take into the off season.
Ryles would be right to feel vindicated going into off season. His plan works and the player's faith in him will be rock solid. This is a great platform to work from.
Aside from needing a couple of quality middles, I see Ryles' biggest challenge as how he can handle the change in player attitudes and motivations going forward. In a rebuild year he's galvanised the group and given many youngsters a debut opportunity. Those players would be feeling grateful for every morsel of NRL they've been lucky enough to get this year. How will things change when these guys feel they now own their positions and it's their rightful place? Success can change people and eveyone handles it differently. However Ryles has proven to be an adept man manager so I have confidence he'll handle those challenges when they inevitably arise.
I think the fact there are a few young guys coming through may serve as motivation. Ryles has shown he's happy to drop someone and bring in a new face. But Ryle's focus on "playing for the badge" I think is him reminding that every player who pulls on the jersey is there for the good of the team and the club, not their own ego.
One thing I will say, seeing him from a distance at the ground on the big screen he looked pissed when making mistakes. One play in 2nd half where ball fell to the floor I saw him moving around the box quite aggressively.
He's holding the standard like Bellamy, he's not trying to be Bellamy but no matter how much you lead by you keep going. We could have put 80 on. Plus that Marzhew try, he looked pissed right off.
It was a great game, and nice to see our team saw a carcass and did not hesitate to tear it to shreds and show their superiority.
So many players got some nice moments to take into the off season.
Great performances all over, but I wanna shoutout Lomax and Hopgood. Two Rep players showing their true form.
Some other minor notes:
1. Kelma Tuilagi. Most improved. Moses just loves giving him the ball in pockets.
2. Tallyn Da Silva. Saw a glimpse of his best, but has a lot to learn. He can be our most improved next year.
3. Josh Addo-Carr is just still an elite winger.
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Finally, it's just so nice to hear Ryles talk. He seems to have such clarity about what he wants. You can see how calm Moses is around him.
The real test is now continuing this next season and to add the mentality and going agian and again every match. But I'm backing them!
Well put and agree
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