THE Parramatta Eels are struggling to make any impact in this year's premiership because coach Stephen Kearney has turned his players into unimaginative robots with little skill, talent or ability.
Statistics from the opening three rounds reveal alarming details of how Kearney has shackled the team and turned them into a dull, boring and predictable bunch of easybeats.
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THE Parramatta Eels are struggling to make any impact in this year’s premiership because coach Stephen Kearney has turned his players into unimaginative robots with little skill, talent or ability.
Statistics from the opening three rounds reveal alarming details of how Kearney has shackled the team and turned them into a dull, boring and predictable bunch of easybeats.
Even the TAB put out a market last night betting $21 that the club wouldn’t win a game all season.
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Against the Cowboys on Saturday night, the entire team made one line break and had just one offload in 80 minutes of football. No wonder they were belted 42-6.I pointed out in this column a couple of weeks ago how prop Tim Mannah offloaded the football only three times all last season.
In three games this season, Parramatta have offloaded just 10 times and made only six line breaks.
Even ordinary sides like the Gold Coast Titans average more than 12 offloads per game.
Kearney thinks he’s still an assistant coach at Melbourne Storm or in charge of the Kiwi Test side.
The Storm can grind away like Parramatta do. The difference is they have Billy Slater, Cooper Cronk and Cameron Smith to create havoc in attack.
The same with the Kiwis. It’s OK to try to play disciplined, mistake-free football when you have Benji Marshall, Kieran Foran and Kevin Locke to attack.
Parramatta were huge flops last season but at least Kearney had the excuse of inheriting an ordinary side from Daniel Anderson and the old coaching staff.
Not any more. I cannot believe the Eels are now in discussions to extend his contract. What they should be doing is hauling him before the board and issuing a please explain.
The players and coach owe their fans an apology for the terrible performance on Saturday night. It was simply unacceptable.
Poor Nathan Hindmarsh is looking old, slow and tired, which is hardly surprising considering he has tirelessly carried the team for so many years.
Without Fuifui Moimoi, there is no impact in the forwards.
Hindmarsh said afterwards that it was a matter of working harder.I think it’s more a case of releasing the shackles and giving the players a licence to use the football.
This Parramatta board swept into power in 2009 with a promise of a successful new era.
They have fixed the financial mess that was left by the previous management but the football team has gone backwards.
It’s all right to have a thriving leagues club that makes $10 million a year, but the Eels need competition points.
Fans are understandably getting impatient. They have suffered for long enough.
Replies
look at the amount of missed tackles!!
yeah its a joke, contract extension ?? wtf. cant believe that one.
panthers game should be spicy
Hope we fix the missed tackles up this week
Parramatta NRL coach Stephen Kearney maintains he's the right man for the job and dismissed claims he has turned the struggling Eels' side into a team of robots.
Saturday's 42-6 humiliation against North Queensland was the Eels' third successive defeat - the first time the club has lost its first three games of the season since 1991.
However, the New Zealand Test coach is confident he can turn things around and is under no illusions as to the size of the task.
"I was quite adamant it was our defence on Saturday but, overall, our performance wasn't up to scratch full stop," Kearney said.
"Our focus is making sure we turn up on Friday night and put in a performance for our fans. I have confidence in everyone here including myself."
The Eels managed a paltry one offload and a single line break in Townsville in addition to missing a staggering 42 tackles.
However, Kearney denied his team play in a sterile fashion.
"I think robots would have done a better job in defence the other night," he said.
"I haven't read that about us playing like robots, but I don't think it's true and not an issue."
Kearney played down being under pressure, despite his side only recording six wins in 27 games under his leadership.
"My focus is about making sure I prepare the side in the best possible way," he said.
"We'll all keep working and I'm confident things will change."
Eels skipper Nathan Hindmarsh said there were some home truths expressed between the players after the game.
"It was quite embarrassing to be honest," Hindmarsh said.
"As a group, we're better than that. As a performance, it was not good enough and poor and we all know it.
"But sometimes the harder you try, the harder it becomes. But everyone here is trying, I can assure you."
Do you have a link?