Eels Blogs

It’s been a difficult fortnight for Parra. Time to reflect on how we got here, who has done what and what it means to be Parra.

The previous Boards: Highly culpable for this cap and TPA mess. Will go down in Rugby League history as the Board that cheated the cap and won two spoons. Left a huge mess for the current Board. Have not been criticised nearly enough for getting Parra in to this mess.

The leakers: Inexcusable, unforgiveable, execrable behaviour to bring down your own team for personal gain and personal grievances. May include some previous board members and previous players.

The Club structure: well discussed in other blogs. Time for structural and governance reform and professional management. This does not mean privatisation.

The NRL salary cap and TPAs: exposed as highly flawed and widely flouted. How any club can keeps arms length from TPAs when planning a team and a budget seems impossible.

The widespread rorting: It seems that everybody except Mr Greenberg and Mr Weeks knows that the cap and TPAs are widely rorted and have been for years. No need to investigate, nothing to see here. Go Kate. Tell em it aint so.

The current Board: Have been widely vilified from within and without. We still haven’t heard all the evidence or their replies and they deserve the right to respond. They inherited a big financial mess and a mediocre team. They seemed to be doing their best to deal the way out of it, hired a great coach, got a new training facility, made some great buys and gave us something to cheer about on the paddock. Appears they lacked some business nous, hired the wrong people, bent some rules and have been white anted by factions and traitorous leakers and now they and we will pay the price.

The Media: If anyone on this site ever buys a Telegraph again it should only be for personal hygiene practices conducted in the smallest room in the house. Many other radio and TV journos have joined with this rabble to jump on the bash Parra, repeat rumours, guilty until proven guilty bandwagon and they have disgraced themselves and their profession.

The Lynch Mob: you know who you are. Hang em high then maybe find out the facts, the mitigating circumstances, the cheating at other clubs.

Todd Greenberg: Sanctimonious, hyprocritical, this will make my career for being tough Todd. Other blogs have documented the double standards of this sole judge, jury and executioner. Here is the penalty Parra and by the way, dont ask to see the transcript of interview with my mate Scott.

Scott Seward: don’t start me. Incompetent or conniving? It doesn’t matter. He belongs in the same place as used Telegraphs (see above).

Ian Schubert: Hard to know. Did us no favours with Izzy. Hasn’t seemed to have helped much now- under the cap at the start of the season, less than 570k last week. He has not been able to get either claim to stick. May not be his fault.

The Coach: BA comes out of this with enhanced reputation. Dignified, gracious, tower of strength, man manager. Needs to be paid a lot more.

The Team: Love em. Sorry about Peats but all things considered, the least worst option. I still get that visceral feeling in my guts when that blue and gold team runs on to the field.

The 1 eyed eels tribe: Best fans in the game. May well be the most ecclectic also. From the blogs you can discern that there are rednecks and gentlemen, callow youths and old farts, right wing neocons, bleeding heart liberals, quasi racists, misogynists, business people, working men, professionals, westies, out of towners, jokers, clowns, abusers, peacemakers, thinkers, experts, even a few opinionated sheilas. You would never get such a group together anywhere else. Love youse all (well mostly all).

Friday Night: Cant wait. I will be there with the same girl that came with me to a game at Cumberland Oval in 1981 to cheer on my team. Same girl, same team.

Go Parra.