There's no substitute for the hard yards as Anderson's Eels begin to hit their straps - SMH 09/08/2009 - Eels Blogs

Daniel Anderson has been labelled a disciplinarian and described as uncompromising - and that's just by his own players - but the Parramatta coach wouldn't have it any other way.''It's fair for players to say that I'm a tough coach. I'm a coach that has a set of core values to how I would like us to play as a team,'' said Anderson.He was the first rugby league coach to win the prestige BBC coach of the year award when he took over St Helens in 2006 - and in doing so pipped the likes of Manchester United's Sir Alex Ferguson.''Discipline, commitment, attitude and honesty are some of those values. I'm continually striving for success and better ways to create it, and that's something the players have to embrace, too.''I try and be as honest as I can with a squad and the players, so I've made no secret of that.''As the Eels prepare to continue their thrilling late-season charge for the finals against the Knights this afternoon, Anderson has credited those very values, and the players' eventual willingness to accept them, for getting the side within striking distance after a horror first-half of the season.They've done it without their first-choice halves pairing of Feleti Mateo and Kris Keating, too.''It's taken us, as a unit, a while to encompass all of those values, and individually, it's taken one or two players a long time to understand that if you're going to be a great player in our game you've got to have core values like these,'' Anderson said.''But you can see it, and I certainly can, in their performances over the last month, that everyone has embraced that.''I know I have a job to do but I'm also as much as a rugby league fan as the next person, and I love watching rugby league. And at the moment, I'm enjoying watching our team.''While Anderson knows he put some noses out of joint in trying to turn the Eels into a premiership force, albeit a drawn-out process, he said it hadn't been all one-way traffic at Parramatta Stadium.Just as he's happy to dish out some brutal truths, the former Warriors coach is similarly welcome to any criticisms and ideas that can benefit his team's cause.''It takes you a couple of off-seasons and seasons to recognise the individual personalities in the team and the strengths they have, and then adapt your game towards them. And we're starting to get there now,'' Anderson said.''As I've begun to understand individual players better, I've been able to work on our game plan to get the best out of those individuals and the team. It's a constant work in progress.''I'm understanding the personalities and individual characteristics of players like Krisnan Inu, Jarryd Hayne and the younger guys like Tim Mannah, better. The same goes for Eric Grothe, who has been known to drift in and out of games at times. He's had some very consistent performances and some highly involved performances of late. I don't think he's drifted out of any games in the last few weeks. He's been up to his eyeballs in games, which is very pleasing for me as a coach. And very pleasing for him as a player.''And just as importantly, I understand that there is a tremendous amount of effort and courage required to play the game at first-grade level.''So despite the media scrutiny, player backlashes and bookies' odds on him being the next coach sacked before the end of his tenure, Anderson insisted he made the right decision to return to the NRL after three years in Super League.''And at the end of the day, I love rugby league, so I don't take any day for granted as a coach of an NRL team,'' he said.''I try and enjoy every game, every day, which has been hard sometimes, but I've found my return to the NRL very enjoyable on a whole.''I look forward to every day, and I think the players are too.''FROM SMH 09/08/2009... I LOVE THIS GUY!

"Well obviously you can't medically retire if you want to play, Matto needs to agree to it. He might feel he has 2-3 years left and wants that salary."

"Yeah our centres and wingers are interchangeable. Do you know if Joash has had any previous experience on wing or centre? It sure is a relief to have a fb replacement at ready if unthinkable happens, coz that was always a huge concern and gutho…"

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RealEel August 9, 2009 at 9:59am

I would love to see Eric Grothe get back to his open field running best. He has been sensational as a bash and barge player and try finisher in recent seasons, but we haven't seen him use his speed and strength in open field play. When was the last time Eric scored a 50+ meter try?

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There's no substitute for the hard yards as Anderson's Eels begin to hit their straps - SMH 09/08/2009

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