More questions than answers as Eels return to the winners circle

It’s not a question of whether Parramatta are ‘back’ or not before the NRL finals, because victory over a Cowboys side riding a nine-game losing streak like it’s a broken down mule was never going to instantly turn them into a premiership force.

It’s more a conversation of exactly how ‘back’ they are after a 32-16 win over North Queensland on the Gold Coast. And the answer to that is: A bit. They are a bit back. Just a smidgen. Brad Arthur and Clint Gutherson have been around too long to arrive at any other conclusion.

Parramatta’s form slump has been well chronicled of late. A top-four fixture for much of the season, they now find themselves excluded from the conversation when it comes to likely grand finalists. Melbourne and Penrith have always been front and centre, Souths are thereabouts now, while Manly and the Roosters are the ones eavesdropping around the water cooler.

The Eels? It feels like they’ve been friend-zoned. Look, they are great fun to have around the post-season party but probably will be safely at home, tucked up in bed, listening to Adele and binging on ice cream, by the time the real action starts.

Parramatta were up 14-6 at half-time on Saturday night yet the devil was in the details. Not only had strike winger Maika Sivo been taken from the field with a medial injury to his right knee that could spell the end of his season, the Eels had completed just 16 of 25 sets, a dire 64 per cent.

The Cowboys weren’t good enough to take advantage of that sort of attacking mediocrity, especially with Jason Taumalolo missing from the line-up. They went close, though, and things may have looked a little different if Hamiso Tabuai-Fido had been awarded a try after officials detected the slightest of juggles as he struggled through defenders.

Eels fullback Clint Gutherson gets a deft pass away against the Cowboys on Saturday night.Credit:Getty

But Parramatta would get no such favours from the likes of the Panthers or Storm if they continue to treat the ball with such flippancy. The contest would have been over by the break and the second half only serving to decide the margin, not the result.

Waqa Blake, Will Penisini and Shaun Lane all scored in the first half, the latter when Coen Hess produced one of the worst reads of the season as he mindlessly fired off his line to leave the rest of his edge helpless to stop the tall back-rower’s charge.

The Eels muddled around for a while to start the second half, handing over more ball, which the Cowboys were usually kind enough to hand straight back, before Will Smith and Gutherson scored in the space of three minutes to put some space between the teams on the scoreboard.

At 26-6, it looked as if the Eels would be able to notch up a decent score. Instead, Cowboys winger Laitia Moceidreke flopped over on debut with 15 minutes left to play, then Jake Granville scored to make things semi-respectable with six minutes on the clock.

Maika Sivo’s knee injury soured the Eels’ win.Credit:Getty

Dylan Brown squashed any thoughts of a late upset when he picked up the crumbs as Tabuai-Fidow spilled a nightmare Mitchell Moses bomb. Tabuai-Fidow looks to be an outstanding centre and the Cowboys should be mindful about trying to turn him into a star fullback if it’s not a natural fit.

Any celebrations are likely to be short-lived for the Eels. The have the Storm next week, then Penrith. Ouch.

Meanwhile, the Cowboys are one match closer to a rollicking season-ending day of Zoom Bingo, or whatever is allowed in the COVID bubble. Let the good times roll.

Phil Lutton is a sports reporter.

Share this post