Parramatta Eels Blog: The 1Eyed Eel

Parramatta's favourite son Nathan Hindmarsh has given a serve on Channel Nine news to the "paper-thin" fans, who boo the players from the park.

Hindmarsh said words to the effect that "he'd like to see them get out there and do a better job themselves" as the Parramatta players raleighed around their embattled coach Brian Smith.

The players will have a meeting this week to see what problems they can address as they seek to turn around their losing streak.

Ok, so after five straight losses – none of which came against the competition’s top tier of teams – things aren’t looking great. But the 1Eyed Eel is forever the optimist, so we’re found some things to keep our spirits up.

Firstly, the competition for the bottom four spots in the finals is that close, the Eels are still only two points outside the eight. As the Tigers have shown, it only takes a string of three wins to put yourself right back in contention. Of course, whether the Eels are capable of that is another question.

The Eels were flogged but it really was a day when nothing went right. What would have happened if the referee hadn’t missed that first dropped ball from the Tigers? Craig Stapleton hasn’t dropped a ball all year and then fumbles with a try beckoning. Chris Thorman drops the ball over the line, Ashley Graham bombs a try. It can’t get any worse. Surely.

There were promising signs. Things haven’t quite clicked for Ashley Graham but he’s definitely the answer to the centre problem. He looks dangerous when he gets the ball as he has both the pace and strength to create opportunities. With Eric Grothe on his outside, 1Eyed Eel thinks that can develop into a lethal combination. Many think Ben Smith is at least as good as Graham. He must be given his chance this week as Widders is not the answer.

Michael Witt started awfully but he would have taken great confidence from his try. He really fitted into the five-eighth role very well, demonstrating his ability to make breaks with his running game complementing a good passing game. He’s also a better goal kicking alternative than Luke Burt.

Chris Thorman has undoubted potential. He has an amazing long pass and is very much a trier. Meanwhile, youngster Tim Smith successfully made the step up to Premier League scoring two tries and leading the reserves to victory. Adam Dykes reportedly also had a good game in reserves. There has to be an answer to the number seven jersey in there, somewhere.

Jack Afamasaga was great. As an 18-year old debutant, he got heavily involved, made good metres, has pace, an offload and was generally impressive. The youngsters have shown that they can make the transition to the top grade. The good news is Parramatta has an absolute wealth of talented juniors and from that pack, there will be a good number of top line first graders.

And if Parramatta had of actually taken their chances, they should have easily come up with another 18 points which would have resulted in a respectable scoreline. Let’s remember the Tigers did beat the Bulldogs the week before and are definite finals contenders.

That’s about as much optimism as 1Eyed Eel can muster at this stage and probably about as much as any Eels fan could stomach. There is definitely a promising future there, it’s just a matter of how long Eels fans have to wait for the promise to translate into success.

Brian Smith admitted at the post match press conference that the pressure on him was as great as any in his 20 year coaching career.

When asked if this was his greatest coaching challenge, Smith said: "It's up there, times are very tough."

"I started coaching first grade in 1984 and this is a reminder that you get no credit points for doing 20 years' service. They were tough times at Illawarra and they are tough now but I fought my way through those times back with the Steelers."

"I feel pressure all the time in this job but I have no control over anything other than to coach. I'm doing that to the best of my ability so it is up to others to make any decisions. There are agendas in the game which are extremely fierce and the power of the media are stirring the pot."

"I know what I've got to do and I'll just stick at it the best I can. You feel pressured all the time in this job. I have no control over anything other than what I do as a coach, which is what I like to do and I will continue to do to the best of my ability. If others decide that's not good enough . . . that's the prerogative of being in professional sport.

"A lot of great coaches, and far better coaches than me, have the same experiences as me. Things just don't seem to run for you when you're in a certain passage of a season or career or whatever it might be. All I can say is that I'll keep working hard at it, and we've got a lot of good people in our organisation who won't back off. We'll keep trying hard."

That pot kept getting stirred today with The Daily Telegraph running a story: "Smith's days numbered".

The Australian wrote that "the noose is tightening around Brian Smith's neck" and reported that radio broadcaster Ray Hadley, who has been Smith's most vocal critic was at the ground holding up a sign that said "try" every time the Tigers went over.

In the Herald, Brian Smith went down in the Winners and Losers column as this week's Loser. "Another day, another loss for Parramatta and their outspoken coach. Yesterday's 33-6 drubbing from Wests Tigers makes it five defeats on end for the Eels - the past three by an average of 29 points. Despite the howls of disgruntled fans who have followed the once mighty club's slide since its grand-final appearance in 2001, the often prickly Smith still looks stuck fast to Parramatta, with the high costs involved in paying out his contract making those endorsements from his employers sound more convincing than they usually do in similarly troubled football clubs around the world."


The Tele did quote both Alan Overton and John Fitzgerald as saying even after another heavy loss, Smith had their support. Senior players also defended their boss.

In a Sydney Morning Herald article, Nathan Hindmarsh said: "We're missing a bit of confidence at the moment. Heads are down because we know we're a much better team than we're going. We've got Nathan Cayless and Aaron Cannings to come back from injury, Adam Peek is suspended and Adam Dykes and John Morris are in reserve grade, so it's not like we haven't got the team to do it. We've just got to get them on the paddock. I wish we could wait it out but it's up to the players - we've got to do something about it."

In the Telegraph article, Daniel Wagon siad: "We just haven't been good enough over the past few weeks. There seems to be all this pressure on 'Smithy' but there should be more blame on the players.

"We're the ones out there missing the tackles and dropping the ball. You blokes [media] need to look more at us."

At the press conference Smith was also asked why he had dropped both Adam Dykes and John Morris: "We're at the point where we have to take some risks".

Roy Masters in the Sydney Morning Herald put it succinctly when describing Parramatta's "comic's ineptitude".

"Parramatta's almost comic ineptitude was evident in their first set of six tackles, when they failed to execute a clearing kick. From the kick-off at 12-0, Michael Witt sent the ball over the sideline on the full. In the 43rd minute, the Eels' English halfback Chris Thorman sliced through only to lose the ball over the line. Two minutes later, centre Ashley Graham made a long break down the left-hand side before fumbling the ball. In the 56th minute, Craig Stapleton spilt the ball with a try certain. Then, two minutes after that, the Eels lost a scrum against the feed and were forced to watch, ignominiously, as Wests Tigers halfback Scott Prince kicked a field goal."

Masters wrote that the field was now splitting into contenders and pretenders and the Eels had now firmly dropped into the latter pack.

Wade McKinnon – 6 (35)
Not quite up there with his recent form, but he didn’t do much wrong.

Brett Anderson – 5 (5)
Made some effective runs out of dummy half, but looked a little out of his depth in defence and the Tigers targeted him

Ashley Graham – 5 (9)
Looked quite dangerous on occasions but some errors spoiled his game

Dean Widders – 5 (58)
Not fast enough to play centre.

Luke Burt – 5 (54)
Some kudos for trying to inject himself into the game, but had few opportunities

Michael Witt – 6 (6)
Started off horribly but grew in confidence as the game went on. Possibly, the only thing all game that would have brough a smile to Eels’ fans faces was Witt stepping through the defence on his way to a try. Will retain his spot and can only grow in confidence.

Chris Thorman – 5 (19)
Tried hard and played fairly. Should have scored a try but dropped it over the line. Failed to really organise the Parramatta attack, though. Has a fantastic long pass but jury is still out.

Michael Vella – 5 (54)
Eight hit-ups is not enough from Parramatta’s most senior forward. Worked hard in defence though.

James Webster – 5
Looked dangerous darting out of dummy half, but didn't do enough to stop Morris regaining his spot next week.

Justin Tsoulos – 4 (30)
Only four hit ups. We’ll give him one point per hitup.

Nathan Hindmarsh – 8
54 tackles and 15 hitups! But what is he doing taking up balls first and second hit-up. Either Hindy is trying to do, too much or the props just weren’t pulling their weight.

Lee Hopkins – 5 (20)
Ran with purpose and defended stoutly, but could have a higher workload.

Daniel Wagon – 6 (69)
Did a mountain of work in defence and provided an effective link to the backline when needed.

Shane Muspratt – 4 (13)
Given a golden opportunity to prove he’s good enough for first grade. He isn’t.

Mal Kaufusi – 3 (3)
Another golden opportunity missed. Two hit-ups. Backed to reggies, Mal.

Craig Stapleton – 6 (71)
Did his job off the bench, yet again.

Jack Afamagasa – 7 (7)
Great debut. Injected himself into the game and made good metres. Has pace, size and should have cemented his spot in the top grade.

What did you think of the player’s performance. Post a comment.

The Parramatta Eels have continued to leak points going down 33 to 6 to the Wests Tigers in front of a packed crowd at Leichardt Oval.

AAP wrote that "calls for Parramatta coach Brian Smith's sacking look set to reach a crescendo after the Eels were thrashed..."

Smith was quoted on the ABC website as saing: "I'm pretty low, I'm not enjoying this at all. I've been through it before and you try to remind yourselves that things pass.

"When teams are down as we are at the moment, you sometimes wonder if it's ever going to end, but it does."

The turning point of this game was the third tackle of the game when the Tigers lost the ball bringing it out from their line however somehow it was missed by the referee and both touch judges. Less than ten minutes later it was 12 to nil as the Eels exploited Parramatta's lax defence.

Continued poor defence, errors, penalties and a lack of cohesion in attack meant the Eels were never serious challengers to the Tigers.

What did you think of the game? Post a comment.

Parramatta supporters who want to see a new coach in place are going to rally outside Parramatta stadium before the side's clash with Manly, the Sun Herald reported today.

The Parramatta Eels have confirmed that Jamie Lyon can play for the Wee Waa Panthers, if Lyon agrees to certain changes in his contract, The Daily Telegraph has reported.

The story quoted an "Eels spokesperson" as saying: "He hasn't been cleared to play [for Wee Waa]. He's been offered an alteration of his current contract which would allow him to play [for the country side] if he agrees to the clauses."

UPDATE: The Sun Herald has reported that Lyon must agree not to play for another NRL club before the end of his contract at the end of 2006.

Feleti Mateo is the player likely to be dropped from the Eel's five man bench, according to a short piece in the Sydney Morning Herald.

Tigers coach Tim Sheens has told AAP he is wary of an Eels outfit staring down the barrel of four straight losses.

With cover stories in Big League and Rugby League Week slamming the Eels this week, Sheens realised the Eels know they have a point to prove.

"Obviously they are going to be highly motivated to play and the stories are only going to make it more so. They'll take that personally. When you aim the criticism at a club you aim at everybody and the players will take that pretty tough.

"We had a similar situation last year when we played Souths. They had been calling for (Souths coach) Paul Langmack's head ... and they came out and beat us. I would much prefer Parramatta to have been travelling along quite okay to be quite honest."

According to a report on Channel Ten news tonight, Jamie Lyon has again been refused a release from his contract but it is understood he will be allowed to play for Wee Waa under certain circumstances.

Who the hell is Jack Afamasaga, many Eels fans are asking this week with the second rower named on a five man NRL bench this week.

An article in Stuff.co.nz gives some insight into the 19 year old Kiwi who was scouted by Mark Horo in 2002.

Afamasaga played both League and Rugby as a school boy and despite plenty of interest in New Zealand rugby circles, he is now on the verge of making his NRL debut.

Parramatta's depth this year is proving crucial as the Eels this week are missing ten established first graders through injury or other reasons.

On the missing list are internationals Nathan Cayless, David Vaeliki and Jamie Lyon plus seven established first graders - Aaron Cannings, Luke O’Dwyer, Corey Pearson, Ronald Prince, Eric Grothe, Matt Peterson and Adam Peek.

The club's depth is best proven by the fact that despite having to promote players from Flegg and Premier League, the Eels are still winning in the lower grades.

The Sydney Morning Herald reported today that: "Parramatta coach Brian Smith said last night he had 'a couple of niggling injuries' for Sunday's Leichhardt Oval match with Wests Tigers and was sticking with the 18-man squad he named on Tuesday."

Chris Thoman, in a wide-ranging interview with RLFans.com, has admitted that the pace of Australian football has taken some getting used to, but he believes he’s now adapted.

“The sheer pace of the game is one of the things I’ve had to get used to the most,” Thorman said in the interview.

“The sheer intensity. You don’t get any time on the ball. The defence is up in your face, you know you’ve caught the ball and you make a decision in a split second, whereas in England you get a bit more time.”

However, he claims that he has not gotten “used to it here now and it doesn’t bother me”.

Thorman said he was happy with his form in the NRL, although he was annoyed about a key missed tackle against the Dragons. Still, he realises he has to earn the fans respect.

“I’ve heard good things from the fans, you’ve just got to earn their respect, but you only want to worry about things on the field. There’s no two ways about it, you’ve simply gotta perform on the field and that’s the only way you’ll get it,” he said.

Thorman, who Mick Vella has dubbed George (as in Foreman), said that the Eels were an incredibly professional club and that he had the greatest of respect for Brian Smith.

Asked how he was finding playing under Smith, who has a reputation as an intense coach, Thorman replied: “I’ve heard a few stories about him but I’ve got a massive amount of respect for him. He’s the most knowledgable person you’d want to meet. Anything about RL and you could talk to him for hours about it.”

He said the fact that players would sit around a white board studiously listening to what Smith had to say, was a positive thing, not a negative.

“They have that much respect for him. Even after the game, everyone was obviously very disappointed that we were just sort of sat there. But everyone knows not to do anything, like take your boots off or your strapping off, cos Brian’s gonna say something so you just sort of sit there and wait. We sat for about 10 to 15 minutes to hear what he has to say.

Brett Kenny has told AAP that Parramatta should pay out coach Brian Smith's contract.

"If the club keep performing the way they are then no-one's going to want to play for them," said Kenny, who played 265 games for the Eels from 1980 to 1993.

"If that happens people are still going to blame the coach, who ends up leaving with a bad reputation and the club don't perform and can't buy anyone.

However, in the same article Eric Grothe gave a resounding endorsement of Smith.

"It hasn't been happening for the past four weeks but as soon as we win two in a row everyone will shut up.

Brian's a great coach. He's doing everything the coach should be doing and more. There's only so much a coach can do. We've only got ourselves to blame."

Only yesterday, 1Eyed Eel commented that last week’s team that took on the Dragons was ill-balanced, with too many ballplayers and not enough runners. With his team this week, Smith has moved to address that imbalance.

While most attention will be focused elsewhere, 1Eyed Eel feels the most significant change to the way Parramatta will play is the promotion of James Webster to the hooking position. Having a running hooker, who can also kick the ball, means the opposition will need to keep a close eye on the ruck area or they can expect Webster to cut through them. Morris, aside from making too many mistakes, has simply not provided enough thrust from dummy half.

Morris is probably a victim of Smith’s early tactics that saw him given the second playmaker role. In filling that role, he seems to have forgotten that the dummy half’s primary job is to exploit the ruck area and as such he had to move. The safe option was to move him to the position he filled admirably last year at five-eighth, but Smith has decided it’s time that Michael Witt gets his shot. In the meantime, Morris moves back to reggies where he can learn how to run again.

Michael Witt comes into five-eighth rather than half. 1Eyed Eel believes that’s his long-term position. While he is not big, he has a good step and leg strength and the makings of a promising running game. Remember the game against Souths last year, when he twice cut the defence to ribbons? His job must be too create tries, while Thorman organises the attack.

Thorman has showed signs he is capable of filling that role but he has not been decisive enough, to date. If Parramatta is to win this weekend he must perform.

This week, Thorman won’t have the pressure of having Adam Dykes on the field at the same time. The pair didn’t gel at all and seemed to be competing rather than playing together. Rather, he reforms the combination he built with Michael Witt in Premier League and will have no excuses if he doesn’t impress.

It’s a brave decision to drop Dykes. He has been Parramatta’s only attacking force in the backline for most of the year and arguably, as that has become apparent to opposition teams, that has placed him under too much pressure. However, his game has not adapted to either the added pressure or the changing nature of Parramatta’s team, minus Cayless and last week Hindmarsh. The fact that he has been moved to five-eighth in reggies and Tim Smith has been promoted, does not augur well for his prospects over the rest of the year especially if Thorman and Witt work.

Brett Anderson is an exciting selection. Injuries to Eric Grothe and Matt Peterson (at this stage it is unclear what those injuries are) have given him a chance to see if he can take his breathtaking scoring feats into the top grade. 1Eyed Eel would suggest the man on the opposite wing, Luke Burt will probably be the player he will be fighting against for the number two jumper once Eric Grothe is fit again. We consider both better options that Matt Peterson, who despite being given ample opportunity has not gotten rid of the errors from his game.

What ever happened to Parramatta’s big boppers. With the exception of Justin Tsoulos, the Eels now have quite a small pack. Vella, Webster, Hopkins, Hindmarsh and Wagon aren’t going to intimidate any team. This shouldn’t pose too much of a problem this week because the Tigers don’t have a menacing pack, either.

Fui Fui Moi Moi might have been unlucky to be dropped for Mal Kaufusi, but Kaufusi probably deserves a shot after giving good service in Premier League all year.

Exciting young forwards Jack Afamagasa and Feleti Mateo are both named on a five-man bench. 1Eyed Eel hopes both play and Shane Muspratt drops out, as Lee Hopkins can cover hooker when its time to give Webster a breather.

Whatever happens, it will be great to see some of Parramatta’s young talent given a go. Youngsters like Manly’s Brett Stewart, Canterbury’s Sonny Bill-Williams and Brisbane’s Karmichael Hunt are proving that youth is no barrier to success in the NRL. Indeed, St George’s young dragons last week showed the gap between the lower grades and NRL is perhaps not as large as people sometimes make out. We can certainly expect to see a more enthusiastic outfit this week and if Witt and Thorman click 1Eyed Eel thinks the Eels can start to turn it around.

Who deserved to go? Who didn't? Post a comment.

Michael Witt has told the Daily Telegraph that this week's match will "feel like his debut all over again".

"I'm not going to go into the game thinking I can change the whole situation of the team but I'm definitely glad to be back," Witt told the paper.

"I think at the end of the day we've got to do whatever we can to win. I'm sure we will have 17 blokes ready to play."

In the same article, Michael Vella said he thought the team needed a shakeup.

"We just need a win, anything just to win".

Vella said the Morris sacking was a shock because "he's played well for us this year", but "Brian is the coach and he knows what he's doing."

The club has Faith in Smith and "everyone is still behind him".

Do you think Witt is up to the challenge? Post a comment.

Seven has reported that John Morris believes he is a "scapegoat for Parramatta's slump".

"I am disappointed. Since coming to the club I've been the only player to start every game.I've paid the price for our team going bad.

"I thought my form's been OK in a side that hasn't been going well. I've had to wear it a bit. As far as everyone else, it's probably a lesson for them that no one's position is safe and he (Smith) is not afraid to make changes.

"With the number of changes he's made, he's obviously just looking for a few fresh faces to come in and try to get the ball rolling for us."

Did Morris deserve the chop? Make a comment.

Eric Grothe will have scans on an hamstring injury on Wednesday, according to Seven, while Matt Peterson is unavailable this week due to either a leg or shoulder injury, depending on which report you believe.

Brian Smith has cut a swathe through the team that was flogged last week by St George dropping Junior Langi, Adam Dykes, Chris Armit, John Morris, Chris Muckert and Fui Fui Moi Moi. Neither, Eric Grothe or Matt Peterson have been considered due to injuries.

In their place, Smith has given a host of youngsters an opportunity. Brett Anderson comes onto the wing with Luke Burt back into first grade. Michael Witt gets his shot at five-eighth and both Jack Afamagasa and Feliti Mateo have been name on a five man bench.

Dean Widders has been moved into the centres and James Webster gets the chance to take over the hooking role.

1 - Wade McKINNON
2 - Brett ANDERSON
3 - Ash GRAHAM
4 - Dean WIDDERS
5 - Luke BURT
6 - Michael WITT
7 - Chris THORMAN
8 - Michael VELLA
9 - James WEBSTER
10 - Justin TSOULOS
11 - Nathan Hindmarsh
12 - Lee HOPKINS
13 - Daniel WAGON (C)

14 - Shane MUSPRATT
15 - Mal KAUFUSI
16 - Craig STAPLETON
17 - Jack Afamagasa
18 - Feleti MATEO

What do you think of the team? Post a comment!

The Adam Dykes and John Morris combination that promised so much at the start of the year will be in action again this week - but in Premier League.

Both have been dropped after recent dissapointing performances.

The half back that some have touted as the next Peter Sterling - Tim Smith - also gets his promotion and the chance to see if he can take his good Flegg form to the next level of football.

Ben Smith - three try hero from last week - has missed out on a promotion but with Smith clearly not happy with Langi, he only needs to continue to find the line in reggies to be given his shot.

Mal Kaufusi's promotion at the expense of Fui Fui, sees the big Tongan back in the second grade playing alongside Jim Curtis. Chris Armith packs down in the back row with Fred Peterson and Chris Muckert at lock. Young prop Josh Cordoba has been dropped back to the interchange.

In Flegg, Blake Green takes over the half spot from Tim Smith. It will be interesting to see if the juniors can keep winning without their playmaker.

Premier League

1 - Joel REDDY
2 - Matt GRUSZKA
3 - Ben SMITH
4 - Junior LANGI
5 - Wise KATIVERATA
6 - Adam DYKES
7 - Tim SMITH
8 - Jim CURTIS
9 - John MORRIS
10 - Fui Fui MOI MOI
11 - Fred PETERSEN
12 - Chris ARMIT
13 - Chris MUCKERT
14 - John McKIE
15 - Steve MOWBRAY
16 - Peter ELLIS
17 - Jeremiah PAI
18 - Josh CORDOBA

Jersey Flegg

1 - Paul MARZELLA
2 - Joel ASHER
3 - Matt LANTRY
4 - Thomas MACGOUGAN
5 - Jesse SHELLY
6 - Guy WILLIAMS
7 - Blake GREEN
8 - Brendon OAKE
9 - Mathew KEATING
10 - Weller HAURAKI
11 - Mark MURPHY
12 - Nathan ARMIT
13 - Ryan HINCHCLIFFE

14 - Brendan HUNT
15 - Ben TAIA
16 - Jacob O’HANLON
17 - Brad McLEVY
18 - Nathan RUSSELL
19 - Wayne BOORER
20 - Mark HENDY
21 - Ryan CONSTABLE

The Parramatta board remain behind coach Brian Smith, Denis Fitzgerald has told AAP.

Fitzgerald said the board was meeting on Thursday where it would discuss Jamie Lyon's request in writing, to be released from his contract.

He said Parramatta was seeking legal advice. The story said: "Asked why Parramatta was seeking legal advice, Fitzgerald said: 'The fact that Jamie has asked for a release.

"He's put it in writing. We're just considering varying options to do with the contractual arrangement."

It's really not surprising that Parramatta has fallen into a hole since Chris Thorman was promoted into first grade.

Despite the cries of the many fans who didn’t like seeing Daniel Wagon at five-eighth, the composition of the side made some sense. With a shortage of skilled outside backs, Parramatta’s attacking force was directed around the rucks with a skillful hooker and half making inroads from dummy half or first receiver and forwards like Cayless and Hindmarsh exploiting weaknesses on the fringe of the ruck.

It was one-dimensional but it worked well enough to have Parramatta in the eight and looking forward to a bevy of home games against lower-placed opponents.

Then Chris Thorman was promoted. The more game time Thorman has had, the worse Parramatta has played. More to the point, his inclusion has affected the form of Adam Dykes and John Morris and with Nathan Cayless and then Nathan Hindmarsh out through injury/suspension and State of Origin duty respectively, Parramattas has lost all of its attacking potency.

Quite simply, it never, ever works having three playmakers at hooker, half and five-eighth at the best of times. In Parramatta’s case, it is a recipe for disaster.

It’s all very well to have plenty of skill in the team, but not if you don’t have players who are going to actually punch through the holes and half-gaps that might be created. Morris, Dykes and Thorman all play the same game. They will first look to set up their teammates and their second option is to try and sprint through the defence with acceleration. Not one of them is a hole runner or has the strength to punch through a half-gap.

Just maybe, having all three in the team would work if the Eels had some great hole runners in the centres and backrow. You could possible argue that Melbourne has three predominantly creative players in Orford, Smith and Hill (although I’d argue they all have quite different games with Smith and especially Hill able to break tackles as well as make opportunities), but they always have speedy, powerful outside backs, plus Billy Slater at fullback and a couple of ex-centres in the backrow with David Kidwell and Danny Williams.

Meanwhile, the only real hole-runner in the entire Parramatta team is Dean Widders. No wonder Parramatta has been going from side-to-side without any real penetration. The end result coach Brian Smith has come up with in recent weeks is too many players trying to do too much creative smarts for too few ballrunners.

If Parramatta can’t find an effective five-eighth (and let’s face it, we may win some games with Wagon there, but we can’t win the comp) then Morris is not the right hooker. Hopkins, with Webster coming off the bench, would provide some strength and then speed to complement the halves. Morris should probably shift to five-eighth or he just doesn’t fit in the side. It really is no coincidence, that the form of both John Morris and Adam Dykes has plummeted since Thorman came into the squad.

Too many cooks do spoil the broth. It’s something that NSW used to get into trouble when they employed creative five-eighths like Cliff Lyons. A football team involves many jobs and right now Parramatta can only fill half of the positions that are required. St George showed last weekend that even if every player is not a star, if a team is well-balanced, it can perform well above the talents or experience of its individual parts.

Brian Smith has admitted Parramatta has not played "top-class football" for 18 months to two years, but asked fans to be patient.

He was quoted in the Sydney Morning Herald today as saying: "What we've got to do is work hard and play a bit smarter and understand that we've got to hang in for longer if we want to get the money."

"I've been in this position before so I'm not unaccustomed to it. It's never nice but I'll just keep on working."

Eels captain Daniel Wagon said: "We're a tight group of mates so hopefully we can pull together and work through this."

Parramatta boss Denis Fitzgerald has told The Daily Telegraph that the Eels will reconsider Lyong's request that he "be released from his Eels contract to play with his mates in Wee Waa".

""We will discuss this week Jamie's request that he be released to play for Wee Waa. He has put that in writing. The board is likely to be given a recommendation by our management and legal representatives," Fitzgerald said.

Wade McKinnon - 8 (29)
Undoubtedly, the star of the Parramatta team. Finally, a fullback who is formidable last line of defence. His strip of the big bopper Ashton Sims will go down as one of the year's highlights. Would have got a nine but for a couple of errors at the end.

Matt Peterson - 6 (49)
Typical Peterson best exemplified by his dropping a bomb one minute and making a spectacular take the next. Sideshow is a human rollercoaster.

Langi - 5 (42)
If only Langi had of found an inside support, on Parramatta's one brilliant attacking movement. Oh well, he worked hard getting back to take the ball out from our line and didn't do too much wrong, but never looked like creating anything either.

Ashley Graham - 4 (4)
Wasn't a happy return back to NRL for Graham, but he at least looked like he had the ability to create something when he got the ball in space on a couple of occassions. Has had very little football and will get better.

Eric Grothe - 5 (5)
Appears to have got on board the Peterson roller coaster the last couple of weeks. Always does good things in attack, but just as consistently seems to make a defensive blunder that costs us a try.

Adam Dykes - 3 (65)
Unfortunately, opposition teams have worked out that when Dykes runs sideways you don't worry about him throwing the ball (mostly because there aren't any runners anyway) you just keep herding him further towards the sideline till he runs out of space. Needs to learn some new tricks, problem is he's a pretty old dog. 1Eyed Eel suggests that if Dykes has a future in the top grade it is as an interchange player.

Chris Thorman - 4 (14)
Also got on board the Peterson rollercoaster, but unfortunately the ups were outnumbered by the downs, like throwing the ball 10 metres behind the outside backs and kicking the ball out on the full. Needs to be far more decisive.

Michael Vella - 6 (49)
Was having a good game, but as a senior player needed to get the team back on track when it all started to fall a part, so I'm knocking him down from a seven.

John Morris - 4 (55)
Morris' form has fallen in a hole. He provided no attacking spark, missed more tackles than anybody and made errors again. Maybe 1Eyed Eel is being harsh, but we don't think so. Team seemed to go much better when Webster came on.

Justin Tsoulos - 7 (26)
Some great defensive hits and made plenty of hard metres, especially in the first half. Gave away some penalties and his offloads still aren't quite finding the mark (whether thats his fault of for lack of backup). But what a talent!

Lee Hopkins - 5
Lee where were you? We're not sure if Hopkins went missing or just didn't get much game time, but didn't take a lot of load from Widders and Wagon.

Craig Stapleton - 5 (65)
Stapleton's poorest contribution since joining the Eels. Once again, mistake free, though.

Daniel Wagon - 6 (62)
Hard to be too tough on Wagon when he made 43 tackles but unlike Hindy, it did seem to take its toll towards the end and he wasn't able to clean up around the rucks.

James Webster - 5
Got no time but when he was on, added some spark that Morris wasn't providing.

Dean Widder - 6 (53)
Did a mountain of work, 39 tackles and 15 hit ups but tired noticeably and his defence faltered.

Fuifui Moimoi - 5 (18)
Also had limited oppotunities. Made some aggressive charges and again seemed to be under utilised.

Chris Muckert - 5 (15)
Looked quite good in the limited time he got. Has a good step for a big man. His metreage per hit up was better than any other Eel.

What did you think of the player's performances? Make a comment.

In the Sunday Telegraph today, Ray Hadley has written that Parramatta boss Denis Fitzgerald last Thursday received a letter from Jamie Lyon which said the centre could "no longer stand being coached by Brian Smith".

He has again asked for a release from his contract.

Hadley wrote: "Yesterday, Smith was advised of Lyon's letter and its contents. I'm informed the shock on his face was something similar to what he experienced on Friday night when his side was humiliated by St George Illawarra's virtual Premier League team in one of the club's most embarrassing losses. "

"I've been told Jamie couldn't stand the school master coaching attitude of Smith that was clearly illustrated on Friday night, with halftime pictures showing Smith standing in front of a whiteboard and his team sitting down like they were in a classroom. He could no longer stand Smith's hectoring."

"Get rid of the whiteboard, Brian. Either that or do the honourable thing and fall on your sword."

What's your take? Post a comment.

1Eyed Eel now has its own domain - www.1eyedeel.com - and the site also now has comments enabled, so if you have something to say about our posts or the teams, you're now free to add to our commentary.

The Parramatta Eels were last night booed by many of their own supporters as they left the park a humiliated outfit after being outpointed by a St George team missing most of its star players.

The debilitating loss with put intense pressure of Brian Smith with the Eels now having lost four consecutive home matches.

AAP descibed the Eels as "woeful", the Sydney Morning Herald said "Eels disgraced", Sportal said the Eels were "inept" and "embarrassed" while The Australian said "the club is in crisis".

It was a game most observers thought Parramatta should have won comfortably, with so many of St George's first choice squad not playing. However, despite dropping a lot of balls, the Dragons were simply too creative and too enthusiastic for the Eels.

Tries to Reece Simmons and Eric Grothe in the early minutes raised questions about the defensive form of both outfits. However, both teams managed to hold on for the rest of the half with the only points scored a Mark Riddell penalty.

Despite going into half time, only two points time, the signs were not good for Parramatta. They had a ton of possession but seldom did they look likely to threaten the Dragons. Halves Chris Thorman and Adam Dykes were at times, terrible, and Parramatta looked disjointed and lacking spark. Meanwhile, the Dragons had two tries disallowed and only for poor handling could have scored another couple as their players continuously managed to get passes away.

In the second half, that dangerous pattern played out to the full. Parramatta had nothing to offer in attack - it's performance best reflected by a 30m Adam Dykes run across field that only saw him tackled into touch - while the young Dragons players started to hang onto more ball as their confidence lifted. Dragons half Matthew Head was superb and created countless opportunities for St George with clever kicks and passing.

Meanwhile, Parramatta's defence disintegrated and by the end of the match the Dragons were running in tries at will.

There have been few more heartbreaking performances for Eels fans than this.

It may well be the most important game of the season so far for Parramatta.

A win will catapult them back into the top eight, but a loss, with many games left to play against the top teams is going to make life hard for the rest of the season.

The Eels couldn't be more fortunate to be meeting the Dragons at this stage of the competition. With more than half of its first choice players missing and at home, Parramatta, by rights should have no trouble accounting for the Baby Dragons.

However, many a time, has a young team been able to out-enthuse more experienced rivals and this is where Parramatta must step up. There have been occasions this year where the Eels have just not looked "switched on" and tonight cannot be one of those nights.

The Eels forwards really should be able to get on top of their less experienced rivals, but all will have to work harder with workhorse Nathan Hindmarsh not in the team.

Hindmarsh's attacking potency is also missing and so halves Chris Thorman and Adam Dykes really need to click.

1Eyed Eel will be looking for a big game from John Morris. Morris has been awful in a couple of the most recent games and the Eels have really missed his consistent service from dummy half.

Exciting young Parramatta winger Brett Anderson has been placed on stand by for tonight's NRL game against the Dragons, along with Mal Kaufusi and Chris Muckert as the Eels squad have been hit by the flu.

Eric Grothe, Chris Armit and Craig Stapleton are in doubt.

Adam Dykes told The West Australian that: "Four to five of our guys have been hit with the flu. I went down with it last week but I'll be right. It will be a real test for both sides. We are in a mini-slump, hopefully this will be the game that turns it all around"

Dykes told the paper he "was upset over his surprise benching".

"It was pretty disappointing to be honest, I thought I had been going pretty well. It was a bit of a shock but there wasn't much I could do about it.

"He (Smith) said they had brought Thorman over from England and he wanted to give him an opportunity."

The punters, at least, think Parramatta are sure things to beat the Dragons tonight.

SportsTAB told The Herald that it took a flood of bets for the Eels when the market opened "and the money continued to roll in today. As of Thursday night we are holding $115,000 on the Eels and $9000 on the Dragons."

Lance Thompson did not train for the Dragons, according to the Illawarra Mercury making it very unlikely he will be a late inclusion against Parramatta. Nathan Blacklock is still a chance after completing light training, however the Mercury said he is still not expected to play against the Eels.

However, Matthew Head and Nathan Long both did train, increasing the likelihood they will start.

The Eels will face what is essentially St George's Premier League team this week, with the Dragons missing the bulk of its first choice team.

The average age of the team is 23 years old, said the Illawarra Mercury.

"Fittingly, in a team with an average age of 23, the skipper's name is Young."

Dean Young, not yet 21 years old, will skipper the side, which is short on experience and could be even worse off with Matthew Head and Nathan Long, still to prove their fitness. It is however possible that try scoring wizard Nathan Blacklock and Lance Thompson may be called into the team, despite not being named in the squad.

The team features the Club's Jersey Flegg captain Daniel Holdsworth who will play five-eighth. According to the eye on Saints website "the other debutants are former Australian Schoolboy Bryan Norrie and Premier League workhorse Aaron Wheatley who is famous for making a massive sixty three tackles in sixty seven minutes in a PL game a few weeks ago."

The St George team at this stage is: "1. Clint Greenshields, 2. Andrew Frew, 3. David Howell, 4. John Carlaw, 5. Reece Simmonds, 6. Daniel Holdsworth, 7. Matthew Head, 8. Nathan Long, 9. Mark Riddell, 10. Justin Poore, 11. Ben Creagh, 12. Tony Jensen, 13. Dean Young (C) Res 14. Ashton Sims, 15. Bryan Norrie, 16. Aaron Wheatley, 17. Lincoln Withers."

As expected Adam Peek was suspended for six weeks after taking an early guilty plea.

Even with a demotion to reggies, Luke Burt has not been able to regain his favoured fullback position being names alongside exciting three-quarter Ben Smith this week.

Joel Reddy has kept his spot at the back of the Premier League team. Reddy, Smith, Cordoba and Mateo are all Flegg players who have earned promotions to the number two team. All are in the starting team at the expense of senior players like Jeremiah Pai, Steve Mowbray, Jim Curtis and Peter Ellis who are warming the bench.

In Jersey Flegg, promising pivot Brett Delaney makes his return from injury. Despite the promotion of some of its young stars, players like Delaney, Matt Lantry, Tim Smith and Brett Anderson still give the Under 20s plenty of stike power.

Premier League

1 - Joel REDDY
2 - Matt GRUSZKA
3 - Ben SMITH
4 - Luke BURT
5 - Wise KATIVERATA
6 - Feleti MATEO
7 - Michael WITT
8 - Josh CORDOBA
9 - Shane MUSPRATT
10 - Mal KAUFUSI
11 - Fred PETERSEN
12 - Chris MUCKERT
13 - Ryan HINCHCLIFFE
14 - John McKIE
15 - Steve MOWBRAY
16 - Peter ELLIS
17 - Jim CURTIS
18 - Jeremiah PAI

Jersey Flegg

1 - Paul MARZELLA
2 - Joel ASHER
3 - Matt LANTRY
4 - Thomas MACGOUGAN
5 - Brett ANDERSON
6 - Brett DELANEY
7 - Tim SMITH
8 - Ben TAIA
9 - Brendan HUNT
10 - Weller HAURAKI
11 - Jack AFAMASAGA
12 - Brendan OAKE ©
13 - Guy WILLIAMS
14 - Scott JONES
15 - Jacob O’HANLON
16 - Mark MURPHY
17 - Ryan CONSTABLE
19 - Jesse SHELLEY

Ashley Graham is a shock selection at centre for this week's clash against St George with the youngster having only played a couple of games since returning from the horrific broken leg he suffered last year.

Graham, despite missing last week's Premier League game, has been selected at the expense of Luke Burt who has failed to take the opportunity to cement a centre position.

Meanwhile, both Adam Dykes and Chris Thorman have been selected together in the halves with Daniel Wagon moving to his regular position at lock. That move has seen Dean Widders moved back to the interchange bench with Lee Hopkins rewarded for his fine effort in reggies last week with a first grade promotion.

James Webster also comes into the side on the interchange bench.

1 - Wade McKINNON
2 - Matt PETERSEN
3 - Junior LANGI
4 - Ashley GRAHAM
5 - Eric GROTHE
6 - Adam DYKES
7 - Chris THORMAN
8 - Justin TSOULOS
9 - John MORRIS
10 - Michael VELLA
11 - Lee HOPKINS
12 - Craig STAPLETON
13 - Daniel WAGON (C)
14 - James WEBSTER
15 - Chris ARMIT
16 - Dean WIDDERS
17 - Fuifui MOIMOI

At one stage of the season Parramatta looked to have more props than a theatre company, but that cavalry is suddenly looking very thin.

With Adam Peek likely to be out for six weeks, Parramatta will need to promote someone from Premier League, with no standout options.

Lee Hopkins will almost certainly be promoted into the starting side, replacing Nathan Hindmarsh and that decision will likely result in Craig Stapleton remaining in the second row to give Parramatta some size among the likes of smaller forwards Hopkins, Wagon and Widders.

Vella and Tsoulos both good against the Storm will keep their starting position with Chris Armit and Fuifui Moimoi on the interchange. Without Hindmarsh's eighty minute guarantee, the Eels will almost certainly go for another forward.

If Smith wants a prop to replace Peek, he doesn't have many options. Mal Kaufusi's form has seemed to taper of in Premier League and Josh Cordoba is full of talent but very inexperienced having only just been promoted out of Flegg. Smith could instead go with Shane Muspratt or Chris Muckert but neither have been overly impressive in the last few weeks.

Adam Peek has been charged with a dangerous throw and faces nine weeks on the sideline if found guilty.

However, according to the ABC website, Peek is expected to take an early plea that will see him receive six weeks on the sideline.

The mainstream media has picked up on the rivalry between Parramatta coach Brian Smith and broadcaster Ray Hadley.

Over the weekend, Hadley claimed that he knew for a fact that Jamie Lyon left Parramatta because he didn't want to be coached by Brian Smith.

However, Smith fought back yesterday on the 2KY Big Breakfast show saying Hadley had little knowledge of football and "runs a bit of a vaudeville-type show".

To which Hadley responded in yesterday's Telegraph: "Brian is right about vaudeville. A clown is required and I'll leave it up to Parramatta fans to determine who the clown is."

The article was penned by Dean Ritchie, a member of Hadley's Continuous Call team.

Wade McKinnon - 7 (20)
Backed up well all day and was rewarded with a try. Tried hard and his only real problem seems to be positional play on kicks.

Matt Peterson - 6 (43)
Scored a good wingers try in the corner and generally contributed his usual enthusiasm. Was even difficult to blame his for the tries that his opposition winger scored after he was left two-on-one on multiple occasions.

Eric Grothe - 5 (56)
Unusually quiet and didn’t have an impact. Looked like he’d scored but was pulled down by a sensational covering tackle that Luke Burt should have been watching.

Luke Burt - 4 (49)
The only time we noticed Burt was when he was missing conversions or tackles. Has had enough time to prove himself in the centres.

Junior Langi - 5 (37)
Didn’t see much ball. Not sure, that's an altogether bad thing.

Daniel Wagon - 6 (56)
Some crunching defence, made 30 tackles and created a try. Did miss half a dozen tackles though, which let his game down.

Chris Thorman - 5 (10)
Started well and offered promise but struggled to assert his place when Dykes came on. Made some mad choices like his decision to make a rash charge down the blindside on the final tackle, which resulted in a turn over at a key point.

Michael Vella - 8 (43)
Fantastic performance from Vella. Magnificant offload resulted in Wade McKinnon's try and his attack was punishing. Made 17 hit ups that yielded 132 metres, easily the best in the team

John Morris - 4 (51)
Very ordinary again.

Justin Tsoulos - 7 (19)
Justified his promotion to the starting ranks with some good runs and was surprisingly busy in defence but the Eels players need to better prepared for his offloads

Nathan Hindmarsh - 7 (68)
Wasn't vintage Hindmarsh, he seemd to toil away rather than being his blockbusting self.

Craig Stapleton - 7 (60)
Parra’s Mr. Consistency was once again consistently good.

Dean Widders – 7 (47)
Did a lot of work and was probably Parramatta's most dangerous player in the first half, but seemed to go missing in the second stanza.

Chris Armit - 5 (34)
Didn't get a lot of game time but only managed three hit ups.

Adam Peak - 5 (45)
Has been a great as a member of the starting team but struggles to get into the game off the bench. Solid performance.

Fuifui Moimoi - 6 (13)
Once he got into the game, his hit ups were excellent.

Adam Dykes - 6 (62)
Did some wonderful things that sparked Parramatta's attack but failed to provide desperately needed direction when he came on

Referees - 0
Clark and the video referee should be shot. Still befuddled how both Parramatta tries were disallowed and the Grothe "played at" ruling was a shocker that changed the game.

As expected, Nathan Hindmarsh has been named in the NSW State of Origin team.

Parramatta's Harold Matthews juniors are the premiers beating Penrith 18 to 16.

The Eels went up 12 nil before withholding a spirited Penrith fight back. It was a fitting finale for a team that went through the season undefeated.

Parramatta on Sunday slumped to its third consecutive defeat and dropped out of the eight after they were resoundly defeated by the lower-placed Melbourne Storm.

The Storm won the Parramatta home game 36 to 16.

Match reports have been anything but kind to the Eels. Sportal.com.au said the "Eels bordered on embarrassing", Total Rugby League described the Eels as "inept" and writing for the Sun Herald Phil Gould said “rarely have I seen a first-grade team do so much in a game of football to help their opposition".

"Kick offs went dead in goal on the full. Kicks-offs did not go the required 10 metres. Knock-ons. Forward passes. Hight tackles. Missed tackles. Sloppy play-the-balls. Squandered try scoring opportunities by failing to read simple two-on-one and three-on-two situations," Gould wrote, listing the Eels menu of errors.

Ironically the game couldn't have started any better. A great deep kick off, a slip by Melbourne playmaker Scott Hill and an enthusiastic chase saw the Eels pin the Storm in their in-goal from the kick-off. However, the Eels failed to punish the Storm who instead scored the first try after the Eels backs failed to contest a bomb, which was caught on the fly by a storm player who then lobbed the ball to prop Robbie Kearns who scored under the post.

The Eels did hit back though with Michael Vella slipping a superb back-handed offload to Wade McKinnon who scored only 10 metres from the posts. Luke Burt however fluffed the simple conversion.

It was about this time, however, that the Gods – or more specifically the match officials – turned against the Eels. Dean Widders looked like he had scored a try that would have put the Eels ahead, but the video referee disallowed it. Then referee Steven Clark ruled Eric Grothe had played at a ball he clearly had not and awarded the Storm six more tackles. From the ensuing set of six the Storm scored.

Thankfully, a try on the stroke of half time kept the Eels hopes alives with Daniel Wagon drifting a cross field and creating an overlap that saw Matt Peterson go over in the corner. Burt failed to convert again, admittedly this time from the side line, leaving the Eels down 16 to eight.

The start of the second half saw the Eels attacking but unable to get over the Storm line. Then suddenly the Storm took half a chance, throwing the ball out wide to centre Steven Bell who ran 70 metres to score after a flying Luke Burt fell off an unsuccessful attempt to run the centre down.

Things only got worse. The Eels ruck opened up like it was the Red Sea parting for Moses allowing Cameron Smith to barge over and of course there was the obligatory couple of tries scored in the corner after Eels backs failed to number up properly creating an overlap.

A late try on the buzzer to Adam Dykes did nothing to make Eels fans feel better about what was a heart-breaking thumping.

Parramatta boss Denis Fitzgerald has clearly decided that a desperate need to reverse its recent poor form is not enough motivation for the Storm and has chosen this week to arm Melbourne with even more ammunition as they prepare to take on the Eels on Sunday.

Fitzgerald has come out in media reports saying that the Storm should be shut down and moved to the Gold Coast.

"Promoting rugby league in Melbourne is akin to promoting beach volleyball in Iceland," he was quoted as saying in The Courier Mail.

"The Melbourne Storm are doing nothing for rugby league in Victoria. Rugby league is up against a religion in Victoria.

"If league can't kick on after the Storm won a premiership in 1999, it never will. Imagine if the Sydney Swans won the AFL in their second year. How big would that be?"

The story said that "Parramatta and Melbourne are now sure to meet in a spicy contest on Sunday at 3pm at Parramatta Stadium".

Thanks Denis, that was just what the team needed.

In a shock selection, Adam Dykes has been dropped to the interchange bench with Chris Thorman to start in the number seven jersey.

The Englishman started at hooker in the most recent game against the Cowboys with Morris on the bench.

The injury and suspension of Nathan Cayless has also seen a shakeup in the front row with Justin Tsoulos and Michael Vella made starting props and Craig Stapleton dropping back to the second row. Monster forward Fuifui Moimoi is back from injury and has been named on the interchange bench alongside Adam Peek and Chris Armit.

James Webster has also been named as the fifth man on the interchange bench.

1 - Wade McKINNON
2 - Matt PETERSEN
3 - Junior LANGI
4 - Luke BURT
5 - Eric GROTHE
6 - Daniel WAGON (C)
7 - Chris THORMAN
8 - Justin TSOULOS
9 - John MORRIS
10 - Michael VELLA
11 - Nathan HINDMARSH
12 - Craig STAPLETON
13 - Dean WIDDERS
14 - Adam DYKES
15 - Chris ARMIT
16 - Adam PEEK
17 - Fuifui MOIMOI
18 - James WEBSTER

Parramatta's young guns have been given the opportunity to prove themselves at the next level with a number of our Flegg stars promoted to reserve grade ahead of more established players.

Fullback Joel Asher, centre Ben Smith, five-eighth/lock Feliti Mateo and prop Josh Cordoba have all been named in the starting Premier League team, leaving players like Jeremiah Pai, Jim Curtis and Steve Mowbray on the bench.

Each of those players are being touted as having huge futures with Feliti Mateo and Ben Smith in particular, already being mentioned by some Parramatta watchers as possible 2004 first graders.

Of those returning from injury, Ashley Graham lines up in the centres next to Smith, Lee Hopkins comes into lock and Chris Muckert is in the second row, next to Fred Peterson.

Shane Muspratt, who has been dropped from first grade after failing to take his opportunity, will pack down between Cordoba and Mal Kaufusi.

Despite, speculation in the media that Michael Witt might be considered for first grade, the young half has been kept in Premier League.

1 - Joel ASHER
2 - Matt GRUSZKA
3 - Ben SMITH
4 - Ashley GRAHAM
5 - Wise KATIVERATA
6 - Feleti MATEO
7 - Michael WITT
8 - Josh CORDOBA
9 - Shane MUSPRATT
10 - Mal KAUFUSI
11 - Fred PETERSEN
12 - Chris MUCKERT
13 - Lee HOPKINS
14 - John McKIE
15 - Steve MOWBRAY
16 - Peter ELLIS
17 - Jim CURTIS
18 - Jeremiah PAI

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, Michael Witt is "believed to be under consideration for a call-up from premier league".

The brief also said that Michael Vella would be back for the Storm game.

Five-try hero Brett Anderson, rising star Feleti Mateo and the impressive Brett Delaney have all been selected in the NSW Under 19 team.

Rewind to last year. Round 23. The Melbourne Storm had just been thumped and were being written off as premiership contenders. Their next opponents - the Parramatta Eels, in desperate need of a win to keep their slim premiership hopes alive. Fast forward to this week. The Melbourne Storm have just been thumped and are being written off as premiership contenders. Their opponents - the Parramatta Eels who desperately need a win to get their premiership ambitions back on track.

Sound like deja vu? Let's hope not. Last year, the Storm bounced back to form and gave Parramatta an absolute drubbing, flogging them 50 to 12 in what was the Eels most embarrassing loss of the year. Last year, the performance before the Eels was even worse - they lost 50 to 4 against St George. But the Storm seem to be taking last week's loss against the Sharks as though it were a drubbing.

Storm coach Craig Bellamy told The Herald Sun: "We're all in this together and I will have a long hard look at myself and the way I have been coaching this footy side. What we have to learn is it is such a tough competition that you have to turn up every week and you have to play out every minute. If you don't you are going to get burnt."

Wally Lewis has stated his belief that Daniel Wagon should be the player Queensland selectors should go for at five-eighth now that Darren Lockyer is out injured.

Lewis said that while Wagon has "displayed better form in previous years", he played well against the Cowboys and wouldn't let Queensland down.

"He is a very strong defender, and defence is going to be such an important part of the game as it always is.

Claiming his "past performances for Queensland would suggest he is up to it for sure", Lewis said Wagon's case would be strengthened if Shaun Timmins was chosen at five-eighth.

"Timmins is a very big bloke and very hard to contain but Wagon would be one player who would be able to control him defensively."

1Eyed Eels' modest little blog has cracked 5,000 hits over the weekend.

So thank you all for continuing to follow my jottings. My web stats don't show exactly how many unique visitors log into the site, but judging by the traffic there must be at least a couple of hundred regular visitors. If you haven't already, tell a friend about the site, because the more hits it gets, the more time I can justify putting into the site.

The supposedly suspect ability of the teams Parramatta was expected to beat over the last couple of weeks has stood up this weekend with the Cowboys, Sharks and Manly all getting up.

Eels fans have been concerned that Parramatta struggled to beat Manly and then got beat by the Sharks and the Cowboys in consecutive weeks.

But after this weekend that form isn't looking nearly so bad with the Sharks impressive winners over the Storm, the Cowboys accounting for the Warriors and Manly knocking over the Dragons.

After this weekend's results Parramatta is in seventh position on the same amounts of points as the 6th placed Knights.

Parramatta's Harold Matthew's coach Joe Grima has accepted the position of Head Coach of the Maltese Rugby League Association with the Maltese Knights to participate in the 2005 World Sevens Qualifiers next year.

Mario Fenech has stated he is contemplating a come back so that he could represent Malta and Eels prop Michael Vella has "has stamped his approval and has confirmed that he is happy to be as proactive as possible in the development of a Maltese team", said website di-ve.com.

The football future of former Eel PJ Marsh is in grave doubt after a medical check-up today found his neck injury has not advanced, reported the New Zealand Herald.

The Warror's club doctor told The Herald that: "PJ's recovery from neck surgery has not advanced. PJ needs time to think about the implications of his condition before meeting the surgeon and discussing his future options," Hanna said.

Daniel Anderson said "This is devastating news for both PJ and the club - we will take time to help PJ consider his options".

While the news on Nathan Cayless was about as bad as could be, Chris Armit has been cleared, AAP reported.

Nathan Cayless has copped a two month suspension after pleading guilty to both a careless tackle and a striking charge, but will miss those games anyway after being diagnosed with a broken arm that should keep him off the park for three months.

An AAP report also said that Cayless was one of the player's under criticism from the review co-ordinator Greg McCallum for his constant pressuring of referee Jason Robinson.

"Players should be under no illusions that we take a very dim view of any player who attempts to intimidate referees during matches," McCallum reportedly said.

Brian Smith told AAP that Cayless has taken his forced stint on the sideline hard.

"There's no more dedicated player in the game and no player who cares more about the team and club."

1. Wade McKinnon - 7 (13)
McKinnon was singled out by Brian Smith for having a "fire in the belly" that not many of his team mates shared. Didn't put a foot wrong all night and now has the opportunity to hold onto the job of NRL custodian for the Eels.
2. Matthew Peterson - 5 (37)
It's probably unfair to have a go at Peterson for not keeping hold of the cross-field bomb that he spilled across the tryline as it was a difficult catch. But hey, we lost and we're not feeling good about it and its these moments that can turn a game. Also threw Luke Burt a hospital pass from a scrum win that unnecessarily turned over the ball deep in our own half.
3. Junior Langi - 5 (32)
Junior looked strong in defence but never looked a threat to the Cowboys line.
4. Luke Burt - 4 (45)
Burt isn't making the transition to centre. He's not getting the ball in any open space, which is not necessarily his fault but he seems to be totally lacking in intensity. Made many more metres across the field than he did running forward. Parra's three quarters search goes on.
5. Eric Grothe - 5 (51)
Eric needs to take instensive lessons from Daniel Wagon on how not to pass the ball. The ball went to ground almost every time he passed. Probably cost himself a spot in the City team with this performance, only redeemed by the spectacular diving catch that resulted in our last try.
6. Daniel Wagon - 6 (50)
Wags was again a rock in defence but his running was totally ineffective. Take a look a the stats. Seven hit ups for a measley 45 metres. Centre is looking more and more like Wagon's go.
7. Adam Dykes - 6 (56)
Again provided most of Parra's attacking flair, but made errors both in attack and defence.
8. Adam Peek - 6 (40)
Not quite as on song as last week, but Peek put in a workman-like performance against the Cowboys.
9. John Morris - 5 (47)
Scored a good try but again made some errors at crucial times.
10. Craig Stapleton - 6 (53)
Worked his butt off early, but then tired noticeably - probably needed to come off five minutes earlier. Probably unlucky to cop ten minutes in the sin bin for an innocuous forearm but we have to mark him down for leaving us with 12 men on the park.
11. Nathan Hindmarh - 7 (61)
More tackles and more metres than any other Parra forward. Was always a handful but wasn't quite at his game breaking best.
12. Nathan Cayless - 7 (56)
Tried his best to inspire the Eels with an aggressive performance but stepped over the line on occasions. While Stapleton was unlucky to be sent from the Park, Cayless was blessed to stay on it. His constant bickering with the referree bordered on unsportsman-like at times.
13. Dean Widders - 5 (40)
Made a couple of half breaks but wasn't as involved as he needed to be. Split too early at the end of the game, letting Travis Norton grab the match winner.
14. Chris Armit - 5 (29)
A better performance from Armit. His running was effective and a got a little more involved although Justin Tsoulos showed the impact that needs to be made from the bench.
15. Shane Muspratt - 4 (9)
Didn't make any impact on the game.
16. Justin Tsoulos - 7 (12)
Is clearly a star in the making. Got very heavily involved, his running was powerful and difficult to stop and he got rid of the errors from his game. The best thing to come out of the game for Parramatta.
17. Chris Thorman - 5 (5)
Didn't get a lot of minutes but he did look dangerous. Nearly scored a try with a grubber kick into the in-goal for himself but it just went over the deadline. Is definitely the interchange back that Parramatta has been looking for.

The Footy Show on Sunday has reported that both Nathan Cayless and Chris Armit have suspected broken arms. More details as they come to light.

Josh Hannay has been cleared of any serious injuries resulting from a high tackle from Parramatta captain Nathan Cayless, but North Queensland's captain Kevin Campion has come out in public and described Cayless' effort as a "cheap shot".

The ABC online site quoted Campion as blaming Eels players for the scuffles that erupted during the game.

"The Eels were probably a bit more frustrated after going into the first half 20 points down, so they had to do something to try and get back into the match," he said in the story.

"They thought they'd get us with the old intimidation factor but our boys stood up."

Brian Smith has denied last week's loss against the Cowboys will require any "soul searching" just a realisation that more intensity is needed if the Eels are going to not fall into an early hole like they did last Saturday.

"It is just a matter of getitng the players to understand that you cannot perform with that amount of intensity at the start of the game," he said at the post-game press conference.

"We weren't what you would call dreadful, we just didn't play at the tempo that forced them into trouble. They had enough time to complete their plays, use the wind, and take the chances that we gave them. That's what happens when you play with confidence and are not pressured. When we turned it on in the second half we had plenty of it - we had more than we needed at some stages, but we just didn't turn it into points."

Smith said Wade McKinnon had the "fire in the belly" he was looking for, while "the others showed it from time to time but there just wasn't enough of it for my liking".
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Parramatta's brilliant young Jersey Flegg and Harold Matthews teams racked up big wins again on the weekend.

While our SG Ball team lost their semi-final, the Harold Matthews team will go into the final as red-hot favourite after they smashed Cronulla 76 to 4.

Jersey Flegg demolished the Central Coast 68 to 6 with Brett Anderson scording five tries and Joel Reddy four.

Premier League managed yet another draw finishing 30 all with Newtown but would have won had Michael Witt put on his kicking boots. Steve Mowbray, Matt Gruszka, Peter Ellis, Feliti Mateo and Mal Kaufusi all scored tries but Witt could only manage three conversions.

Parramatta's ordinary performance against the Cowboys has seen not one of our players selected to in either the City or Country representative teams.

Only Nathan Hindmarsh then is in contention for the NSW State of Origin teams. Players who represented Australia in the ANZAC day test have not been selected in the City/Country sides and would appear to be automatic State of Origin selections.

The Broncos and the Warriors, who have teams made up predominantely of Queenslanders and New Zealanders respectively, are the only other teams not to have a representative in the match.

The Sydney Morning Herald had predicted that both Adam Dykes and Eric Grothe were strong chances for City.

Despite a determined comeback, Parramatta has failed to peg back the North Queensland Cowboys losing 24 to 20 at Parramatta Stadium tonight.

Parramatta's Brian Smith pulled a surprise reign early starting with Chris Thorman at hooker, instead of John Morris and although Thorman's first shot at the NRL was promising it didn't help the Eels who were easily outpointed in the first half and went to the break down 20 to nil.

Parramatta turned the ball over early and the subsequent set of six saw North Queensland kick the ball high and wide. A scramble for the ball saw Travis Norton pick the ball and score with Josh Hannay convering to make it six nil.

As has so often happened this year, Parramatta found themselves short out wide after a player rushed up out of the line - this time it was Luke Burt - and the Cowbody scored again. Another try, two conversions and a penalty later, and the Eels were almost out of the game before the half time break.

However, the Eels came out in the second half far more enthusiastic. Adam Dykes took a quick tap near the line and dived over to give Parramatta a glimpse of perhaps another comeback victory against the Cowboys.

Then John Morris slipped down the sideline only five minutes later, brushed past a poor attempted tackle from Matt Bowman and suddenly the Eels were in again.

By the time, Nathan Hindmarsh - who again had a wonderful game - steamed onto a ball inside the twenty and crashed over, an Eels win was looking more than likely.

However in the end if was a soft defensive lapse, with Adam Peak and Dean Widders splitting too quickly at marker and letting Travis Norton bag a double when he stretched out and touched down from dummy half that would prove to the nail in Parramatta's coffin.

Despite being eight down with only ten to go, the Eels drawing on memories of their past stirring last gasp victories against the Cowboys at home, didn't give up the cause. On the last tackled, Parra kept the ball alive before Adam Dykes got the ball and seeing Grothe out wide on his lonesome chipped the ball wide. Grothe set sail for the ball and as it sailed into the in-goal he dived forward caught the ball and place it down for one of the year's most spectacular tries.

That left the Eels only five minutes to try and grab the match-winning try and it was unfortunate that a good piece of Parramatta play would seal the game. With the Cowboys still in their half on the last, Parramatta players attempted a charge down but the ball only deflected down to a Cowboys player. With that turn of luck, the Cowboys were able to keep the Eels pinned deep in their territory and the subsequent desperation plays turned to nothing.

The match was a fiery affair, refereed by young official Jason Robinson. Robinson had a running battle with captain Nathan Cayless and there was a string of niggly incidents between both teams that threatened to erupt into an all-in brawl. One of those incidents saw Robinson sent Craig Stapleton and Paul Rauhihi to the bin for ten minutes - Stapleton for dropping a fore arm onto the tackled player and Rauhihi for striking out after he took exception to the blow.

Cayless is almost certain to front the judiciary and looks likely to have a couple of games on the sideline after a high-tackle saw Josh Hanny stretchered from the field.