Monday, May 31, 2004
Analysis: Reason for optimism
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.
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.
