Dylan Brown knew the Eels were struggling towards the bottom of the table, but it wasn’t until he saw the live ladder flash up during Sunday’s game in Campbelltown that he realised just how bad things really were.
The Eels may have picked up two competition points thanks to the bye, but they slipped two spots to 17th after the Titans and then the Wests Tigers chalked up huge wins to sneak above them on for and against.
It’s the first time since they picked up the wooden spoon in 2018 that Parramatta finds itself in this position, with the 2022 grand finalists desperate to save their season.
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“I was watching the Tigers game, and the live ladder came up. I knew we were down the bottom, but I didn’t know we were the bottom of the bottom. It sucks,” Brown said.
“I had a fair understanding that we were down the bottom, but I didn’t realise we were last. When that came up, I thought it was pretty crazy.
“Not that it should be an excuse for us to start playing good footy, but the last few weeks it feels like we’ve been playing all right. We just haven’t been defending points.”
The Eels have had some good wins this season and have held second-half leads against the Bulldogs and Roosters this month, but consistency has plagued them all year ahead of a tricky trip to Newcastle this weekend.
“That’s the weird thing,” Brown said.
“I’m not saying there are bad teams in the NRL, but when we play the top eight teams, we play well. When we play the lower teams, it’s not so good.”
The Eels have plenty of attacking talent across the park, but they also boast the worst defence in the NRL this season, which is why they find themselves in this position.
“With the team we have, we definitely shouldn’t be there, especially with the kind of footy we can play. But in saying that, we’ve put ourselves there by playing inconsistently,” offload machine Bryce Cartwright said.
“There are a lot of games there we probably should’ve won. We can’t dwell on that and just focus on this week and improving the little areas that have let us down in the past.”
Parramatta’s season from hell already includes parting ways with long-time coach Brad Arthur, with reports linking him to the Perth job if they’re brought in as the NRL’s latest franchise.
“He’s the best coach I’ve had. He did so much for me. It won’t be long before he’s got another job. I’m excited to see him back in the NRL coaching,” Cartwright said.
“Especially with the things he instils, he’s a really hardworking coach. I think he spent 23 hours a day here at this place.
“For a place that needs to get started up, I think he’d be the ideal type of person. He would leave no stone unturned. He’d give it his all.”
Brown would also love to see Arthur get another chance elsewhere, confident his uncompromising approach would breed instant success at a new club.
“He knows how to pick the soft from the tough, and he likes to weed them out pretty quickly. Some people agree with it and some people don’t, but I feel like that’s what makes him good,” the five-eighth said.
“When I first came in there were a lot of things I’d tiptoe around, but he’d kick me in the butt and say ‘this is rugby league and you’ve got to be tough’.
“That’s always been him. I’m sure you’ve always heard from Brad after games ‘we weren’t tough tonight’ every time we lose. I feel like that’ll be good for a club.”
Source Agencies
