Without Moses Parramatta can show theyre not flat-track bullies
When I spoke to Mitchell Moses a few days after his State of Origin debut, he gave no indication he’d suffered a fracture in his back.
He said it had spasmed a few times after being hit by Queensland’s Felise Kaufusi in the seventh minute, but that was about it.
“My back’s a bit sore,†is all he’s said to me in the past few days.
It says a lot about Mitchell that he kept quiet last week about the injury and didn’t use it as an excuse as people ripped into him about his performance in game three.
I didn’t know he’d been ruled out of Thursday night’s match against Canberra at Cbus Super Stadium until the teams were released on Tuesday afternoon and he wasn’t named.
It shows how well he played for NSW given his injury and the character he’s shown in keeping to himself when others probably wouldn’t. He’s out for the next two or three weeks and it’s important Parramatta make a statement without him.
The Eels still haven’t shaken off the perception of being flat-track bullies and the next three weeks are critical. After the Raiders, they play the Roosters, Souths and Manly. Then they have the Cowboys before taking on the two big dogs, Melbourne and Penrith, leading into the finals.
Tough Eel ... Mitchell Moses will miss two to three weeks after suffering a fracture in his back in Origin III.
Even though Parramatta will be without Mitchell for a lot of those matches, they’re going to give their fans a better indication of where they are as a team heading into the finals.
They can start by keeping Canberra to at least six points, possibly zero, on Thursday night.
The Raiders have been hit hard with injuries themselves.
Jack Wighton has a rib cartilage injury. They take a lot of time to come good and can hang around for a month.
It’s also a shame that young Xavier Savage has been ruled out for the season after suffering a shoulder injury. Some of his touches last week against the Sharks were impressive.
He’s got so much speed and watching him made me think, who is the quickest player in the NRL? Savage, Xavier Coates, Josh Addo-Carr, Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow or Jason Saab?
My money, over 100 metres, would probably be on Saab â€" but it would be some race.
If Parramatta play at 75 per cent of what they’re capable of, even without Mitchell, they should win and win well.
Reed Mahoney has sparked the Eeks since his return.Credit:Getty
Their forward pack is playing so well. It’s well balanced and hooker Reed Mahoney has added plenty since his return from injury.
Last Friday, in the 26-8 win over the Titans, the forwards offloaded more than usual. They had 22 offloads, which meant they were playing without structure.
A Ryan Matterson offload led to the first try to five-eighth Dylan Brown. With unstructured footy against broken defence, he showed how much speed and evasion he’s got and how dangerous it can be in the modern game.
That’s the blueprint for Parramatta if they’re to win the premiership. If they come up against a side like the Storm and try to play them with a Storm style of game, they won’t beat them.
You’ve got to play unorthodox footy to beat sides of that calibre.
If you get those offloads around the middle of the field, they are very hard to defend.
JOEY’S VERDICT: Parramatta by 24.
FIRST TRY-SCORER: Clint Gutherson.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Reed Mahoney.
I know first-hand how good a coach Phil Gould was from our time together with NSW.Credit:SMH
In Gus they trustBrad Fittler said it best when asked about Phil Gould’s appointment last week as the Bulldogs general manager of football.
“Everyone’s on notice: players, coaches, administrators, everyone,†Fittler said.
Under Gus and coach Trent Barrett, along with some of the signings they’ve made for next season, I reckon the Bulldogs can be pushing for a top-eight finish in 2022.
Gus is one of the smartest people I’ve ever met in all my time in rugby league.
By all accounts, he was a smart player. I know first-hand he was an incredible coach from my time under him for NSW.
As an administrator, he’s been ruthless. He just gets the job done.
When he joined Penrith in 2011, he made some tough calls: he moved on Matt Moylan, Luke Lewis and other senior players.
At that stage, Penrith were on their knees financially, crippled by massive debt. He phoned James Packer, who funded the Panthers Academy.
That fixed up the club’s pathways system and look at what came out the other side: Nathan Cleary, Jarome Luai, Brian To’o, Isaah Yeo, Liam Martin ... all NSW players.
As I understand it, Gus also coached the coaches. His message: “Righto, this is how we want first grade to play so let’s start coaching the coaches from the junior level up.â€
He made the tough calls, moving on Ivan Cleary and then Anthony Griffin.
He just gets things done. He will get it done at Belmore.
Simply the bestThis is the danger period of the season for teams eyeing off the top eight coming up against those who have nothing to lose.
This is the flat time after Origin when the lower teams have nothing to lose, the passes seem to stick and the ball bounces their way.
The Titans showed that last year when they won their last five matches of the season. In the next six weeks, I can see the Bulldogs being that team.
Apart from Lachlan Lewis trying to be a WWE wrestler, what I saw the other night against Souths was encouraging.
In the final seven rounds, they have winnable matches against the Titans (11th), Warriors (14th), Knights (10th) and two against the Tigers (12th).
They can win two, possibly three, from their last six and avoid the wooden spoon.
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Andrew Johns is an Immortal, a Newcastle great and a commentator for Channel Nine
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