Broncos were Parra-lysed as Eels ran riot in club’s darkest day

Brisbane might as well have finished last they were so far off the NRL top echelon, writes MIKE COLMAN

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One down, four to go – unless of course you are the Broncos, in which case it’s all over for another year.

Needless to say I’m talking about the NRL finals and once again the first weekend of matches raised more questions than answers.

Such as:

Were the Eels really, really good or were the Broncos really, really bad?

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The Eels’ flying Fijian Maika Sivo had a big day out as Brisbane crashed to their worst ever-loss at Bankwest Stadium. Picture: Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images

Short answer: A bit of both. There’s no question that any team that puts 58 points on another team while keeping them scoreless in a final is doing plenty right, but by the same token the Broncos made it easy for them.

To their great credit the Eels capitalised on a woeful Brisbane performance and never took their foot off the pedal for the entire 80 minutes.

It helped that the delirious Blue and Gold Army that packed out their superb new stadium didn’t shut up from kick-off to full-time (and quite a few hours afterwards, I’d wager) but still and all, it’s no simple thing to do.

How many times have you seen one side rack up a big score by halftime and then drop off in the second stanza? Not the Eels. They just kept on going.

Not that the Broncos put them under any pressure, but even so lack of concentration, cockiness, even boredom can play a part in those situations, so hats off to them.

Broncos captain Darius Boyd tried to fire up his team, but nothing worked against the electric Eels. Picture: Joel Carrett/AAP

Next question of course is, can the Eels do it again against Melbourne?

Short answer, you’d think not. The Storm are so un-Broncos-like that they might as well be playing a different game.

I can’t see the Eels winning, but I’ll guarantee this: they won’t lose 58-nil.

So, was it really the darkest day in the Broncos’ history?

Short answer: Yes it was. There have been a few low spots in the past. That semi-final in 2008 when Greg Inglis scored the winning try for Melbourne with less than a minute left was hard to take, and the 2015 grand final loss to the Cowboys in extra time was no picnic, but they were hard-fought heartbreakers.

This was a rout.

Is there any positive to come out of it?

Short answer: Actually, yes. The worst loss in Brisbane’s history means there can be no more delusion, no more wallpapering over the cracks or rolling out the old, “We made the finals, we had a decent season”.

The fact is, the Broncos might as well have finished last in terms of how far off the top echelon they were. There is now no question at all that big changes must be made if they are to get back to the level that their fans and sponsors expect.

Okay, let’s lay off the Broncos for a few months and give it to someone else for a change.

You’re kiddin’. Cameron Smith and Suliasi Vunivalu can’t believe what they’re seeing as they watch a replay of Vunivalu being called out by the touch judge in the closing stages of their qualifying final loss to the Raiders. Picture: Scott Barbour/AAP

What about that touch judge in the Raiders-Storm game?

Well yeah, he got it wrong – and while James Graham was right when he said on Fox Footy that, “it wasn’t the reason Melbourne lost” - it was the reason they weren’t given a final opportunity to win.

The NRL should look at changing the rules so that the bunker can overrule a decision in such a situation. Imagine if it happened in a grand final.

Have we seen the last of pre-game fireworks?

Hopefully. Maybe the players can run out waving little sparklers or failing that, let’s go back to the glory days of NSWRL life member Bob Abbott whose preferred pre-match entertainment earned him the nickname “Balloons”.

How good was Moses Suli for Manly?

Sensational. So good to see someone who has been written off come back and fulfil his potential. Same goes for Aiden Sezer.

Manly's Moses Suli was nigh-on unstoppable against the Sharks at Lottoland. Picture. Phil Hillyard

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And finally, what bubble is Ricky Stuart going to be in the lead up to the qualifying final? His post-game media conference was somewhat confusing on that issue.

“We won’t be involved in the Canberra bubble,” he said. “We’ve got to live in our own bubble. It won’t be the Canberra bubble but I want the Canberra bubble to be as exciting and use as much hype as they can possible generate.”

And with that, the finals keep bubbling along for another week.