Jai Field goes from NRL scrap heap to Parramatta’s famous No.7 jumper in four months
Dylan Brown has revealed the training ground phenomenon that will prove a rude shock for critics who believe NRL ladder leaders Parramatta are vulnerable because of the loss of halfback Mitchell Moses.
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In five months, speedster Jai Field has gone from the NRL scrap heap to the No.7 Parramatta Eels jersey made famous by Peter Sterling.
The Daily Telegraph spotted Field and an injured halfback Mitchell Moses exchanging ideas during training on Tuesday after coach Brad Arthur named the 22-year old as Moses’ replacement.
Five-eighth and halves partner Dylan Brown backed Field to emulate his form at training against North Queensland on Friday night, in what could be the most important game in Field’s career.
“I’m pretty excited to see Jai get on the field with us,” Brown said. “He slots in quite a bit at training. I actually hate training against him. He‘s the hardest player to defend and he always tears us up at training.”
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Brad Takairangi, who filled in when Moses left the field in last weekend’s 25-24 golden-point thriller, was the frontrunner to be named in the halves ahead of Field, Will Smith and Jaeman Salmon.
After struggling to just 11 games in three seasons at St George Illawarra, Field was heading for the English Super League in February before Arthur swooped in and signed the speedster on a train-and-trial deal for season 2020.
Field’s selection means he and Brown, who have a combined total of 33 games of NRL experience, are now charged with keeping Parramatta’s title tilt on track without Moses – arguably the best halfback at the club in 30 years.
The Cowboys, however, are in a similar boat. Their halves, Scott Drinkwater and Jake Clifford, only have 44 NRL games between them.
Brown is about to carry the burden of leading a side desperate to break it’s 34-year premiership drought for the first time without Moses.
It makes the input from rugby league Immortal and specialist halves coach Andrew Johns even more invaluable. Johns joined the Eels in December last year but has been relegated to shouting his instruction from behind a metal fence due to COVID-19 safety protocols.
“We have our bubble and he [Johns] is not a part of that yet, we are trying to do our best with phone calls,” Brown said. “He does try to come down and yell from the fence … Joey has a lot of things to say, he’s a very experienced man but one main thing will be my voice.
“Just finding my voice because that’s how people respond [to you] in terms of getting the ball off Reed [Mahoney] or driving the forwards around and encouraging them, that’s been the main thing.”
The small but priceless piece of advice is somewhat of a surprise because off the field Brown cuts anything than a figure who lacks confidence.
The rambunctious 20-year-old is often spotted dancing his nerves away in the dressing room pre-game and is jovial around his teammates.
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Brown revealed on the field he has struggled to assert his dominance in a spine with more senior players like Moses and skipper Clint Gutherson.
“It’s definitely something I have had to work on coming in and being the younger one, being the least experienced,” Brown said.
“It’s just a confidence thing I feel, but I’m slowly gaining it with playing more NRL games but that is definitely something I’ve had to work on quite a bit. In my first year I did feel quite young but now once you’re there on the field you are just there to do a job.”