NRL 2021: Dylan Brown, Mitchell Moses main focus of switch as Eels search for attacking cohesion
Aiming to end the longest title drought in the NRL, the Eels have pulled the trigger on a major swap that the Broncos will be the first to get a close-up view on Friday night.
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The numbers on their backs aren’t changing but a radical shift for four of Parramatta’s key players could define the Eels titles chances for 2021.
With the blue and golds aiming to end the longest title drought in the NRL, Brad Arthur has pulled the trigger on a major swap, switching Mitchell Moses and Ryan Matterson from the right side to the left and vice versa with Dylan Brown and Shaun Lane.
Eels fans will get their first proper look at the new make-up in Parramatta’s season opener against Brisbane on Friday night.
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BOTH WAYS
According to Moses, the switch isn’t as simple as nailing himself and his halves partner to new sides of the field.
Splitting the team’s halves - and decreeing never shall the two meet - was once in vogue across the NRL, but such an approach now is somewhat outdated and easy for defences to smother.
For Moses, the switch will have a greater impact on his defence - he intends to play both sides of the pitch as often as he can, with Brown sure to follow.
“It’s not so much switching sides, we’ll be playing both sides of the ruck. It’s more of a change defensively,” Moses said.
“I’ll be playing both sides, so I’ll be floating around. I’ll still be next to Matto, there won’t be too much of a difference.”
After Moses suffered a calf injury that stymied his running game last year, a full pre-season has him primed to get the best out of both his organisation and gamebreaking skills in 2021.
UNLEASH THE BEAST
Brown is one of the best up-and-coming halves in the NRL, and should be able to take more pressure off Moses now he has more experience — which his move to the right side should facilitate, especially with his kicking game.
“I think for the halves it’s a little bit different with the kicking and whatnot, I think that’s been the reason for the change, to open up Dylan’s kicking game a little,” said Lane.
“But my defensive role doesn’t change, and my attacking role stays about the same.
Brown has shown himself capable of playing both sides of the field in his two seasons of first grade but Lane’s move will arguably be of more consequence in attack.
The towering Lane is a gifted offloaded with a strong passing game for a man his size and his combination with Michael Jennings and Maika Sivo on the left side was one of Parramatta’s deadliest weapons last year.
Conversely, Parramatta’s right side struggled to get their attack going - Waqa Blake had a season to forget and Blake Ferguson endured a hellish try drought of 15 matches.
It will take time for Lane and Brown to properly build their combination with Blake and Ferguson but if things click, watch out - on his day Blake can be one of the NRL’s most dynamic players.
“As we saw with Jenko and Maika last year, it’s all about building combinations with players, what they like and how they like to get the ball and what they like to do,” Lane said.
“I did it pretty easily with Jenko and Maika because they’re so good to play with, and I’m sure Waqa and Fergie will be the same - they’re quality ball-runners who offer a lot in attack.
“They’re slightly different body shapes and like to get the ball in slightly different ways. Jenko preferred getting the ball a bit earlier before the line so he could use his footwork, Waqa is more of a big, strapping athlete, and when he runs to the line it drags in defenders.
“We’re trying to utilize that part of his game but there’s also times you want to get him in space with nice early ball.
“It’s not so much up to me to get him that ball, it’s more up to Dylan and for him to learn how to get Waqa that ball. But it’s good either way, Waqa is a great athlete.”
Lane isn’t focused on boosting his try assist numbers or offloads because when he’s been focused on personal goals in the past things have gone very wrong.
“For me, it’s not about trying to stack my stats as much as I can or get into Origin or anything like that because I’ve found in the past the more I try to do that the more selfish I become,” Lane said.
“I need to put the team first, that’s what I get paid to do and that’s my job.”
HOOK ‘EM REED
The final piece to Parramatta’s puzzle is hooker Reed Mahoney.
Mahoney’s unlikely to be directly influenced by the halves switch - when they want the ball he’s still going to give it to them, regardless of where they are on the field - but opening things up for them in attack has been a big focus of his pre-season.
A rugged defender with a strong kicking game, Mahoney has been focused on giving the team more direction from around the ruck in 2021, which should make things easier for Moses and Brown to create.
“I want to take more control with the ball, run it a bit more and be more of a threat out of dummy half,” Mahoney said.
“Over the last couple of years I’ve had to build my foundation as a dummy half, but I’ve been working really hard over the off-season to improve that.
“Everything starts with me and where I direct the team, and I want to take more control of that, really run my forwards around the park and when the halves want the ball I’ll give it to them. I want to take more responsibility there.”
The decision Blues didn’t want to hear
- Dean Ritchie
He has the power, toughness and skill to revel in State of Origin.
Even on Thursday, Blues chief adviser Greg Alexander claimed Parramatta’s Dylan Brown “wasn’t far off” being placed alongside the NRL’s premier five-eighths - Cody Walker, Luke Keary, Jarome Luai and Jack Wighton.
The NSWRL, NRL and Parramatta were all unsure whether Brown – who will guide the Eels against Brisbane at Suncorp Stadium on Friday night - had made himself eligible for Origin or wanted to stay loyal to his birth country, New Zealand.
Brown arrived in Australia from Auckland aged 15, has played all his senior rugby league in NSW and was chosen for the Australian Schoolboys.
News Corp finally tracked down the answer – he will spurn NSW, and its financial riches and fame, to represent the humble Kiwis.
“New Zealand is where his heart lies,” said Brown’s manager, Chris Orr.
After just two seasons of NRL, Brown is maturing and developing into one of rugby league’s elite players.
“While there a number of very good five-eighths in the game, Dylan is not that far off the pace now,” said Alexander.
“You can see that Dylan Brown has that level of class that would suit representative football because he has time with the ball and is a very good defender. He has good foot work, is sharp with the footy and is a good defender, mate. A very good defender.”
Preparing his side for the Broncos, Parramatta coach Brad Arthur outlined why Brown would continue his rapid growth as a first grader.
“Look, with these guys, the more games they play, they get natural experience, they will get better naturally. Obviously, our job is to help them. In two years’ time, Dylan should get better again,” Arthur said.
“We have to remember he is still only new to NRL, but that’s not an excuse. The thing I love about Dylan is that he just competes. As long as he keeps competing and puts time into his game, he will get better. Physically, he is very good. Dylan is a strong kid, he is very powerful and he’s a good trainer.”
Brown’s agency, Pacific Sports Management, who also manage Arthur, found Brown, who grew up in Whangarei, New Zealand, at a rugby league carnival and quickly nutted out a deal with Arthur at Parramatta.
“Dylan is confident and relaxed and comfortable in who he is. He is a very genuine person who cares for his family friends and teammates,” said Orr, a PSM director.
“He also loves spending time with kids and those less fortunate than him.”
Brown will form a potent spine for Parramatta, which will also include Clint Gutherson, Reed Mahoney and Mitch Moses. And success will be partly due to Parramatta’s spine coach, Andrew Johns.
“The spine is very important to any team and Joey has been doing a lot of work with those guys. It’s a different voice and they have a lot of respect and time for him,” Arthur said.
“It might take a bit of time but hopefully we start to see the benefits of that pretty early in the season.”
Brown posted solid stats last season including four tries, 10 line breaks, five try assists and 11 forced dropouts. He also made 58 tackle busts, second most for a five-eighth behind Walker. Brown averaged the 90 running metres each game, the most of any regular five-eighth in the NRL.
Arthur is expected to split his halves pairing with Brown and halfback Moses to play on opposite sides of the field.
“One thing I’m really looking forward are reports coming out that Mitch and Dylan are going to play on opposite sides of the field,” Eels legend Peter Sterling told Parraeels.com.au.
“I’ve got no qualms with that if Brad (Arthur) has seen something that works better for their game.
“That’s fine but I still want to see more passing between each other than I saw last year, especially in the second half of the season. I love to see the seven pass to the six and or the six pass to the seven on the same side. The best combinations in the competition do that.
“It’s something I hope (halves coach) Andrew Johns has worked hard on to get that combination going, not just have them playing either side of the field and only worrying about the relationship they have with their edge forwards.”
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