Eels coach Brad Arthur’s reaction to coach-killer no try call ‘says it all’

It wasn’t pretty but the Parramatta Eels have returned to the winner’s circle, although not before a heart attack play for coach Brad Arthur.

Winning without Mitchell Moses had proven to be the Parramatta Eels’ kryptonite in recent times but the side has claimed the massive scalp of the North Queensland Cowboys in a 27-20 win at Commbank Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

Over the previous two weeks without Moses, the Eels had looked out of ideas and rarely looked likely to score, bouncing back from a 41-8 thrashing at the hands of the Raiders.

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But the in a four-try apiece showdown, the Eels have outpointed the high-flying Cowboys, ruining North Queensland’s chance to go top of the NRL ladder after round 6.

It wasn't all Parramatta’s way however as they took a 14-10 lead at halftime despite a deplorable completion rate of 10 from 16 and only 40 per cent of possession in the first stanza.

They finished the match with 52 per cent of possession and 26 of 36 in competitions.

It was a much needed win for the Eels.

And as they were looking to put the foot on the throat and take at least a 24-14 lead early in the second half, the Eels were denied in a moment that appeared to have coach Brad Arthur tearing what’s left of his hair out.

A short dropout from the Cowboys was knocked back by the visitors, but with no players waiting behind the play for the ball, it was Eels hooker Joey Lussick who dived on the ball, seemingly scoring the go-ahead try in the 53rd minute.

While it wouldn’t have been decisive, it would have got the Eels a long way towards where they wanted to go.

Lussick thought he was in. Photo by Jason McCawley/Getty Images

At the time, Michael Ennis praised the awareness of Lussick to stay alive.

But when referee Peter Gough went upstairs, the rapturous Eels fans were silenced as Lussick was deemed to have been inside the 10m from the kick.

“We’ve seen some doozies this year but that one takes the cake,” Ennis said on Fox League.

It would have been Lussick’s first career double and he was baffled about how it was taken off him.

When the camera went to Arthur, the Eels coach was filmed with his hands on his head.

Dan Ginnane said: “That says it all.”

Arthur’s name has begun to be discussed in the coaching merry-go-round after the Eels struggled in the absence of Moses with Wayne Bennett’s name being thrown up as a possible replacement for the long-term Parramatta mentor.

While it was a coach-killer of a moment, it didn’t stop the Eels from claiming the win, although it did give their fans a heart attack.

There were also questions over whether Lussick was in front of the line, and not just on the line from the kick.

One fan said: “What the actual f**k just happened there with the bunker? From that angle Lussick looked behind the line or at least on the line?”

Was Lussick off-side or on the line? Photo: Fox Sports

Brad Arthur couldn't believe it. Photo: Fox Sports

But the Eels were able to hold on, icing the seven point victory when Daejarn Asi kicked a field goal with three and a half minutes remaining.

Eels coach Arthur said the performance “showed they do care”.

“They just toughed it out, they were courageous, and they kept fighting and fighting,” Arthur said.

“You can’t turn it around and beat a team like that and hang on (without caring about the result)... I think they’ve scored the most points in the comp — defence has been a bit of an issue for us over the last couple of weeks and we scambled really well.”

Cowboys coach Todd Payten said it was a “frustrating” result.

The Cowboys had been denied a pair of early tries including an obstruction and a foot dragged into touch just shy of the grounding.

“I loved the fight but the skill and communication was what was disappointing I guess,” Payten said.

Originally published as Eels coach Brad Arthur’s reaction to coach-killer no try call ‘says it all’