Parramatta Eels stay top of NRL ladder with grinding win over Newcastle Knights
There have been whispers this kid is the next great rugby league prospect, but his NRL debut proved memorable for all the wrong reasons.
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It wasn’t pretty, but Parramatta did what needed to be done to earn a grinding, 10-4 win over Newcastle and remain at the top of the NRL ladder.
It was a torrid and testing clash in the Hunter with little of the attacking adventure that has characterised the Eels rise in 2020, but coach Brad Arthur would be delighted with his side’s defensive resolve.
Newcastle were willing, but a lack of polish in the attacking 20 proved to be their Achilles heel. Despite a wealth of possession, especially in the second half, they simply could not unlock the gritty Eels.
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BLUE AND GOLD WALL
Some quick thinking from Clint Gutherson handed Parramatta what proved to be the winning try to Maika Sivo, but this victory was built on defensive resolve and plenty of it.
The Knights were camped on Parramatta’s line for what felt like an age after halftime, but the Eels held fast and eventually marched up the other end where Gutherson caught Newcastle napping off a quick tap and found Sivo to score.
That single passage told the story of the match — it is Parramatta’s ability to absorb pressure and come back stronger that wins them matches like this and become true premiership contenders. No player sums up their new mentality quite like the irrepressible Gutherson.
“He’s really matured as a captain, and as a leader of the team,” Arthur said.
“Because he’s done a really good job on himself physically he’s never stressed, he’s never fatigued, he’s got a real clarity about all the decisions he makes.
“They’re (Newcastle) playing a real tough style of footy and they make you earn your points.
“Our squad is maturing, they’re trusting each other, working hard for each other. We’ve put a fair bit of time and effort into it in the pre-season, it was a real focus.”
PONGA IN THE WARS
Kalyn Ponga copped heavy treatment all day from the Eels with Waqa Blake particularly zeroing in on the Knights superstar.
Blake rattled Ponga with a late shot in the closing minutes of the first half, sent him crashing hard to the ground as they contested a bomb early in the second and was penalised again for a high tackle on the Newcastle fullback.
Ponga passed an HIA following the first incident — not before taking a shot at goal, however — and despite looking dazed after the second he was not tested again. It was a gritty effort from the 22-year old to play on he appeared to have set up the equalising try in the final minutes with an inch-perfect kick for Tex Hoy but the rookie was ruled offside.
Newcastle’s attack looked out of sorts all day, with Knights coach Adam O’Brien revealing Newcastle had focused almost solely on defence at training in recent weeks.
“Sometimes the harder you try to get into the game the harder it becomes for you,” O’Brien said.
“There’s no doubt (Ponga) is a by product of what I’ve given the team over the last few weeks at training.
“I stated at the start of the year we wanted to be a tough, gritty defensive team and I don’t think we’d have lost too many supporters after that effort.”
COVID DRAMA FOR EELS ROOKIE
There have been whispers that 19-year old Eels prop Stefano Utoikamanu is the next great front-row prospect, but his NRL debut proved to be memorable for all the wrong reasons.
Utoikamanu only got on the field in the closing stages and was captured celebrating with friends and family after the game - which appeared to be a breach of the game’s strict biosecurity protocols.
Stefano Utoikamanu must be banned for 2 weeks he hugged fans after the game must be a idiot.
— lono89 (@lono89) July 12, 2020
“As always we will be guided by the advice of our medical experts,” said NRL Head of Football Graham Annesley on the incident.
“We will then be in a position to advise the club and the player of any further action or protocol implications.”
Utoikamanu may miss next week’s clash with Manly if forced to self-isolate.
“He’s a kid making his debut. It’s just a reaction, he’s excited. I’m not going to hold it against him,” Arthur said.
“I’m not sure what happens, I don’t make the rules.”
Head of football Graham Annesley said: “As always wee will be guided by the advice of our medical experts. We will then be in a position to advise the club and the player of any further action or protocol implications.”
WATCH FULL INCIDENT IN VIDEO PLAYER ABOVE
TOUGH RETURN FOR MOGA
Just getting on the field was a victory for Knights centre Tautau Moga, who has been ravaged by knee injuries throughout his career. Despite debuting all the way back in 2012, this was just his 71st NRL game and his first since August last year.
It was an unhappy return for the Queenslander — his carries were strong but he dropped the ball over the line twice and was caught out by Gutherson for Sivo’s try. In a match where points were so hard to come by it proved a fatal blow.
Moga will no doubt be better for the run, but it was a tough outing for the 26-year-old.
DON’T SLEEP ON MAHONEY
Many have already pencilled in Harry Grant for the Queensland dummy half spot, but don’t write off Reed Mahoney’s chances.
Mahoney was outstanding again for the Eels, creating a try for Matterson via a nice short ball and kicking well from dummy half. He also churned through 48 tackles in a fine all-round display.
The crispness of Mahoney’s passing allows the Eels to play with tremendous width, and is an underrated component of their high-octane attacking style, and he’s also underrated as a running threat.
— Nick Campton
How the ‘saviour’ and ‘tough kid’ forged an unbreakable bond
They played footy together. Lived together. Travelled together. Adam O’Brien is even the godfather of Brad Arthur’s only daughter.
Michael Carayannis explores the close two-decade bond the pair share ahead of their first showdown as opposition NRL coaches on Sunday.
“The saviour from Penrith” is how O’Brien first remembers hearing of Arthur. O’Brien had been plying his trade for his local Batemans Bay side as an 18-year-old hooker/half when the club’s great hope arrived in 1997.
“Then we signed this guy from Penrith who was going to be the saviour of the town,” O’Brien said.
After playing lower grades for Parramatta and Penrith, Arthur arrived on a two-year deal to captain-coach the Tigers. It was his first tentative steps into what would become a long coaching career.
“It was clear from the first training run that it was a different standard,” O’Brien said.
“The effort he put into planning sessions and teaching skills wasn’t something we were used to. We were just kids from the bush.”
Results weren’t immediate, however. Arthur blew out his knee early in the season and the team struggled on the field, punctuated by a 100-0 drubbing against Albion Park.
But the pair clicked instantly. O’Brien’s dad, Mick, ran the local pub, where Arthur lived when he first arrived on the NSW south coast.
Arthur described O’Brien as a “worker and a tough kid”.
“Adam was the first bloke who showed me around when I got there,” Arthur said.
“His family were very good to me. I had two of the best years of my life there and it helped set me on the straight and narrow. He got me out of strife on a few occasions.”
Arthur moved to captain-coach Cairns Brothers with O’Brien staying put, chasing an elusive premiership.
But they were never out of contact for long.
“I really wanted to win a comp in my home town,” O’Brien said.
“That was a dream. I didn’t idolise NRL players. My heroes were the players who played at Mackay Park (the Tigers’ home ground).
“We lost three grand finals in a row, then we won the fourth. I went to Cairns a week after we won the competition.
“As soon as I got to Cairns I noticed the change. It was the closest thing to NRL training you could do. We had stats and were doing video. No-one else at that level was doing that. (Arthur) really taught me the ropes about being thorough and detailed.”
Shoulder and knee reconstructions ended O’Brien’s playing career prematurely. He had no desire to step into coaching until an offer came from Arthur, who had been appointed coach of the Storm’s under-20s side and wanted an assistant he knew he could trust.
The pair combined to win the competition in 2009.
Arthur not only paved a coaching path, he opened up the family home he had in Melbourne to O’Brien – who is three years his junior. O’Brien and his wife, Sharyn, lived with Arthur, his wife, Michelle, and their three children.
“I was pretty hard on him,” Arthur said.
“I’m tougher on the people I’m closest to. We were living together and working full-time together where we’d work 10 or 11 hours.
“We’ve had plenty of blow-ups. I was always into him about learning some computer skills.”
O’Brien said he was “a bit sooky” at the time and needed the tough love Arthur showed him.
“He was tough and had some tough love,” O’Brien said.
“He was the first one who took a chance on me. Craig Bellamy took multiple chances. They are the two who have had the most influence on me.”
While Arthur has forged a successful path at the Eels, O’Brien’s first grade career is still in its infancy.
Arthur did flirt with the prospect of asking O’Brien, who is godfather to Arthur’s daughter Charlotte, to join his staff at the Eels in recent years.
“It would’ve been nice for me because I would’ve had someone I trust and knowing what I was going to get,” Arthur said.
“I spoke to him once or twice but there was no point leaving Melbourne. He was already under me for a bit so it was good for him to learn from other coaches.”
O’Brien has already leant on Arthur at times this year. They spoke almost daily during the COVID-19 break and when O’Brien asked, Arthur was happy to help out. When the competition resumed, the Knights wanted to use Parramatta’s training base at Kellyville as a pit-stop to break-up their match-day journey from Newcastle to Campbelltown.
“He said yes straight away,” O’Brien said.
“He is as competitive as anyone but at the end of the day we are still mates and can help each other out.”
On Sunday, that friendship faces its newest challenge.
— Michael Carayannis
Originally published as Parramatta Eels stay top of NRL ladder with grinding win over Newcastle Knights