NRL 2016: Kieran Foran injured as Eels edge out Knights at Hunter Stadium

PARRAMATTA Eels skipper Kieran Foran has been injured in his side’s narrow win over the Newcastle Knights at Hunter Stadium.

Kieran Foran leaves the field with a shoulder injury against the Knights.

UPDATE: BRAD Arthur said on Sunday his side had already reached rock bottom.

But the Eels coach was very nearly guilty of going off too early.

Parramatta survived a dramatic finish against bottom-placed Newcastle to keep their slim finals hopes alive with a 20-18 win at Hunter Stadium.

In the end, the result came down to a matter of centimetres and a giant slice of luck for the winners.

The Knights thought they had snatched victory with less than two minutes left when centre Nathan Ross burst through several defenders and claimed a try.

Referee Henry Perenara thought he’d scored as well under some desperate Eels defenders but sent it up to the bunker who found Ross had lost the ball on Eels winger Bevan French’s leg as he attempted to ground it.

It ended a pulsating 80 minutes where the result could have gone either way.

After a month where one crisis followed another at the club, Arthur was just thankful to walk away with the points.

“I’m very proud of the boys,” he said.

“We had quite a few busted and were down on troops and we toughed it out in the end.”

Brad Takairangi sits on the bench after injuring his hamstring.

The Eels lost skipper Kieran Foran to a recurrence of the shoulder injury he has carried for a couple of weeks before halftime and centre Brad Takairangi to a hamstring injury midway through the second half.

The Knights didn’t get through unscathed either with lock Korbin Sims on report and fortunate not to be sent off for a high shot on Tepai Moeroa. He is almost certain to face suspension.

Both sides went into the game with the immediate futures of key players under a cloud.

Knights backrower Tariq Sims has agreed to a new three year deal at the Dragons and there is speculation he could exit Newcastle before June 30.

And Eels fullback Michael Gordon has also been linked to an immediate move to the Sydney Roosters although Arthur refused to discuss it after the game.

Semi Radradra surges over the line for the Eels.

However, rival coach Nathan Brown had plenty to say on Sims’ departure and the social media bashing he has copped since The Daily Telegraph broke the story of his pending departure.

“People need to understand Tariq did not come in and demand a pay rise,” Brown said.

“The market forces determined Tariq deserved to get paid what he got paid.

“As the head coach of the club and with Moons (football general manager Darren Mooney), we made a decision that we didn’t want to go to those levels at this stage so I think Tariq is probably copping a fair bit of unfair criticism out there.

Nathan Ross was one of the best for Newcastle.

“People shouldn’t be judging him on what he may or may not have asked for. He is well within his rights to say he is going to get paid this elsewhere and if you aren’t going to come to the party, I may leave.

“That’s the business we are in. It’s not his fault he got offered what he got offered (from the Dragons).”

After jumping out to a 10-0 lead and appearing to be cruising in the first half, the Eels found themselves trailing 14-10 at halftime after the Knights’ best 20 minute period of the season produced three tries in the space of 11 minutes.

They stretched it to 18-10 with two Trent Hodkinson penalty goals before the Eels scored twice in the space of two minutes to wrest back the lead.

PARRAMATTA 20 (B French M Gordon S Radradra B Scott tries M Gordon 2 goals) bt NEWCASTLE 18 (S Mata’utia P Pauli N Ross tries T Hodkinson 3 goals) at Hunter Stadium. Referees: Gavin Reynolds, Henry Perenara. Crowd: 12,856.

Originally published as NRL 2016: Kieran Foran injured as Eels edge out Knights at Hunter Stadium