Parramatta Eels survive feisty Bulldogs

The Bulldogs threatened to pull off the upset of the year against the Eels on Sunday but one play turned the tide at Bankwest Stadium.

Parramatta piled on 30 unanswered points in the second stanza. (Photo by Pete Dovgan/Speed Media/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

A frustrated Trent Barrett has slammed inconsistent refereeing decisions as his side surrendered a 10-6 half-time lead to go down to the Eels at Bankwest Stadium.

For 40 minutes it looked like the Bulldogs were going to pull off the upset of the season, but a calamitous error and subsequent penalty try woke the Eels from their slumber as they stormed home to stay in third spot.

The Eels struggled in slippery conditions as Canterbury jumped out to a 10-6 lead at that break, but everything turned in the 45th minute when the blue and whites produced a moment of madness coming out of their own end.

Halfback Jake Averillo fired a pass on the last tackle that cannoned into Dylan Napa, with the big man choosing to watch the ball instead of falling on it.

Mitchell Moses then toed it through and was taken out by a desperate Brandon Wakeham, leaving the Bunker no choice but to award a penalty try.

It sparked a 30-0 run that didn’t do justice to the contest as the Eels flexed their muscles to claim another two points before the week off.

.@TheParraEels are awarded a penalty try and retake the lead!#TelstraPremiership#NRLEelsBulldogspic.twitter.com/1OFQNabfpo

— NRL (@NRL) June 20, 2021

The Mitchell Moses effort to force the penalty try was significant. Once Eel regained lead their whole demeanour changed. More relaxed and controlled. Played really good football. Good win. They need to learn to play this way when they feel uncomfortable. Bulldogs tried hard

— Phil Gould (@PhilGould15) June 20, 2021

Penalty try? I can’t argue with the decision. @MasonsTakepic.twitter.com/7iMl6LhpbU

— Willie Mason WMM 💯🇦🇺🇹🇴 (@mase21) June 20, 2021

Barrett didn’t comment on the penalty try but he was irate with the decision to go back several plays to sin bin Luke Thompson for a late shot on Dylan Brown, especially when Eels forward Nathan Brown was allowed to stay on the field for a high tackle that forced Tui Katoa off for an HIA.

“There was nowhere for him to go,” he said.

“He can’t stop. He didn’t try to whack him and it wasn’t in the back. It’s pretty hard for a big fella at 110 kilos to pull up on a slippery night and disappear. He can’t do it.

“Luke Thompson goes to the sin bin…they go back and put him in the bin, but Tui Katoa gets concussed and we don’t go back and look at that one. There are a few questions I will be asking this week because we didn’t get a chance to get in the game in the second half.

“If you’re going to do it then do it consistently, because they didn’t do it when my poor old winger got knocked out.”

Building blocks

Half-time entertainment at footy games is often underwhelming and needlessly chaotic, but Sunday’s Bankwest offering was a perfect metaphor for what the Bulldogs have become under Trent Barrett.

Fans were asked to use blocks to build a tower and then try to knock over the other group’s structure. The towers weren’t pretty and the process wasn’t overly exciting, but like the Bulldogs, they stayed intact thanks to the foundations that had been laid.

The Barrett rebuild is far from over but the signs are promising. They will duke it out with the Broncos for the wooden spoon, but they’d be in the top eight for heart and effort after more than matching it with the premiership hopefuls for 40 minutes.

“We took a really good team to a place not many teams have been available to,” Barrett said.

“We’re not just here to make up the numbers.”

The Bulldogs took an unlikely lead into halftime. (Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)

Fair go for Fergo

No one can begrudge Brad Arthur for dropping Blake Ferguson based on his poor defensive reads this season, but if the Eels want to win a premiership, their enigmatic winger needs to be in the side.

He has dropped way down the pecking order, with Haze Dunster and Sean Russell earning starting spots with Maika Sivo out suspended.

Dunster spilt a bomb that led to Dylan Napa’s first try after a 44-game drought, and was caught infield when Wakeham lofted a pass for Tui Katoa to score in the corner, while Russell scored two late tries to cap a dream debut.

Ferguson picked up a lower-leg injury after 50 minutes in reserve grade but recovered to score a 95-metre solo try at the death to show he’s far from a spent force.

He may have already played his final game for the club, but they’ll need his powerful carries coming out of trouble when yards are worth their weight in gold in the finals.

Injuries to insult

Canterbury’s loss could get worse with fears Adam Elliott fractured his cheekbone midway through the second half, while Nick Cotric was also forced off late for an HIA.

Hard-working Englishman Luke Thompson could also be in trouble after he was sent to the sin for a late shot on Dylan Brown, while Parramatta pair Marata Niukore and Nathan Brown were placed on report for high shots.

But the news could be worse for luckless Eels utility Nathaniel Roache who came off with a knee injury in his first game since 2019.

“I don’t know exactly what it is at the moment, but it’s not nice for him because he worked hard in the pre-season,” Eels coach Brad Arthur said.

“We were patient with him with his preparation, and the boys really like him which makes it easier to pick people in the team. He earned his opportunity, but I’m not sure what happens from here.”