NSW Cup 2021: Parramatta Eels put star rookies to the test against Newtown Jets
Parramatta fans will get a glimpse of the club’s future with a host of star rookies set to make their senior debut this weekend, including the son of Eels coach Brad Arthur.
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A first-round bye and a second-round washout slowed them down, but some of Parramatta’s golden generation are set for their belated senior debuts this weekend — including Brad Arthur’s son, Jakob.
The Eels will debut a host of rookies in their NSW Cup clash with Newtown on Saturday, among them Arthur, hard-nosed prop David Hollis, dynamic centre Villiami Penisini and fullback Sean Russell.
All four are young and raw — Hollis is still just 19 and Russell, Penisini and Arthur were all still at school last year — but make no mistake, they’re the future of the blue and golds.
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Penisini was a teammate of Joseph Suaalii’s at King’s and a NSW Under-18s representative while Russell and Arthur were instrumental in steering Blacktown to victory in the GIO Schoolboy Cup Southern Conference final over Westfields.
“Some of them could be playing SG Ball with the age changes this year but it’s refreshing coaching the young fellas, they’re so keen to learn and they put more time into their game than anyone I’ve ever seen,” Eels NSW Cup coach Ryan Carr said.
“They’re really committed and really diligent.
“There’s a lot of guys making their debut, it’s a really young squad. But with that comes energy, they want to learn and they want to get better.
“Nothing is going to happen overnight — like everything else, it takes time and we need to go through the process.
“But we’re understanding of that and we’re looking forward to seeing them go through and play their first game of what we hope will be many to come in senior footy.
Hollis is likely the closest of the quartet to first grade — at 196cm he’s certainly got the size and has long been a standout in the junior ranks.
Russell is a sharp, quick-stepping runner while Peniseni has impressed those around the club in his first NRL pre-season and looked comfortable in the trial matches.
But the spotlight will shine brightest on Arthur, who is far more than a famous name, as he begins his own foray into senior football.
A smart game manager with a good kicking game, Arthur will partner former Titans and Tigers playmaker Jordan Rankin in the halves.
Rankin was once a teen prodigy himself, debuting for Gold Coast at just 16 in 2008.
But now Rankin’s experience, along with that of fellow former first graders Tim Lafai, Joey Lussick and Nathaniel Roache, will prove vital in showing the way for their younger teammates.
“There’s some guys at the other end of the spectrum who have played a fair bit of NRL and have been around a long time,” Carr said.
“It’s good to have a mix rather than have it be all at one end or the other.
“The physicality goes up with every step you take and the speed gets up as well, everything gets a little faster.
“Keeping up with the speed and physicality is the key, but we wouldn’t have them there if we weren’t confident in them.”
JERSEY FLEGG PREVIEW
NO-FUSS NATAPU DRIVES THUNDERBOLTS
By Jocelyn Airth
If anyone’s going to get the Thunderbolts’ season back on track, it’s Jack Natapu.
The no-fuss prop has already completed two NRL pre-seasons with the Melbourne Storm and on Saturday he plans to captain Victoria to their first win of the Jersey Flegg season.
Natapu has been a shining light in the Thunderbolts’ opening round losses, scoring a try and leading from the front.
“He played every minute last week against the Sharks, nearly clocked 200 metres carrying the footy as a front rower,” Victoria Pathways and Coaching Manager Tim Auremi said.
“The week before, he ran 170 metres in around 60 minutes. He just leads and sets a good platform for the team. He really leads from the front,”
“This year he did a trial with the Storm’s reserve grade team, he took that with both hands, and now he’s training with the Storm one day a week.”
Young Thunderbolts James Antonio and Kruz Niutili-Schmidt also spent time with the NRL premiers over summer.
“Feedback from the Storm has been great and they’ll no doubt be monitoring them to see how they progress throughout the season” Auremi said.
Auremi admitted that Victoria’s COVID-19 lockdowns were difficult to navigate, with many players leaving the state last year just to play footy. He knows it will take time for the Thunderbolts to click, but has been impressed with passages of play so far this season.
“We had an interrupted pre-season, didn’t get the ball rolling until mid-January,” Auremi said.
“I can’t fault the effort the boys put in each week. They’re lacking a bit of polish at the moment, but we didn’t have any pre-season games or trials. It‘s been a working progress and hopefully we can turn it around against the Tigers.”
Wests Tigers are absolutely itching to play footy — they had a bye in round 1 and floods cancelled their round 2 clash. Saturday will mark the club’s first competitive Flegg match since the competition was cancelled one year ago.
Coaches expect both Ben Stevanovic and Israel Ogden will be key to their season. Halfback Stevanovic is an exciting local junior, while centre Ogden was lured to Leichhardt after an impressive stint at the Warriors.
“This will be (Stevanovic’s) fourth year of Jersey Flegg, because he was accelerated as an 18-year-old, he’s a Flegg stalwart,” Wests Tigers’ Player Development and Pathways Manager Tyrone Collins said.
“Once junior reps finish up and junior players push up (into the Flegg team), he’ll probably push up into preserve grade,”
“A couple of years ago, (Ogden) scored a try against us to knock us out of the competition, this is back when he played against the Warriors … he’s been training with both our NRL and reserve grade sides.”
Collins is pleased with how the Tigers are tracking but knows Victoria will throw everything at them on Saturday.
“With Victoria, if you keep them in the game, they grow in confidence and stick with you, so we’re mindful of making a strong start” Collins said.
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Originally published as NSW Cup 2021: Parramatta Eels put star rookies to the test against Newtown Jets
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