Round 2: Sharks v Eels preview
Horror Start vs Dream Start?
The Cronulla Sharks and Parramatta Eels will do battle on Saturday night at a newly refurbished PointsBet stadium. The Sharks will be looking to avoid an 0-2 start to the season, whilst the Eels will be vying to add two more competition points to their tally after taking down the Titans in a high-scoring affair last weekend.
Craig Fitzgibbon will be coaching his first game for Cronulla due to missing round 1 after contracting COVID-19. He'll be hoping this week he can rectify what went wrong for the black, white and blue down in the nation's capital last Friday. No doubt "Fitzy" will be happy with what he saw in his team's resolve to claw themselves back into the contest from 18-6 down to eventually lead 19-18. They did however let the narrow lead slip late in the contest, bringing to the forefront the age-old cliché that you have to play for the full 80 minutes.
The former Roosters assistant coach has stuck solid and backed the same 17 to start and finish the game better than what they did last week. They will need to be at their best defensively against a team who showed last week that they can post plenty of points, and quickly. If they can't match it with the Eels early, the game has the potential to get away from Cronulla before it really starts.
The Eels are coming off a win last week, but they'll be looking to improve in some key areas, especially in defence. The blue and gold were involved in a game that saw 48 first half points scored, with that half alone producing more points than any other full game over the weekend of action.
The fast-paced intensity of the game against the Gold Coast did not come without its repercussions. Brad Arthur was forced to move Waqa Blake to the left wing for this weekend's game, after 19-year-old winger Sean Russell suffered a broken rib and punctured lung scoring the try that completed his hat-trick. Injuries to Maika Sivo and Haze Dunster have left the Eels short for options when it comes to wing replacements.
Tom Opacic will come in at centre and fill the void left by Waqa Blake moving to the fringe. Ryan Matterson is also out this weekend. This sees Oregon Kaufusi, who funnily enough will join Cronulla in 2023, promoted from the bench to the starting lock role. The new faces on the bench are Bryce Cartwright and Nathan Brown, who returns to first grade after a brief stint in Knock-on-Effect Cup last week. Jakob Arthur misses out on the 17 and is selected in the reserves.
Last meeting: Round 3 2021 - Eels 28 Sharks 4
Who to watch: With Braydon Trindall set to return from suspension next week, Matt Moylan will be hoping to stamp his credentials as a legitimate starter in this team. The off-season recruitment of Nicho Hynes has seemingly shut down the competition for one spot in the halves and with Will Kennedy only getting better at fullback, Moylan may be hard-pressed to keep his spot in the starting 13. By all reports, the former State of Origin representative has been impressive all throughout pre-season in the shire and if he can propel his team to their first win of 2022, it may be enough edge out Trindall before his ban is up.
With greats like Peter Sterling formerly wearing the number 7 at the Eels during their period of success throughout the 70's and 80's, the jersey always comes with the weight of expectation. Images of Mitchell Mosesshaking his head despite the win last weekend shows a growing level of maturity within the Parramatta halfback and an acknowledgement that leaking 28 points wasn't an acceptable standard. Moses made his State of Origin debut in Game III last season and at the age of 27, he appears ready to take his game to new heights. His kicking game and game management as a whole will be crucial this weekend against what is a relatively unpredictable Cronulla side who have so many new faces in their team. If the Eels can start fast again and Moses can rally his troops not to lapse again, Brad Arthur's men will give themselves a very good shot at winning this one.
The favourite: The Eels are slight 3.5-point favourites to take the win.
My tip: I saw Cronulla losing to Canberra as a shock last week, and I certainly didn't see the Titans pushing the Eels the way they did. It goes to show that rugby league is an unpredictable game and anything can happen. The Eels though, are notoriously fast-starters to the season and I didn't think I saw enough from Cronulla last week to suggest that their new combinations are going to click just yet. Your guess is as good as mine, but I'm taking the Eels by 8.
