Round 4: Eels v Dragons preview
Eels look to continue hot start against Dragons at home
Fresh off their third consecutive win against the Melbourne Storm, the Eels confidence will be sky high as they head into their Round 4 matchup against the St George Illawarra Dragons.
As for their opponent, things were looking up for them, a strong Round One showing saw them past the Warriors, while they would've fancied their chances against the Panthers in what turned out to only be a 4-point loss if some of their key players didn't go down at crucial stages.
As has become custom with the Dragons over the last few years, as soon as any sort of hope was instilled in their fans, they let them down with a shoddy performance like the one they gave against the Sharks last Thursday. The Dragons never really fired a shot in their 36-12 defeat and will need to fix up their defence if they are any shot at upsetting this red-hot Eels team this week.
The Eels themselves also have a history of letting their fans down right after getting their hopes up, and theirs is a lot longer and more storied than that of the Dragons. Ironically, it was this very fixture last year which saw the Eels falter for the first time. After starting the season with 4 straight wins, including one against the Storm, the Eels were blown off the park 26-12 by the Dragons, who on that day featured a spine of Dufty, Norman, Clune and McCullough, a completely different set of players to the ones who will run out this Sunday.
The Eels will remember that game and remind themselves not to be complacent, in what is shaping up as an extremely close competition every game is vital, and at the end of the season one like this could be the difference between making and missing the top 4.
In team news, Ray Stone is out for the Eels after suffering an ACL tear during his heroic game winning try last week, while Wiremu Grieg is also not in the 17. They are both replaced on the bench by Bryce Cartwright and Ryan Matterson, the latter returning from a hamstring injury suffered in Round 1.
For the Dragons, Cody Ramsey has been dropped due to form, replaced on the wing by Matthew Feagai, while Jack Gosiewski comes in to start on the back row in place of the suspended Jaydn Su'A. Aaron Woods is included on the bench in jersey number 17.
Last meeting: Round 5 2021 - Eels 12 Dragons 26
Who to watch: Prior to the season, much was said about Dylan Brown and how he needed to improve from last season if the Eels wanted to have a chance at claiming their first premiership since 1986. 3 Rounds into the season and the Blue and Gold faithful couldn't have asked for much more. Last week against Melbourne he was the best player on the paddock as he destroyed the Storm with his running game, going for 126 metres off 11 runs and breaking 6 tackles in the process. He also had two try assists, making his total for the year so far 4. To put that into context, in the 21 games he played last year, he only notched up two try assists, meaning he's doubled that figure in just 3 games this season. The Eels will be hoping this form can keep up for the remainder of this season and beyond.
For the Dragons, Ben Hunt continues to be their standout player each and every week. Without him, the side would be completely lost, and that proved to be the case again last week, despite the scoreline. Hunt assisted both of the Dragons' tries, while also doing the bulk of the kicking duties, notching up 519 kick metres to his five-eighth Amone's 66. As good as Hunt is, this type of attacking model is just not sustainable in the long term, and while having the calming influence of McCullough out injured doesn't help things, the Dragons simply have to find a way to become more than a one-man band this week if they're to have any chance of repeating last years upset win.
The favourite: The Eels are favoured by 9.5 points in this one.
My tip: I really don't give the Dragons much chance at all here. Stranger things have happened, but I don't see this game being added to that list. Eels by 14.
