2026 preview - Parramatta Eels

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Paving the road back to Parra-dise

The Parramatta Eels finished 2025 as one of the in-form teams of the premiership. As kick-off for 2026 approaches, the big question facing the blue and golds is whether they can perform when stakes are on the line.

Spending the first third of last season anchored to the bottom of the ladder, Jason Ryles' decision to play the long game by preferencing youth over experience eventually reaped rewards with the side winning five of their last seven matches, including an upset over eventual premiers Brisbane, to clinch 11th position with a disarming overall record of 10 wins and 14 losses.

Heading into 2026 buoyed by the confidence of finishing last season as one of the in-form teams in the league, coach Ryles will head into his second year at the helm determined to build on green shoots in a bid to take the Eels back to the finals for the first time since reaching the premiership decider four years ago.

Making a number of shrewd acquisitions with Jack de Belin and Brian Kelly bringing experience up front and to the backline respectively, the decision to sign Jonah Pezet on a 12-month contract could prove to be a masterstroke or disastrous as the Eels look to develop a long-term replacement for Dylan Brown.

Kicking off their 2026 campaign with a rematch of their disastrous trip to Melbourne, the Eels will be looking to prove how far they've come in twelve months by ending the Storm's imposing opening round record.

Why they'll win it

The Eels were in dire need of a rebuild after failing to capitalise on their premiership window, and in little more than a season coach Ryles has reshaped the roster into a squad on the rise.

Having taken a number of hits on the scoreboard early on last year, in part due to a high turnover of players from week to week, the Eels have identified and backed a host of youngsters who have the potential to be mainstays of the club for the rest of the decade.

To top off the foundations that have been laid, the class of a fit-and-firing Mitchell Moses, entering his golden years as a playmaker, could lift the Eels from also-rans to contenders.

Why they won't

The Eels gained a lot of admirers for the way they finished last season - however it remains to be seen whether the side can perform under the pressure of being more than nuisance value.

Losing seven of their opening nine matches, conceding 30 points on average in the process, the Eels were never a hope of playing finals football and didn't rise above the bottom four on the ladder until August.

The Eels are unquestionably a stronger team than this time last year, but when it comes to winning tight games against quality opposition there is still a long way to go.

2026 fixture list

Facing the unenviable prospect of coming up against grand finalists Melbourne and Brisbane away from home to start the season, the Eels will return to Sydney with six of their next seven matches at Commbank Stadium.

Scheduled byes in rounds 12, 16 and 20, the Eels have a largely favourable draw during the representative period with matches against the Raiders and Sea Eagles prior to Origin II and III at home.

Drawn to face three incumbent top eight sides twice (Storm, Bulldogs and Panthers), the Eels will travel interstate only five times all year and will round out the home-and-away campaign facing just one team that played finals football in 2025 over the closing six weeks.

Key player

There are a select few players in the league whose presence on the field can be the difference between winning and losing. Mitchell Moses is one such man.

Enduring a wretched run with injury over the past two seasons, appearing in 21 out of a possible 48 matches, the star halfback's personal winning record in blue and gold stands at 48% while the Eels' record without him drops to 26% in that time.

Proving his credentials as one of the game's elite players on the representative stage with New South Wales and Australia, Moses has the ability to achieve greatness in 2026 - if he can remain injury-free.

Rookies to watch

Aiming to follow in the footsteps of his highly-rated brother by making the step up to first grade, Richard Penisini has been earmarked as a player of promise in the Parramatta lower grades for some time. Gaining elevation to the Top 30 squad and scoring five tries in 12 NSW Cup appearances last season, the 20-year-old off-contract centre will be striving to continue his ascension by making the step up to first grade in 2026.

Lorenzo Talataina may not be ready for first grade by the start of 2026, but those in the know at the club have high hopes that it's only a matter of when, not if, the skilful playmaker makes the step up to the big time. Currently on a development deal before moving into the Top 30 in 2028, the talented five-eighth was named SG Ball Player of the Year and finished last season in NSW Cup as the Eels bowed out one game shy of the grand final.

Player movements

GAINS: Jack de Belin (St George Illawarra), Jonah Pezet (Melbourne), Brian Kelly (Gold Coast)

TOP 30: Bailey Simonsson, Charlie Guymer, Dylan Walker, Isaiah Iongi, J'maine Hopgood, Jack de Belin, Jack Williams, Jake Tago, Joash Papalii, Jonah Paezet, Jordan Samrani, Josh Addo-Carr, Junior Paulo, Kelma Tuilagi, Kitione Kautoga, Luca Moretti, Matt Doorey, Mitchell Moses, Richard Penisini, Ronald Volkman, Ryan Matterson, Ryley Smith, Sam Tuivaiti, Sean Russell, Tallyn Da Silva, Toni Mataele, Will Penisini

LOSSES: Dylan Brown (Newcastle), Brendan Hands (Toulouse), Dean Hawkins (London), Wiremu Greig (Townsville), Dan Keir (South Sydney), Haze Dunster (released), Zac Lomax (released), Shaun Lane (retired)

Best 17 (19)

1. Isaiah Iongi
2. Bailey Simonsson
3. Will Penisini
4. Brian Kelly
5. Josh Addo-Carr
6. Jonah Pezet
7. Mitchell Moses
8. Jack de Belin
9. Ryley Smith
10. Junior Paulo
11. Jack Williams
12. Kitione Kautoga
13. J'maine Hopgood

14. Tallyn Da Silva
15. Dylan Walker
16. Luca Moretti
17. Kelma Tuilagi

18. Sean Russell
19. Sam Tuivaiti