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A local derby will see a return to the early season aggression between the 12th placed Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs and the 13th placed Parramatta Eels at ANZ Stadium at 7:35pm Friday, with both sides hoping to reignite their stuttering campaigns.
The Bulldogs are just 2 points away from equal seventh on 18, though realistically can go no better than 10th, unless they win by 42 points or more.
The Eels sit three points adrift at 15, meaning any win would not see them rise up the ladder, though a loss would realistically end any faint hope of making the finals.
The game will be a huge test of character for both sides, with the Eels coming off a heartbreaking extra time loss to the Panthers, with a number of contentious calls going against them to ruin Nathan Hindmarsh’s 300th game for the Blue and Gold.
The boys from Belmore threw away an early 12 point lead against a rampant Warriors outfit to concede 36 unanswered points to botch Jim Dymock’s debut as a first grade coach, albeit with only hours to prepare his team.
The Bulldogs won their last clash, pulling from a 14-point deficit to a 34-14 win sparked by a Jarryd Hayne send-off after some magnificent play from the then fullback early on.
Apart from that, Canterbury has seen the worst from their last 10 clashes with the Eels, winning only one other game, a 48-18 win in Round 6 of 2009, when Jarryd Hayne was lining up in the number 6 jersey, something he will be replicating in this game.
Team News
Eels
The news that Jarryd Hayne will line up at five-eighth again will put him in the same position that Bulldogs five-eighth Ben Roberts will hope to occupy next year, if he wants to shine for his new coach and next year’s, this is the time.
Luke Burt will line up at fullback again where he has looked tidy, and his experience at the back should mean they won’t concede too many metres off kicks, especially with the Dogs kicking being particularly poor at the moment.
Justin Horo has stated that Parramatta will not be dwelling on the loss to Penrith, but with so many dodgy calls, and a Burt drop goal attempt hitting the post it might be hard. The Eels will be firing, however, after a heated affair in the reverse fixture, with Hayne and Hindmarsh having axes to grind, though mainly with injured Michael Ennis. Reni Maitua is facing his former club, and may have aspirations for the number 6 next year as well.
The team will line up the same as round 19. Former Australian Schoolboy Pat O’Hanlon will pull on the 19 instead of the 20, and Maitua who was in 19 will be in 17. Quiet week from the Eels after Hindmarsh’s 300th, but you can feel that they are wanting to do something big.
Bulldogs
A big week following the sacking of Kevin Moore and the ending of a long family dynasty, with Assistant Coach Dymock taking charge. Australian and New South Wales centre Josh Morris has been dropped for promising youngster Tim Lafai. Dene Halatau has been moved to lock, pushing former Queensland representative David Stagg to the bench, with former Queensland schoolboy rep Joel Romelo moving to hooker, in a move apparently designed to shut down the Hayne-train. Gary Warburton (dropped) and Kris Keating (injury) are out too, and Josh Reynolds is promoted to the bench.
Ben Barba is supposedly a confidence player, and it has been down recently with a number of high profile blunders leading to several tries at the back, but may be boosted by extending his stay at the club by 3 years to 2015.
Jim Dymock has put every player on notice, that if they don’t perform, they won’t play, and the Dogs board has told him that he has the remaining 7 games to put forward his pitch to be the permanent head coach of the Dogs.
Keys to the Game
Hayne at pivot will unlikely change the fact that he will be the go to man with the boot. Combining try-scoring machine Ben Barba’s recent horror show under the high ball with Haynes arguably highest bomb in the game, Bulldogs fans can expect some nervy moments as the balls start spiralling down on the young fullback.
In reverse, if Barba can overcome his demons and hang on to the ball, his deadly footwork in broken play could see some miraculous breaks which he has become known for.
Fui Fui Moi Moi will be a huge part of any potential Eels victory, with the Bulldogs leaking metres hard up the middle, the impact forward will look to make some serious metres to get the Parramatta strike force into the red zone. Against Penrith he played 65 minutes and racked up 164 metres off 21 hit-ups, and it’s hard to see the Bulldogs slowing him down, let alone shutting him down.
Romelu being brought into hooker is meant to try to plug the defensive gap that has been left by New South Wales rake Michael Ennis, who is out for the season. He will need to couple this with getting his forwards over the advantage line, something Canterbury have struggled to do this season.
Fast starters will be in good position, with both sides struggling to make wins from half time deficits. In the last ten games where the Eels have ben behind at half time, they have only won once, similarly, the Dogs have won one from their last eight in similar circumstances.
ANZ Stadium – Friday July 22nd – 7:35pm
Tip
I’d have to say the Eels. Neither team has been outstanding recently, but the Eels took the Panthers right to the line and should have won that match, and as long as they don’t let that fact get to them they should scrape this one. I wouldn’t write the Dogs off though, with a new coach and players on notice.
Parramatta and Canterbury haven’t had a close game in a long time. If one team gets on top, expect a blowout.
Join me at 7:30pm on Friday as we look at this surely heated derby. Will Canterbury add to Dymock’s resume? Or will the Eels start a late surge to the finals ala 2009?
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