Grothe back at Eels vowing not to let last chance slip
By James MacSmith
November 2, 2003
The Sun-Herald
Prodigal son Eric Grothe jnr returns to training with the Eels this week knowing 2004 is his last chance at footballing redemption.
The 23-year-old was released by Parramatta in 2001 amid acrimonious circumstances, but said he was happy to be back at the club where his father became a household name.
"I had a bit of a look around again last week and it feels like I never really left," he said. "When I left I didn't burn my bridges. It was all just a misunderstanding. I've got some good mates here and I'm really looking forward to playing some good football."
Grothe has played only 11 first-grade games since being selected for NSW in 2001, before being forced to withdraw because of a knee injury. He has spent the past two years at the Roosters playing mostly in Premier League, and by his own admission failed to reach the heights he had hoped for. But he is confident he can be a force next year.
"In terms of my footballing life I've only got a few years left, so I'm determined to make the most of it," Grothe said. "I didn't reach my goals last year. I didn't put in as much as I should have. I didn't do as many extras as I could have and I want to change that.
"Last year, because of injury, I didn't have a good pre-season and found it hard to catch up all year, so I'm looking forward to getting into training early.
"I've only had three weeks off because I was training with the Roosters up until the grand final in case something happened. So I haven't had much time off, which I don't mind because it hasn't given me time to get fat and lazy. It's kept me in line and sometimes I need to be kept in line."
It was rumoured that a falling-out with coach Brian Smith had led to him leaving Parramatta. But Grothe said he now saw the club as the perfect place to turn his undoubted potential into on-field performance.
"I'm very excited about it all. I've got a good feeling about it. The place seems more relaxed than when I left, there's a great coaching staff and I think we can do something good next year. The only goal I've set for myself is to play regular first grade, which is something I didn't manage at the Roosters."
Eels football manager Greg Mitchell said the club was happy to have a player of Grothe's calibre returning. "He feels at home here, he's happy to be back and we're hoping he can use the experience he gained elsewhere with us," Mitchell said. "He is a super athlete and hopefully we will get the best out of him."
The Grothe name is synonymous with blue-and-gold success, with Grothe snr an integral part of the Eels' premiership-winning sides of the 1980s. But Grothe jnr said he no longer worried about the pressure that comes with carrying the Grothe name.
"When I started playing first grade it affected me but it doesn't any more," he said. "I like it when people say I'm not as good as him because it reminds me what a great player he was.
"He doesn't expect me to be like him and I don't either. If I can be half as good as he was I will be happy."
