Parramatta Eels Juniors

[Poupou Escobar]

Harold Matts got belted. I remember at the start of the year someone from the club said it was the first time in ages the Matts team was all local juniors (i.e. no external recruits like Dylan Brown). Their lacklustre performance over the season and in the finals would indicate the value of junior recruiting but also maybe we are focused on recruiting older players. Then again, Harold Matts is under 17s now whereas when I was a kid under 17s was SG Ball, with Matts under 15s. Seventeen is the key junior recruitment age, when clubs like Melbourne and Easts start heavy scouting/poaching the best ones so maybe we have just been priced out of the market. Once again our SG Ball team has been ordinary. Flegg is doing okay but we still haven't won that age group since 1990. The Roosters have won it four times since then.

 

[Joshuatheeel]

Harold Matts got belted. I remember at the start of the year someone from the club said it was the first time in ages the Matts team was all local juniors (i.e. no external recruits like Dylan Brown). Their lacklustre performance over the season and in the finals would indicate the value of junior recruiting but also maybe we are focused on recruiting older players. Then again, Harold Matts is under 17s now whereas when I was a kid under 17s was SG Ball, with Matts under 15s. Seventeen is the key junior recruitment age, when clubs like Melbourne and Easts start heavy scouting/poaching the best ones so maybe we have just been priced out of the market. Once again our SG Ball team has been ordinary. Flegg is doing okay but we still haven't won that age group since 1990. The Roosters have won it four times since then.

Not sure but think TCT suggested a few ball eligible players are already in flegg….if correct we are weakening 2 age groups but providing a quicker/better NRL pathway …

additionally thinking about it, ball / flegg may no longer be a good indication, any decent 18 year should be pushing into flegg and any decent 19 year shouldnt be in ball and definitely in flegg…..

 

[Obscene Assassin]

Not sure but think TCT suggested a few ball eligible players are already in flegg….if correct we are weakening 2 age groups but providing a quicker/better NRL pathway …

additionally thinking about it, ball / flegg may no longer be a good indication, any decent 18 year should be pushing into flegg and any decent 19 year shouldnt be in ball and definitely in flegg…..

From today's Flegg team we had 6 SG Ball eligible players, we've also had other Ball eligible players in previous weeks play in Flegg.

 

[Poupou Escobar]

I was thinking there might not be a point having an under 19s team if there's a 21s team as well. The only real purpose is for the under 17s who are too good for Harold Matts but not physically ready for Flegg. As you say, by the time they're 18 if they have NRL potential they should be in under 21s if not playing against full grown nuffies in reserve grade.

 

[Poupou Escobar]

From today's Flegg team we had 6 SG Ball eligible players, we've also had other Ball eligible players in previous weeks play in Flegg.

And last year we had three or four SG Ball-eligible players starting in the reserve grade team.

 

[hindy111]

Not sure but think TCT suggested a few ball eligible players are already in flegg….if correct we are weakening 2 age groups but providing a quicker/better NRL pathway …

additionally thinking about it, ball / flegg may no longer be a good indication, any decent 18 year should be pushing into flegg and any decent 19 year shouldnt be in ball and definitely in flegg…..

That's fine except other clubs maybe have 19yld playing up. Just like the Roosters with Walks and Suali

 

[hindy111]

And last year we had three or four SG Ball-eligible players starting in the reserve grade team.

Are we the only club doing this but? You'd need to see if other clubs flegg sides could be stronger also due to guys playing up a grade.

 

[Obscene Assassin]

I was thinking there might not be a point having an under 19s team if there's a 21s team as well. The only real purpose is for the under 17s who are too good for Harold Matts but not physically ready for Flegg. As you say, by the time they're 18 if they have NRL potential they should be in under 21s if not playing against full grown nuffies in reserve grade.

Our best 17 year olds still play Harold Matts, don't believe we've pushed up someone of Matts age into SG Ball in recent times. We do push SG Ball eligible players up into Flegg and higher. This year we've put Sanders and Guymer into Flegg despite them being 1st year SG Ball players. Our best 19 (and previously 18 year olds) are pushed up into Flegg.

 

[hindy111]

Our best 17 year olds still play Harold Matts, don't believe we've pushed up someone of Matts age into SG Ball in recent times. We do push SG Ball eligible players up into Flegg and higher. This year we've put Sanders and Guymer into Flegg despite them being 1st year SG Ball players. Our best 19 (and previously 18 year olds) are pushed up into Flegg.

I think a lot of sides could win these lower aged comps by just picking the biggest and physically most developed kids.The warriors used to be so dominant in under 20s doing so. While the guys who won't fill out untill 21 would be overlooked. Before BA come it seemed like we did a lot of this. Guys like Tanginoa,Goodal, Lavaka etc.....
Perhaps we are focusing more on future talent and guys who can develop into NRL players and leaving the guys who peak at age 18 out of our systems?

 

[Poupou Escobar]

Are we the only club doing this but?

Why does it matter what other clubs are doing? The point is that there's not much use for SG Ball if the best players in that age group are playing Flegg or reserve grade.

 

[Poupou Escobar]

Our best 17 year olds still play Harold Matts, don't believe we've pushed up someone of Matts age into SG Ball in recent times. We do push SG Ball eligible players up into Flegg and higher. This year we've put Sanders and Guymer into Flegg despite them being 1st year SG Ball players. Our best 19 (and previously 18 year olds) are pushed up into Flegg.

Likewise, before this year Penrith hadn't finished in the top four in SG Ball since 2018, despite having the biggest junior catchment in NSW.

 

[T-Boon]

I was thinking there might not be a point having an under 19s team if there's a 21s team as well. The only real purpose is for the under 17s who are too good for Harold Matts but not physically ready for Flegg. As you say, by the time they're 18 if they have NRL potential they should be in under 21s if not playing against full grown nuffies in reserve grade.

Rugby League needs a better elite junior system that is more about growing the game rather than about producing NRL first graders which is an inevitable by product anyway.

 

[Poupou Escobar]

They should have twelve grades worth of professional footy, with a minimum salary of $200k. I want to see short angry deadshits dropping the ball and getting coathangered live on Kayo every Wednesday.

 

[Joshuatheeel]

Rugby League needs a better elite junior system that is more about growing the game rather than about producing NRL first graders which is an inevitable by product anyway.

You really don’t have much connection with community footy at the junior or senior level do you?

let me know if you are ever interested can show you some junior footy…:

 

[T-Boon]

You really don’t have much connection with community footy at the junior or senior level do you?

let me know if you are ever interested can show you some junior footy…:

I'd feel like I was going to hang out with a bikie gang.

 

[Joshuatheeel]

I'd feel like I was going to hang out with a bikie gang.

Na, won’t take you to any 3rd grade games…unless you want too..

just some mod and international games with plenty of volunteers giving you a better understanding of how junior footy works…pm me if interested

 

[Poupou Escobar]

Might as well invite him to the aquarium ffs

 

[T-Boon]

Na, won’t take you to any 3rd grade games…unless you want too..

just some mod and international games with plenty of volunteers giving you a better understanding of how junior footy works…pm me if interested

“International games”?
Where I am coming from is that the structure of junior footy or whatever has allow the continuation of this class structure in nsw and Queensland where RL is for the poor and whatever else if for the well to do. That’s an epic failure of emabarressing proportions for the code but somehow it is celebrated.
This says to me the people in RL and the structure such as the local clubs need to be replaced because the working class are outgrowing league as well as the wealthy class.

 

[Homo man69]

Does anyone feel like we had a lot stronger juniors when the ages weren't so high? It doesn't develop our younger players for week in and out tough games. I played Matt's as a youngster. Parra had the strongest juniors back then. Our closest competitor was Penrith. It filled the guy's that made the team with alot of confidence. It showed when we went back to club footy. I witnessed Paul Gallen, Luke Burt, Jamie Lyon develop into superstars. Parra make some stupid decisions. Just like Parra junior club footy merging with Canterbury

 

[Menaiduck]

Does anybody know why the parra junior comps aren’t updated on the play rugby league website this year? Is it because of linkages with Canterbury (which also has no updates either)