Round 8 vs. Parramatta Eels Discussion

[Big Pete]

Parramatta Eels vs. Brisbane Broncos
TIO Stadium, Friday 21 April 2023
Kick Off: 8:00pm

1. Clinton Gutherson 2. Maika Sivo 3. Viliami Penisini 4. Sean Russell 5. Haze Dunster 6. Dylan Brown 7. Mitchell Moses 8. Reagan Campbell-Gillard 9. Josh Hodgson 10. Junior Paulo 11. Shaun Lane 12. Bryce Cartwright 13. Ryan Matterson

14. J'maine Hopgood 15. Brendan Hands 16. Wiremu Greig 17. Matt Doorey

18. Jakob Arthur 19. Jack Murchie 20. Makahesi Makatoa 21. Bailey Simonsson 22. Daejarn Asi

1. Reece Walsh 2. Corey Oates 3. Kotoni Staggs 4. Herbie Farnworth 5. Selwyn Cobbo 6. Ezra Mam 7. Adam Reynolds 8. Thomas Flegler 9. Billy Walters 10. Payne Haas 11. Kurt Capewell 12. Jordan Riki 13. Patrick Carrigan

14. Cory Paix 15. Corey Jensen 16. Kobe Hetherington 17. Martin Taupau

18. Jesse Arthars 19. Keenan Palasia 20. Jock Madden 21. Brendan Piakura 22. Deine Mariner​

 

[Big Pete]

The Broncos are coasting along at 6-1 but if they're going to establish themselves as a genuine contender then it'll need to begin on Friday night. While they've certainly done enough to record victories their unwillingness to engage in the physical contest leaves a lot to be desired. With Parramatta boasting names like Junior Paulo, Reagan Campbell-Gillard, Shaun Lane, J'maine Hopgood there's every chance the Broncos will get rolled if they're not switched on.

The return of Thomas Flegler will definitely be a welcome addition. The question is will he pop up in the starting side or will he come off the bench? The eye test suggests he's far more valuable off the bench where he can cover for Haas or Carrigan and play a more instrumental in the middle. When Flegler starts he appears to be pigeon holed and only receives the ball as an option. It creates this do or die style of play for Flegler which more often than not backfires as he makes a mistake trying to create something. Off the bench, he's allowed to just roll it up the middle against weaker defences.

The other question is who will he replace. This seems like a no-brainer and the unsung hero Kobe Hetherington should come into add some starch and mobility in the middle. However the counter-argument is that Kobe only came on when the Broncos had the ascendency and Palasia can cover for Riki in a pinch. It's a close run thing but if you put it up for a vote, I'd be going with Kobe.

Cory Paix came on in the 38th minute against the Gold Coast Titans and coincidentally the Broncos fortunes seemed to change. At the very least I'd expect to see him come on earlier if not start the game. The Broncos have been slow-starters in 2023, conceding the opening try in all but two of their games. Even against the Dolphins it wasn't until the 22nd minute and only after the Dolphins had failed to capitilise on their earlier opportunities. It's an issue the Broncos have yet to figure out, so a swap could be on the cards here.

Corey Oates is also a strong chance of returning. It's expected he'll come in for Jesse Arthars who has been very reliable so far this season. So much so, there's some fans suggesting Oates should replace Cobbo with Arthars switching to the right. While I can't see that happening, I wonder if they'll wait until the Round 9 home game against Souths to bring Oates in.

The next seven weeks will be a good gauge for the Broncos and if they can win the majority of those games they will be in good stead. It all starts against the Eels in a game that could either be like the 36-14 Round 19 win or the 53-6 Round 24 loss.

 

[Big Pete]

Teams are in and the Broncos are at full strength. Hetherington ended up getting picked over Palasia, but Walters retains his spot in the starting side.

 

[Big Pete]

Brisbane Broncos 26 (Herbie Farnworth, Adam Reynolds, Ezra Mam, Kotoni Staggs tries; Adam Reynolds 5/7 goals) def. Parramatta Eels 16

7-1

The Broncos started much better this week. They took the Eels on through the middle, established the roll on and through their field position were able to capitalise off some attacking kicks. Haas and Carrigan set the platform with 140m+ and 130m+ respectively in the opening half and it just gave strike players like Mam the space they needed to weave their magic.

Mam did just that when he put Reynolds over in a scintillating run. I thought this was a really inspired play from the Broncos and it seemed like something they had identified in training. It seemed like they identified a few scenarios where they could get at Josh Hodgson, so when they saw Cartwright apply some great kick pressure, they used that to put Ezra 1-1 and his footy instincts just took over.

It was 26-6 before the Eels started to mount a comeback in the final quarter. The Broncos kicking game just started to wane here, gifting the Eels seven tackles sets and the Broncos were guilty of trying to take short-cuts. For example Kurt Capewell went for another 1-1 strip, knocked the ball on and Paix gave away a soft penalty. From that ensuing play, you get Paulo getting Doorey 1-1 with Mam who in trying to bring him down commits a hip drop tackle and suddenly it's all Parramatta.

It could have been worse if Payne Haas was penalised for his 'hip drop' tackle. The MRC have charged him with a Grade 2 Dangerous Contact charge after Reagan Campbell-Gillard was taken to hospital for a serious injury. The Broncos certainly dodged a bullet but in their defence it didn't seem like a classic hip drop tackle and more like an unfortunate incident.

It was not the ideal finish from the Broncos and while they certainly deserved the win there's still those areas they'll need to fix up in the weeks ahead.

As an aside, credit to Billy Walters. He's a popular target among Broncos fans, but he just kept it simple and got the team across the park well. It was good to see him respond after last week where he was guilty of over-playing his hand.