2019 Parramatta Eels season

The 2019 Parramatta Eels season was the 73rd in the club's history. Coached by Brad Arthur and captained by Clinton Gutherson, they competed in the NRL's 2019 Telstra Premiership.[1]

2019 Parramatta Eels season
NRL Rank5th
Play-off resultSemi-finalists (Lost 0–32 vs Melbourne Storm, 1st Semi Final)
World Club ChallengeDNQ
2019 recordWins: 14; draws: 0; losses: 10
Points scoredFor: 533; against: 473
Team information
CEOBernie Gurr
CoachAustralia Brad Arthur
Captain
StadiumBankwest Stadium (Capacity: 30,000)
ANZ Stadium (Capacity: 83,500)
TIO Stadium (Capacity: 12,500)
Avg. attendance18,396 (Home)
18,686 (Home & Away)
25,194 (Finals Series)
Agg. attendance220,757 (Home)
448,464 (Home & Away)
50,387 (Finals Series)
High attendance29,372 (15 September vs Brisbane Broncos, 1st Elimination Final)
Top scorers
TriesFiji Maika Sivo (22)
GoalsLebanon Mitchell Moses (92)
PointsLebanon Mitchell Moses (201)
← 2018 List of seasons 2020 →

Summary

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Before the start of the 2019 NRL season, Parramatta were predicted by many to finish towards the bottom of the table or claim another wooden spoon. The club started off the year with back to back victories over Penrith and arch rivals Canterbury-Bankstown. In round 6 of the 2019 NRL season, Parramatta played their first game at the new Western Sydney Stadium against the Wests Tigers and ran out 51–6 winners in front of a sold-out crowd.[2][3]

In round 9 against Melbourne, Parramatta suffered one of their worst ever defeats losing 64–10 at Suncorp Stadium. In the aftermath of the defeat, coach Brad Arthur and the players were placed under intense scrutiny but just a week after the loss, Arthur was given a two-year contract extension by the Parramatta board. The club would then go on to lose against North Queensland and last placed Penrith in the coming weeks.[4][5]

Between round 12 and round 22 of the 2019 season, Parramatta would go on to win eight of their ten games. In round 22 against the Gold Coast Titans, Parramatta qualified for the 2019 finals series with a 36–12 victory at Cbus Super Stadium.[6]

At the end of the 2019 regular season, Parramatta finished fifth on the table. In the elimination final against Brisbane, Parramatta won the match 58–0 at the new Western Sydney Stadium. The victory was the biggest finals win in history, eclipsing Newtown's 55–7 win over St. George in 1944. The match was also Parramatta's biggest win over Brisbane and Brisbane's worst ever loss since entering the competition in 1988.[7] The following week against Melbourne in the elimination semi final, Parramatta were defeated 32–0 at AAMI Park which ended their season. The loss against Melbourne was also the sixth time Parramatta had been defeated by Melbourne in a finals game since 1999.[8]


Standings

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Pos Team Pld W D L B PF PA PD Pts
1   Melbourne Storm 24 20 0 4 1 631 300 +331 42
2   Sydney Roosters 24 17 0 7 1 627 363 +264 36
3   South Sydney Rabbitohs 24 16 0 8 1 521 417 +104 34
4   Canberra Raiders 24 15 0 9 1 524 374 +150 32
5   Parramatta Eels 24 14 0 10 1 533 473 +60 30
6   Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles 24 14 0 10 1 496 446 +50 30
7   Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks 24 12 0 12 1 514 464 +50 26
8   Brisbane Broncos 24 11 1 12 1 432 489 −57 25
9   Wests Tigers 24 11 0 13 1 475 486 −11 24
10   Penrith Panthers 24 11 0 13 1 413 474 −61 24
11   Newcastle Knights 24 10 0 14 1 485 522 −37 22
12   Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 24 10 0 14 1 326 477 −151 22
13   New Zealand Warriors 24 9 1 14 1 433 574 −141 21
14   North Queensland Cowboys 24 9 0 15 1 378 500 −122 20
15   St. George Illawarra Dragons 24 8 0 16 1 427 575 −148 18
16   Gold Coast Titans 24 4 0 20 1 370 651 −281 10

Fixtures

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Pre-season

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Round Home Score Away Match Information
Date and time (Local) Venue Attendance
1   Parramatta Eels 20 – 22   Canberra Raiders Friday, 15 February, 7:00 pm St Marys Leagues Stadium
2   Penrith Panthers 0 – 20   Parramatta Eels Saturday, 2 March, 7:00 pm Panthers Stadium 6,339
Source:[9][10]

Home and away season

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Round Home Score Away Match Information
Date and time (Local) Venue Attendance
1   Penrith Panthers 12 – 20   Parramatta Eels Sunday 17 March, 4:05 pm Panthers Stadium 12,604
2   Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 16 – 36   Parramatta Eels Sunday, 24 March, 4:05 pm ANZ Stadium 20,134
3   Parramatta Eels 18 – 32   Sydney Roosters Friday, 29 March, 7:55 pm ANZ Stadium 13,367
4   Parramatta Eels 24 – 12   Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks Saturday, 6 April, 7:35 pm ANZ Stadium 11,185
5   Canberra Raiders 19 – 0   Parramatta Eels Sunday, 14 April, 6:10 pm GIO Stadium 16,059
6   Parramatta Eels 51 – 6   Wests Tigers Monday, 22 April, 4:00 pm Bankwest Stadium 29,047
7   Newcastle Knights 28 – 14   Parramatta Eels Sunday, 28 April, 4:05 pm McDonald Jones Stadium 19,604
8   Parramatta Eels 32 – 18   St George Illawarra Dragons Sunday, 5 May, 4:05 pm Bankwest Stadium 25,872
9   Melbourne Storm 64 – 10   Parramatta Eels Saturday, 11 May, 7:35 pm Suncorp Stadium 41,612
10   North Queensland Cowboys 17 – 10   Parramatta Eels Saturday, 18 May, 5:30 pm 1300SMILES Stadium 12,493
11   Parramatta Eels 10 – 16   Penrith Panthers Thursday, 23 May, 7:50 pm Bankwest Stadium 16,228
12   Parramatta Eels 26 – 14   South Sydney Rabbitohs Friday, 31 May, 7:55 pm Bankwest Stadium 21,645
13   Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks 42 – 22   Parramatta Eels Saturday, 8 June, 5:30 pm Shark Park 12,386
14   Parramatta Eels 38 – 10   Brisbane Broncos Saturday, 15 June, 7:35 pm Bankwest Stadium 16,854
15   Parramatta Eels 22 – 16   Canberra Raiders Saturday, 29 June, 7:35 pm TIO Stadium 5,391
16 Bye Round
17   Wests Tigers 18 – 30   Parramatta Eels Sunday, 14 July, 4:05 pm Bankwest Stadium 24,125
18   Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles 36 – 24   Parramatta Eels Sunday, 21 July, 4:05 pm Lottoland 15,245
19   Parramatta Eels 24 – 22   New Zealand Warriors Saturday, 27 July, 3:00 pm Bankwest Stadium 17,392
20   St George Illawarra Dragons 4 – 12   Parramatta Eels Sunday, 4 August, 4:05 pm Netstrata Jubilee Stadium 9,645
21   Parramatta Eels 20 – 14   Newcastle Knights Saturday, 10 August, 6:30 pm Bankwest Stadium 20,671
22   Gold Coast Titans 12 – 36   Parramatta Eels Friday, 16 August, 6:00 pm Cbus Super Stadium 10,780
23   Parramatta Eels 6 – 12   Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs Thursday, 22 August, 7:50 pm Bankwest Stadium 18,071
24   Brisbane Broncos 17 – 16   Parramatta Eels Friday, 30 August, 7:55 pm Suncorp Stadium 33,020
25   Parramatta Eels 32 – 16   Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles Friday, 6 September, 6:00 pm Bankwest Stadium 25,034
Source:[11]

Finals series

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Final Home Score Away Match Information
Date and time (Local) Venue Attendance
EF   Parramatta Eels 58 – 0   Brisbane Broncos Sunday, 15 September, 4:00 pm Bankwest Stadium 29,372
SF   Melbourne Storm 32 – 0   Parramatta Eels Saturday, 21 September, 5:30 pm AAMI Park 21,015
Source:[11]

Players and staff

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The playing squad and coaching staff of the Parramatta Eels for the 2019 NRL season as of 28 July 2019.[12]

Parramatta Eels
Top 30 squad Extended squad Coaching staff

Head coach

Assistant coaches


Legend:
  • (c) Captain(s)
  • (vc) Vice-captain(s)

Updated: 28 July 2019
Source(s): Eels Team Profiles


Transfers

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In:

Nat. Pos. Name From Transfer window Date Ref.
  Dylan Brown Youth Pre-season
  Andrew Davey   Townsville Blackhawks Pre-season October 2018 [13]
  Salesi Fainga'a Youth Pre-season
  Blake Ferguson   Sydney Roosters Pre-season
  Shaun Lane   Manly Warringah Sea Eagles Pre-season October 2018 [13]
  Ethan Parry Youth Pre-season
  Junior Paulo   Canberra Raiders Pre-season [14]
  Maika Sivo   Penrith Panthers Pre-season October 2018 [13]
  Stefano Utoikamanu Youth Pre-season
  Matthew McIlwrick   South Sydney Rabbitohs Mid-season March 2019
  Waqa Blake   Penrith Panthers Mid-season June 2019

Out:

Nat. Pos. Name To Transfer window Date Ref.
  Kirisome Auva'a Retired Pre-season [15]
  Cameron King   Featherstone Rovers Pre-season [16]
  Suaia Matagi   Huddersfield Giants Pre-season [17]
  Corey Norman   St George Illawarra Dragons Pre-season December 2018 [18]
  Beau Scott Retired Pre-season [19]
  Tony Williams   Blacktown Workers Sea Eagles Pre-season
  Nathan Davis Released Pre-season
  Jarryd Hayne Released Pre-season
  Siosaia Vave   St Marys Saints Pre-season
  Kaysa Pritchard Retired Mid-season June 2019
  Bevan French   Wigan Warriors Mid-season July 2019

References

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  1. ^ "NRL 2019 – Parramatta Eels – Rugby League Project".
  2. ^ "Parramatta Eels thrash Wests Tigers 51–6 to christen new Parramatta Stadium". ABC News. 22 April 2019.
  3. ^ "Where each club will finish in 2019". NRL. 23 December 2018.
  4. ^ "Arthur signs new contract with Parramatta". www.nrl.com. 14 May 2019.
  5. ^ "Parramatta Eels sign coach Brad Arthur to new NRL deal". www.foxsports.com.au. 14 May 2019.
  6. ^ "Moses guides Eels past sorry Titans in NRL". 7 News. 16 August 2019.
  7. ^ "Parramatta Eels eliminate Brisbane Broncos from the NRL Finals with a thumping 58–0 win". ABC News. 15 September 2019.
  8. ^ "Melbourne Storm crush Parramatta 32–0 in their semi-final to set up prelim against the Roosters". ABC News. 21 September 2019.
  9. ^ "Moses and Brown gives Eels fans hope for 2019 – Eels". 15 February 2019.
  10. ^ "Eels triumph over Panthers in trial – Eels". 2 March 2019.
  11. ^ a b "NRL 2019 – Parramatta Eels". Rugby League Project. 6 April 2019.
  12. ^ "Teams".
  13. ^ a b c "Eels confirm new signings for 2019". 29 October 2018.
  14. ^ "Junior Paulo Canberra Raiders Parramatta Eels deal". foxsports.com.au. 19 April 2018. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
  15. ^ "Kirisome Auva'a retires from NRL, Parramatta Eels". foxsports.com.au. 31 August 2018. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  16. ^ "Cameron King signs with Championship club Featherstone Rovers after viral tweet". Sporting News. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  17. ^ "Huddersfield Giants sign Samoa prop Suaia Matagi from Parramatta". Sky Sports. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
  18. ^ "Dragons sign Norman". 19 December 2018.
  19. ^ "Eels star calls it quits". wwos.nine.com.au. Retrieved 16 March 2019.