PARRAMATTA EELS
Is pressure building on Brad Arthur?
Arthur has done a brilliant job to transform the Eels into a consistent top-four quality side but one question still remains - is he the man to take them all the way?
Eels legend Peter Sterling recently took aim at the team’s attack after the loss to Canberra, claiming it lacked variety and consisted of too many one-out runs.
Arthur was quick to hit back at Sterling, telling media in the lead-up to the Roosters clash that execution instead was the issue.
A 28-0 shutout defeat on Thursday has done Arthur’s hopes of silencing the critics little good.
Laurie Daley argued Sky Sports Radio that this time the Eels did shift the ball more but that the conditions did not suit that game plan, accusing Parramatta of failing to adapt.
Are the Eels 'flat track bullies'?
Are the Eels 'flat track bullies'? | 01:06
What is quickly becoming clear though is that the Eels don’t have any issues getting into prime attacking territory.
Parramatta average the second-most run metres in the league and have the most tackles in the opposition 20 (32.7).
The Eels though have struggled to convert that into points with a red zone ratio of 10.7, the seventh-worst in the competition.
So, as Arthur said if it is down to execution what is not going right at the moment?
The absence of Mitchell Moses has been telling.
For all his critics, Moses does well to straighten up Parramatta in attack but without him the Eels have been guilty of going sideways too much.
Dylan Brown is not an organising playmaker so he is not a out-and-out replacement for Moses but he is yet to develop his passing game.
Then there are doubts over whether Arthur should have handed son Jakob his NRL debut with a readymade replacement in Will Smith who offers more variety and spark in attack.
Gutho loses it: 'F*** me, you dumb c***'
Gutho loses it: 'F*** me, you dumb c***' | 00:41
This goes back to the coach rather than the player himself given Jakob is only a few games into his first-grade career.
Arthur has backed himself in the past when it comes to making key decisions, be it shifting Waqa Blake or dumping Blake Ferguson.
While Arthur is correct to pinpoint execution as Parramatta’s problem at the moment, it is ultimately also on him and the broader coaching staff to address why that is the case.
With a nightmare run including the Rabbitohs, Sea Eagles Storm and Panthers to come the Eels could very quickly find themselves tumbling outside of the top four.
With that any hopes of progressing past the semi-finals will fade and scrutiny of Arthur will continue to grow.