1981 1982 1983 1986 
Post by Electric Eel on May 23, 2020 19:43:58 GMT 10
Round 25, 2005: Parramatta 48 d Canberra 10
SMH
EELS 48 RAIDERS 10
Parramatta halfback Tim Smith was so upset with himself at half-time against Canberra yesterday that coach Brian Smith had to talk to him twice in the dressing room to make sure his head was right for part two of the battle.
Smith had missed a one-on-one tackle on Raiders second-rower Ian Hindmarsh in the 37th minute and Hindmarsh had taken advantage by scoring to put the visitors up 8-6. Fullback Clinton Schifcofske's conversion saw the visitors take a four-point lead to the break and the young playmaker was downcast when he entered the room.
The second half saw Smith produce his dazzling best as the Eels ran riot by scoring 42 unanswered points, but only after he had shaken off the disappointment at the urging of his coach.
"I was pretty dirty on myself," the player said. "I pride myself on defence and we do a lot of practice on it. I walked into the room with the head down, but it was all pretty positive in there and we came out all guns blazing in the second half."
All guns blazing is right. Parramatta scored tries in the 45th, 53rd, 60th, 64th, 69th, 73rd and 77th minutes to go with one from Ben Smith in the 10th minute. Winger Luke Burt scored three tries and converted all eight to equal his Eels record of 28 points in a game.
Coach Smith said the experience Tim Smith had yesterday could prove invaluable for him in the season's deciding games. "One of the things that has made Tim a standout player from other young players is his ability to shrug stuff off," Smith said. "He gets over setbacks very quickly. But he takes his game very seriously and sets a high standard for himself and when he missed that tackle he let it get to him.
"He was gutted when he came into the dressing room. I said to him, 'do what you've done all year and forget it, get over it', but I saw a bit later that he was still down on himself, so I spoke to him again.
"I told him it wasn't just for him that he had to do it, it was for the team, because they were expecting him to go back out there and lead them around. He reacted to that and I'm pleased that this has happened to Tim now, because when he has another episode like that he'll be able to reflect on the way he handled it this time and go from there."
Parramatta had clearly the better of the first half in terms of generating field position and scoring chances, but lock Luke O'Dwyer had two tries disallowed by video referee Steve Clark and Canberra hung tough. At the half-time break, though, the Eels talked themselves back into shape and went on with the job in spectacular fashion.
Burt had an opportunity to break his record in the last minute of the game, when Parramatta won a penalty 40 metres out and in front. Burt went for the shot at goal but having nailed most of his earlier attempts from difficult angles, sent this one wide.
"I didn't even know it was for the record until after the game," Burt said. "I was just told that if I wanted to have a shot, take it." But he wasn't bothered by the miss because Parramatta have far bigger goals in mind, starting with a chance to clinch the minor premiership by beating Brisbane at Parramatta Stadium on Friday night.
The Broncos smashed the Eels 54-14 at home in round five, but while the memory of that loss is fresh in the mind the Eels are driven more by the desire to enter the finals in winning form than by revenge.
Coach Smith looks like having closer to 25 than 17 genuine first grade players to pick from in the first week of the finals, barring injuries against Brisbane, but, as he pointed out, he can put only 17 on the field. The challenge for him will be to select the right 17.
The challenge for Canberra coach Matthew Elliott will be to make sure his players are in the right frame of mind for their last game, against Manly at Canberra Stadium on Saturday night, now that the Raiders can't make the finals.
"I'd love to win a game of footy," Elliott said. "It feels like forever since I've done that."
SMH
EELS 48 RAIDERS 10
Parramatta halfback Tim Smith was so upset with himself at half-time against Canberra yesterday that coach Brian Smith had to talk to him twice in the dressing room to make sure his head was right for part two of the battle.
Smith had missed a one-on-one tackle on Raiders second-rower Ian Hindmarsh in the 37th minute and Hindmarsh had taken advantage by scoring to put the visitors up 8-6. Fullback Clinton Schifcofske's conversion saw the visitors take a four-point lead to the break and the young playmaker was downcast when he entered the room.
The second half saw Smith produce his dazzling best as the Eels ran riot by scoring 42 unanswered points, but only after he had shaken off the disappointment at the urging of his coach.
"I was pretty dirty on myself," the player said. "I pride myself on defence and we do a lot of practice on it. I walked into the room with the head down, but it was all pretty positive in there and we came out all guns blazing in the second half."
All guns blazing is right. Parramatta scored tries in the 45th, 53rd, 60th, 64th, 69th, 73rd and 77th minutes to go with one from Ben Smith in the 10th minute. Winger Luke Burt scored three tries and converted all eight to equal his Eels record of 28 points in a game.
Coach Smith said the experience Tim Smith had yesterday could prove invaluable for him in the season's deciding games. "One of the things that has made Tim a standout player from other young players is his ability to shrug stuff off," Smith said. "He gets over setbacks very quickly. But he takes his game very seriously and sets a high standard for himself and when he missed that tackle he let it get to him.
"He was gutted when he came into the dressing room. I said to him, 'do what you've done all year and forget it, get over it', but I saw a bit later that he was still down on himself, so I spoke to him again.
"I told him it wasn't just for him that he had to do it, it was for the team, because they were expecting him to go back out there and lead them around. He reacted to that and I'm pleased that this has happened to Tim now, because when he has another episode like that he'll be able to reflect on the way he handled it this time and go from there."
Parramatta had clearly the better of the first half in terms of generating field position and scoring chances, but lock Luke O'Dwyer had two tries disallowed by video referee Steve Clark and Canberra hung tough. At the half-time break, though, the Eels talked themselves back into shape and went on with the job in spectacular fashion.
Burt had an opportunity to break his record in the last minute of the game, when Parramatta won a penalty 40 metres out and in front. Burt went for the shot at goal but having nailed most of his earlier attempts from difficult angles, sent this one wide.
"I didn't even know it was for the record until after the game," Burt said. "I was just told that if I wanted to have a shot, take it." But he wasn't bothered by the miss because Parramatta have far bigger goals in mind, starting with a chance to clinch the minor premiership by beating Brisbane at Parramatta Stadium on Friday night.
The Broncos smashed the Eels 54-14 at home in round five, but while the memory of that loss is fresh in the mind the Eels are driven more by the desire to enter the finals in winning form than by revenge.
Coach Smith looks like having closer to 25 than 17 genuine first grade players to pick from in the first week of the finals, barring injuries against Brisbane, but, as he pointed out, he can put only 17 on the field. The challenge for him will be to select the right 17.
The challenge for Canberra coach Matthew Elliott will be to make sure his players are in the right frame of mind for their last game, against Manly at Canberra Stadium on Saturday night, now that the Raiders can't make the finals.
"I'd love to win a game of footy," Elliott said. "It feels like forever since I've done that."
