After an off-season spent licking their wounds and dreaming of what could’ve been, last year’s Grand Finalists Parramatta will kick off the 2023 NRL season this Thursday night.
The Eels will take on fierce rivals Melbourne at CommBank Stadium as they attempt to, once again, break the longest title drought in the NRL.
With the Storm enjoying an incredible 21-year winning streak in season openers, the Eels will go into the match as outsiders despite reaching last year’s Grand Final against the Penrith Panthers at Accor Stadium.
If Parramatta are to end the Storm’s impressive Round 1 form, they’ll have to do it the hard way.
It’s expected that Eels coach Brad Arthur will head into Thursday’s match with a whopping 10 players from last year’s Grand Final team who are either no longer with the club, injured, suspended or without a trial game under their belt.
Reed Mahoney, Isaiah Papali’i and Marata Niukore have moved on to new clubs, while Shaun Lane is out with a broken jaw and Ryan Matterson is serving a suspension.
Waqa Blake (broken arm) and Maika Sivo (knee) failed to play in the NRL’s Pre-season Challenge earlier this month, while Nathan Brown (hamstring), Bailey Simonsson (shoulder) and Sean Russell (suspension) have their own dramas.
If the underdone Eels are to knock off Craig Bellamy’s men and start their season off with a victory, they’ll need to show the same grit and determination that got them to the 2022 decider.
Arthur will name his 22-man Round 1 team tomorrow afternoon with new recruits Josh Hodgson, J’Maine Hopgood, Jack Murchie and Matt Doorey expected to feature.
Parramatta had a mixed pre-season, with a loss against a severely understrength Panthers in Penrith in the opening weekend followed by a 36-14 thrashing of the Knights in Gosford in week two.
The Eels ran in seven tries to three that afternoon, with skipper Clint Gutherson and star halves pairing Dylan Brown and Mitchell Moses enjoying a solid hit-out.
Meanwhile, their opponents, Melbourne, come into this week’s game with the same Pre-season challenge form – a loss and a win.
CommBank Stadium in Parramatta will be rocking on Thursday night when the Eels battle the Storm in the 2023 NRL season opener.
Kick-off is at 7.50pm, with plenty of tickets still available through Ticketek or at the gate.
Troy Dodds is Parra News' Managing Editor and Breaking News Reporter. He has more than 20 years experience as a journalist, working with some of Australia’s leading media organisations. In 2023, he was named Editor of the Year at the Mumbrella Publish Awards.