2012 Parramatta Eels season
The 2012 Parramatta Eels season is the 66th in the club's history. Coached by Stephen Kearney (who was replaced part-way through the season by assistant coach, Brad Arthur) and captained by Nathan Hindmarsh, they competed in the NRL's 2012 Telstra Premiership. The Eels finished the regular season in last place for the first time since 1972, also failing to make the finals for the 3rd consecutive year.
2012 Parramatta Eels season | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
NRL Rank | 16th | |||
Play-off result | DNQ | |||
2012 record | Wins: 6; Draws: 0; Losses: 18 | |||
Points scored | For: 431; Against: 674 | |||
Team information | ||||
Coach | Stephen Kearney (Rd 1-20), Brad Arthur (Rd 21-26) | |||
Captain | ||||
Stadium | Parramatta Stadium | |||
High. Attend. | 45,863 (vs. St George-Illawarra Dragons, Rd 26) | |||
Top scorers | ||||
Tries | Ken Sio (13) | |||
Goals | Luke Burt (51) | |||
Points | Luke Burt (126) | |||
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Summary
2012 saw the retirement of Eels legends Luke Burt and Nathan Hindmarsh. It would also mark the first time since 1972 that the team would succumb to the dreaded wooden spoon. The Eels struggled all year, securing just their first win of the season in Round 5 against defending premiers Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles before ending a six-game losing streak against the Cronulla Sharks. This horror start to the season, and a win rate of less than 25% over almost two seasons with the club, coach Stephen Kearney was forced to resign and Assistant Coach Brad Arthur would become caretaker. The team responded to this producing 3 wins from 4 games, including competition front-runners Melbourne Storm and Brisbane Broncos to give the fans some hope for the rest of the season. However this was short lived and following a 38-6 thumping to the South Sydney Rabbitohs in Round 25 of the Telstra Premiership were officially unable to avoid the wooden spoon.
Whilst Parramatta’s problems were largely attributed to their relatively poor defence, numerous pundits claimed Parramatta’s problems in 2012 were largely credited to the recurring absences of star fullback Jarryd Hayne. Even whilst producing higher per-match statistics than any other fullback in the game (8 tries, 14 try-assists), Hayne only managed to complete 10 games from the season’s 24, due to both injury and State of Origin duty.
Throughout the season many of the Eels players came under scrutiny and were dropped to the NSW Cup, including high profile recruit Chris Sandow, who at the time was touted as overweight and unfit,[1] and veteran Luke Burt. As a result players Matt Ryan, Jake Mullaney and Nathan Smith were called up to the top squad and have impressed in their roles of Second-Row, Fullback and Hooker respectively, making a suitable replacement for injured stars Jarryd Hayne and Matt Keating.
Towards the end of the season Ricky Stuart was announced as the new coach for the Parramatta Eels from 2013.[2]
Fixtures
Trial matches
Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Score | Tries | Goals | Attendance | Report |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
11 February | Wests Tigers | Bluetongue Stadium, Gosford | Loss | 20–12 | E. Tonga, Toutai | Burt 2 | ||
17 February | Penrith Panthers | Centrebet Stadium, Penrith | Loss | 26–12 | Sio, Sandow | Burt 2 | 18,511 | |
Regular season
The 2012 Telstra Premiership season draw for Parramatta is as follows[3][4]
Ladder
National Rugby League
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | B | PF | PA | PD | Pts |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | 24 | 18 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 568 | 369 | +199 | 40 |
2 | Melbourne Storm (P) | 24 | 17 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 579 | 361 | +218 | 38 |
3 | South Sydney Rabbitohs | 24 | 16 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 559 | 438 | +121 | 36 |
4 | Manly Warringah Sea Eagles | 24 | 16 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 497 | 403 | +94 | 36 |
5 | North Queensland Cowboys | 24 | 15 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 597 | 445 | +152 | 34 |
6 | Canberra Raiders | 24 | 13 | 0 | 11 | 2 | 545 | 536 | +9 | 30 |
7 | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | 24 | 12 | 1 | 11 | 2 | 445 | 441 | +4 | 29 |
8 | Brisbane Broncos | 24 | 12 | 0 | 12 | 2 | 481 | 447 | +34 | 28 |
9 | St. George Illawarra Dragons | 24 | 11 | 0 | 13 | 2 | 405 | 438 | -33 | 26 |
10 | Wests Tigers | 24 | 11 | 0 | 13 | 2 | 506 | 551 | -45 | 26 |
11 | Gold Coast Titans | 24 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 449 | 477 | -28 | 24 |
12 | Newcastle Knights | 24 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 448 | 488 | -40 | 24 |
13 | Sydney Roosters | 24 | 8 | 1 | 15 | 2 | 462 | 626 | -164 | 21 |
14 | New Zealand Warriors | 24 | 8 | 0 | 16 | 2 | 497 | 609 | -112 | 20 |
15 | Penrith Panthers | 24 | 8 | 0 | 16 | 2 | 409 | 575 | -166 | 20 |
16 | Parramatta Eels | 24 | 6 | 0 | 18 | 2 | 431 | 674 | -243 | 16 |
National Youth Competition
Pos | Team | P | W | D | L | B | PF | PA | PD | Pts | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Newcastle Knights | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 134 | 56 | +78 | 6 | ||
2 | Wests Tigers | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 144 | 70 | +74 | 6 | ||
3 | Cronulla Sharks | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 138 | 88 | +50 | 6 | ||
4 | New Zealand Warriors | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 114 | 78 | +36 | 6 | ||
5 | Melbourne Storm | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 105 | 82 | +23 | 6 | ||
6 | Penrith Panthers | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 105 | 82 | +23 | 6 | ||
7 | Sydney Roosters | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 116 | 104 | +12 | 4 | ||
8 | Canterbury Bulldogs | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 92 | 91 | +1 | 4 | ||
9 | South Sydney Rabbitohs | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 122 | 128 | -6 | 4 | ||
10 | Parramatta Eels | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 102 | 112 | -10 | 4 | ||
11 | Brisbane Broncos | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 96 | 114 | -18 | 4 | ||
12 | Canberra Raiders | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 90 | 108 | -18 | 4 | ||
13 | North Queensland Cowboys | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 88 | 114 | -26 | 2 | ||
14 | St. George Illawarra Dragons | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 72 | 128 | -56 | 2 | ||
15 | Gold Coast Titans | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 82 | 131 | -49 | 0 | ||
16 | Manly Warringah Sea Eagles | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 72 | 184 | -112 | 0 |
Squad
Transfers
In:
Out
Retirees
Note: Former Manly player and NSW representative, William Hopoate will join the Eels in 2014 after completing a two-year religious mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.[37]
Player statistics
Player statistics as of 26 August 2012.[5]
Name | App | T | G | FG | Pts |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Mitchell Allgood | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Cheyse Blair | 20 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 20 |
Luke Burt | 18 | 6 | 51 | 0 | 126 |
Jarryd Hayne | 12 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 32 |
Nathan Hindmarsh | 21 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
Justin Horo | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Matthew Keating | 15 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
Luke Kelly | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Taniela Lasalo | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
Casey McGuire | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Reni Maitua | 19 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
Tim Mannah | 22 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
Fuifui Moimoi | 21 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
Ryan Morgan | 17 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 32 |
Jake Mullaney | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 12 |
Pat O'Hanlon | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
Joseph Paulo | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Justin Poore | 21 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
Ben Roberts | 17 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
Matt Ryan | 17 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
Chris Sandow | 21 | 9 | 14 | 3 | 67 |
Ken Sio | 22 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 52 |
Ben Smith | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
Nathan Smith | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
Taulima Tautai | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
Esikeli Tonga | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Willie Tonga | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
Milestones
- Round 4 — Four losses marked the Eels' worst season opening since 1991
- Round 5 — The Eels broke their losing streak in to 2011 Premiers, the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles
Part-way through the season it was announced that head coach Stephen Kearney would depart the club, with his assistant Brad Arthur taking over for the remainder of 2012. About a week later Ricky Stuart was announced as the Eels' head coach for the 2013 NRL season.
Jersey and Sponsors
Parramatta retain Pirtek Fluid Systems as major sponsor in 2012. The team is often referred to as the Pirtek Eels. Apparel sponsors for 2012 are Law Partners Compensation Lawyers, the University of New England, and Capital Corporation.[38]
References
- http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/sterling-slams-overweight-sandow/story-e6frexnr-1226322603592
- http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/ricky-stuart-to-coach-parramatta-eels-for-next-three-seasons/story-e6frfgbo-1226435192460
- "2012 Telstra Premiership Draw". NRL.com. Telstra BigPond. 5 November 2011. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
- "Draw / Results". Parramatta Eels. Telstra BigPond. Archived from the original on 21 March 2012. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
- "NRL 2012 - Parramatta Eels". The Rugby League Project. 26 August 2012. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
- "NRL Game Report: Eels vs Broncos". League Central: The Daily Telegraph. Sydney: News Limited. 2 March 2012. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
- "NRL Game Report: Eels vs Warriors". League Central: The Daily Telegraph. Sydney: News Limited. 12 March 2012. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
- "NRL Game Report: Cowboys vs Eels". League Central: The Daily Telegraph. Sydney: News Limited. 17 March 2012. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
- "NRL Game Report: Eels vs Panthers". League Central: The Daily Telegraph. Sydney: News Limited. 23 March 2012. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
- "NRL 2012 - Round 5 (PAR-MAN)". Rugby League Project. 1 April 2012. Retrieved 1 April 2012.
- "NRL Match Centre". Fox Sports. Retrieved 1 April 2012.
- "NRL 2012 - Round 6 (NEW-PAR)". Rugby League Project. 10 April 2012. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
- "NRL 2012 - Round 7 (CRO-PAR)". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
- "NRL Match Centre: Cronulla v Parramatta, Full Time 24-18". Sydney Morning Herald: League HQ. 15 April 2012. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
- "NRL 2012 - Round 8 (PAR-WTI)". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
- "NRL Match Centre: Parramatta v Wests Tigers, Full Time 30-31". The Sydney Morning Herald: League HQ. 29 April 2012. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
- "NRL 2012 - Round 9 (PAR-CTB)". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
- "NRL Match Centre: Parramatta v Canterbury-Bankstown, Full Time 12-46". The Sydney Morning Herald: League HQ. 4 May 2012. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
- "NRL 2012 - Round 10 (CNB-PAR)". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
- "NRL Match Centre: Canberra v Parramatta, Full Time 40-34". The Sydney Morning Herald: League HQ. 13 May 2012. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
- "NRL 2012 - Round 12 (STI-PAR)". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
- "NRL Match Centre: St George Illawarra v Parramatta, Full Time 14-12". The Sydney Morning Herald: League HQ. 26 May 2012. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
- "NRL 2012 - Round 13 (PAR-CRO)". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
- "NRL Match Centre: Parramatta v Cronulla, Full Time 29-20". The Sydney Morning Herald: League HQ. 26 May 2012. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
- "NRL 2012 - Round 15 (PAR-SOU)". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
- "NRL Match Centre: Parramatta v South Sydney, Full Time 6-24". The Sydney Morning Herald: League HQ. 16 June 2012. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
- 2012 NRL season results: Round 16
- "NRL 2012 - Round 16 (PEN-PAR)". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
- "NRL Match Centre: Penrith v Parramatta, Full Time 18-19". The Sydney Morning Herald: League HQ. 23 June 2012. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
- 2012 NRL season results: Round 18
- 2012 NRL season results: Round 19
- 2012 NRL season results: Round 21
- 2012 NRL season results: Round 25
- "NRL Squad". Parramatta Eels. Telstra BigPond. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
- "NRL Coaching Staff". Parramatta Eels. Telstra BigPond. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
- "NRL Injury Update". Parramatta Eels. Telstra BigPond. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
- Massoud, Josh (4 October 2011). "William Hopoate to sign with Parramatta Eels". The Daily Telegraph. Sydney: News Limited. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
- "Sponsor Directory". Parramatta Eels. Telstra BigPond. Archived from the original on 21 March 2012. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
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