There was plenty to like about the new-look Parramatta side’s first outing in the Jason Ryles era with even more to worry about if you’re a Knights fan.
The Eels fielded a squad containing just a sprinkling of first-graders but were far too strong for a more-experienced Knights outfit which did little to dispel the belief that they rely almost exclusively on Kalyn Ponga, who was absent on Maori All Stars duty.
North Queensland and the Dolphins also rolled out teams missing many stars in Cairns but new coach Kristian Woolf’s debut was a howling success as the Redcliffe club clobbered the Cowboys 50-8.
Eels 44, Knights 18
Brown shows value as Parra run riot
Dylan Brown is on the market and potentially fetching a seven-figure salary if he gives the Eels the slip, dominating the NRL summer news cycle in the lead-up to the on-field action.
The Kiwi international five-eighth was a class above the mainly fringe first-graders and young prospects who turned out at Newcastle on Friday night.
Brown scored a try from close range with a blend of speed and power in a performance which will only enhance his value, albeit coming against a piecemeal Knights side which did not throw too many punches at Parra.
“Expect a lot of change, hopefully for the good,” Brown enthused in a Fox League interview after the game when asked about the new regime at the club.
Dylan Brown. (Photo by Scott Gardiner/Getty Images)
Ryles has brought in an entirely new support staff for his first head coaching tilt after making several tough calls on the playing roster, including telling club stalwarts Reagan Campbell-Gillard and captain Clint Gutherson it was time to move on.
Gutherson’s replacement at fullback, young Panthers recruit Isaiah Iongi had some silky touches in his first appearance in the No.1 jersey, setting up a try for Jake Tago in the corner with a cut-out pass after Brown had opened the scoring.
Joash Papalii, an off-season signing from Canterbury, also looked like he will be pushing for an NRL spot somewhere in the backline after an impressive opening foray as an Eel.
Papalii and second-rower Kelma Tuilagi also crossed in the first half with Knights winger Greg Marzhew’s 22nd-minute four-pointer out wide the only bright spot for the gloomy home side.
Fletcher Sharpe, Jack Cogger, Will Pryce and Tyson Gamble spent time in the halves for Newcastle in an 80-minute microcosm of coach Adam O’Brien’s ongoing battle to strike up a winning combination.
Another tried and abandoned halves option, Jackson Hastings, came off the bench to play a loose forward role and despite having a lucrative contract, he does not look like he will be seeing too much NRL action at least in the early part of the season.
Tries to Logan Aoake, Kyle McCarthy and Jermaine McEwen brought the Knights within four points of the Eels before Jordan Samranni, Samuel Loizou and Arthur Miller-Stephen, twice, touched down to run up the final scoreline.
The Eels lost young playmaking prospect Ethan Sanders to the Raiders in the off-season due to the presence of new skipper Mitchell Moses and Brown in the halves.
They picked up Ronald Volkman off the NRL’s waiver wire after his switch from the Warriors to the Dragons 12 months ago was derailed by shoulder surgery.
Volkman will get paid a pittance compared to the first-choice halves, especially if Brown can get the upgrade he’s actively seeking, but he will be a handy back-up for Ryles.
The rookie coach will likely bring Moses, star recruit Zac Lomax and the rest of his top-liners out of cotton wool when the Eels tackle the Tigers at Leichhardt next Saturday night before their daunting Round 1 assignment of a trip to Melbourne.
For the Knights, assuming Ponga gets through Saturday’s All Stars stoush without drama, they have just 80 minutes in their final trial against the Roosters in Gosford next Saturday to sort out their many problem areas before they head to Campbelltown to face Wests to kick off their 2025 regular season.
Despite fielding a team with Jayden Brailey, Tyson Frizell and Kai Pearce-Paul, their defence was repeatedly flimsy with not many fringe candidates bolstering their chances of getting a start for opening round.
Cowboys 8, Dolphins 50
Woolf’s new breed bare their fangs
Depth has been the Dolphins’ undoing in their first two seasons of the NRL but that should not be a problem in 2025 judging by their performance in Cairns against the Cowboys.
Jake Averillo, who lined up at five-eighth, was probably the only Dolphin in action who can be assured of a spot in their Round 1 line-up against Souths at Suncorp Stadium.
But they dominated a similarly reduced-strength Cowboys outfit with only props Coen Hess and Thomas Mikaele and utility forward Karl Lawton likely to still be in the 17 when they open their finals campaign early next month with a trek south to Manly.
The Dolphins set up camp in the opposing red zone to race in three tries within the first 20 minutes with winger LJ Nonu benefitting twice on the right edge and Tevita Naufahu barging over after fullback Kurt Donoghoe created an overlap on the left.
Veteran halfback Sean O’Sullivan sent young second-row prospect Aublix Tawha to the stripe to make it 22-0 before North Queensland finally found their way down the other end of Barlow Park for five-eighth Jarrett Subloo to push past some sub-par defence to cut the gap to 18.
But that was a momentary break in transmission with Michael Waqa and Averillo exploiting powder puff goal-line defence to make it 34-4 at half-time.
If that wasn’t embarrassing enough for North Queensland, Non completed his treble early in the second half before Robert Derby grabbed a second for the Cowboys.
But Mason Teague and James Walsh also joined in the Dolphins’ try-scoring spree to reach the half-century mark with eight minutes left on the clock.
Kristian Woolf, aiming to overcome the hoodoo of following in Wayne Bennett’s footsteps, will need to be able to call on his back-up troops as the season wears on. The Dolphins have started brightly but faded quickly due to a lack of quality in their extended squad over their first two seasons but this time around they appear to have plenty of talent to call upon to be a legitimate chance of making it to the finals.
