Eels still winless as Tigers continue early-season surge
Parramatta's season lurched to a new low as a Benji Marshall and Corey Thompson-inspired Wests Tigers delivered an Easter Monday hiding to the Eels, forging their best start to a season in eight years in the process.
The Eels have now lost their first four matches of an NRL season for the first time since 2012, when they finished with the wooden spoon, and Brad Arthur's side showed no signs their troubles were close to evaporating against a reinvigorated Tigers, which bounced back from last round's golden-point loss to Brisbane.
Hair's breadth: Corey Thompson just gets the ball down on the line for a try.
Photo: AAPParramatta were largely insipid again throughout this contest in front of 30,420 fans at ANZ Stadium, only perking up in the last 20 minutes with a handful of late tries to make the scoreline respectable.
But by that stage an efficient and well-disciplined Tigers, which made just four errors and gave away three penalties, had already built a match-winning lead.
Arthur's side, widely tipped to finish in the top four at the start of the season, is now propping up the NRL ladder with the winless Canberra Raiders, and have lost six straight matches stretching back to last season.
On the other side of the coin, Tigers fans now have even more to cheer about after enjoying their third win from four games this season.
Veteran Marshall turned back the years after overcoming two ruptured ankle ligaments to play in the game, and had Parramatta defenders flailing every time he touched the ball during a dominant first half.
His game was a mix of slick passing, swirling spiral bombs and the occasional sidestep which instantly endeared him to these long-suffering fans a decade and a half ago.
Assisting him was winger Thompson who scored two tries and saved several more after returning from the English Super League in the off season.
The last time the Tigers had three wins at this early stage of the season was in 2010, when they were a Roosters field goal away from the grand final.
Five years earlier they started the year 3-1, and went on to win the joint venture's only premiership.
Parramatta started the stronger and took only five minutes to breach the Tigers' defensive line which had conceded just twice in the first three rounds.
Will Smith, the club's fourth-string fullback behind injured trio Bevan French, Clint Gutherson and Jarryd Hayne, leapt superbly to reel in a Mitchell Moses bomb at the expense of Tigers fullback Tuimoala Lolohea.
Just for a moment it looked like Parramatta had finally kick-started their season.
But then Benji took over. He laid on the first try in typically instinctive fashion. With the tackle count expiring, he headed right and didn't like what he saw, so spun around and went back to the short side.
Pita Godinet received the ball, and spun it out to Esan Marsters who found an unlikely ally in Robbie Rochow out wide. The second-rower finished the play.
Kevin Naiqama then beat a stack of defenders in the left corner further exposing Parramatta's tackling woes before Corey Thompson's controversial late try gave Wests a 14-point half-time lead.
Referee Gavin Badger sent it up to the Bunker having ruled an on-field try, and the video officials found no evidence to suggest Thompson's grounding had touched the sideline before the Parramatta in-goal area.
The Eels finally fired up late in the second half as George Jennings scored on debut, before Ryan Hoffman and Kirisome Auva'a threatened a late comeback, but once again it was too little too late.
WESTS TIGERS 30 (C Thompson 2, R Rochow, K Naiqama, M Eisenhuth tries, T Lolohea 5 goals) def PARRAMATTA EELS 20 (W Smith, G Jennings, Hoffman, Auva'a tries, M Moses 2 goals)
Half-time: Wests Tigers 20-6
Crowd: 30,420 at ANZ Stadium
Referees: Gavin Badger, Gavin Reynolds