Pirtek Parramatta Eels assistant coach Matt Parish returns to preview our final home game of the season, tonight's clash against the Dragons at Parramatta Stadium.
He says after an unacceptable loss to Melbourne last week, the boys are demanding improvement this week.
"Last week was very ordinary, the second half was unacceptable - it wasn't NRL level," he said.
"The boys have done a bit of soul-searching - as we all have, and we know it was an unacceptable performance and we need to improve tonight."
For the Eels, Jarryd Hayne returns to the side as fullback, something Parish says is a boost for the team.
"He brings a lot of enthusiasm, he's a great player and his presence lifts everyone," he said.
"But there are 16 other players who need to lift, and the boys know that if we can get out to a good start, we can play well."
Parish says their competition might be in a similar position to them on the ladder, but will still be a tough challenge.
"The Dragons have a very good back three, Jason Nightingale, Brett Morris and Daniel Vidot, they run a lot of metres; but they're also number one in the league for offloads," he said.
"They've got plenty of blokes who like to run the ball and keep it alive, so we've got to make sure we keep the ball locked up and keep them on the ground."
"I think we need to create more opportunity in our attack, but the main thing is our defence. We've worked hard on it and hopefully we can put in a good performance tonight."
Buy tickets to tonight's Member Appreciation round game here!
He says after an unacceptable loss to Melbourne last week, the boys are demanding improvement this week.
"Last week was very ordinary, the second half was unacceptable - it wasn't NRL level," he said.
"The boys have done a bit of soul-searching - as we all have, and we know it was an unacceptable performance and we need to improve tonight."
For the Eels, Jarryd Hayne returns to the side as fullback, something Parish says is a boost for the team.
"He brings a lot of enthusiasm, he's a great player and his presence lifts everyone," he said.
"But there are 16 other players who need to lift, and the boys know that if we can get out to a good start, we can play well."
Parish says their competition might be in a similar position to them on the ladder, but will still be a tough challenge.
"The Dragons have a very good back three, Jason Nightingale, Brett Morris and Daniel Vidot, they run a lot of metres; but they're also number one in the league for offloads," he said.
"They've got plenty of blokes who like to run the ball and keep it alive, so we've got to make sure we keep the ball locked up and keep them on the ground."
"I think we need to create more opportunity in our attack, but the main thing is our defence. We've worked hard on it and hopefully we can put in a good performance tonight."
Buy tickets to tonight's Member Appreciation round game here!
