Dyldam Parramatta Eels second-rower Ben Smith says even without knowing he’ll hang up the boots this year, he and the Blue and Gold have more than enough motivation to take on the Sea Eagles on Friday night.
In Round 3, Smith was part of the Eels side that lost 22-18 to the Sea Eagles in the dying seconds at Brookvale Oval, and the second-rower credits the close loss with firing up the Eels for the 2014 season.
“I think that game against Manly sort of kick-started our season,” Smith said.
“[It let us] build our confidence to realise we can play against the big teams. They’re a great team Manly, and we know we’ve got to put our best foot forward on Friday if we want the two points.”
“There’s enough motivation as it is [for me and the team],” Smith added.
“We’ve got to win to make the semis. We’re in a good position to put ourselves in the semi-finals but we know we’ve got a tough couple of weeks ahead of us.”
The Dyldam Parramatta Eels kick off against the Sea Eagles at 7.45pm on Friday, August 22, in the Eels' final home game of the 2014 season. Click to buy your tickets and be there to cheer the Blue and Gold on our run to the finals!