The Dyldam Parramatta Eels kick off their 2016 NRL Telstra Premiership campaign this Thursday night (3 March) at Pirtek Stadium and Blue and Gold Club Captain says the Round One clash against the 2015 Grand Finalists is the perfect way to see where the Eels are at.
With the Broncos recently returning from the 2016 World Club Series, Mannah expects a tough challenge to kick off the season.
“I think they are definitely a powerhouse club and I think last year they set the bench mark for where teams need to be at,” Mannah said of the Brisbane Broncos.
“It’s a great opportunity for us this week to see where we are out and how we prepared this summer. Playing them first off is a good challenge for us.”
“I think we’ve got a really new team and a lot of guys that haven't played footy together but I'm pretty confident that we got a team here that work hard for each other and that doesn't matter who is playing, we will do our best to come up with the result.” Mannah added.
With the Eels having several new faces in their squad, including new recruits Kieran Foran, Beau Scott, Michael Gordon and Michael Jennings, Mannah said that the external media expectation had not affected the squad and their preparation for the 2016 season.
“I’ve got high expectations every year, I go into every season with high expectations and this year is no different,” Mannah said.
“We go into every week wanting to win and this week is no different as well,” Mannah added.
“We want to go out there and play our best footy and come up with the result and we will do everything we can to get that.”
The Dyldam Parramatta Eels kick off the 2016 NRL Telstra Premiership season against the Brisbane Broncos on Thursday, March 3. Click through to secure your seats!
