Dyldam Parramatta Eels winger Bevan French says his debut in the NRL was an opportunity he was truly grateful for.
The debutant and 779th Blue and Gold player had a starring role in the Eels 20-18 victory, scoring a vital try in the second half before a try-saving tackle in the final minutes of the game to secure the two points.
“It was definitely a lot tougher than the 20s,” French said in the sheds after the game.
“A good experience and I am grateful for the opportunity and hopefully I can get a few more games this year.”
“I wasn’t expecting that many fans to come here, but we have the best fan base in the NRL and I loved their support,” French added.
“Either way, win or lose, just to debut was good, but to get the win, it just topped it all off.”
For the Eels who were dealt injuries to Kieran Foran and Brad Takairangi during the game, French said it was their effort and resilience that saw them come away with the win when the team dealt with a reshuffled line up.
“We talked about effort all week, and I think it was something we worked really hard on,” French said.
“I was just lucky, to keep turning up for each other, I am glad I got there,” he added on his try saving tackle.
“It was obviously going to be a bit difficult with Kieran going off and Brad getting injured as well, but I was proud of the boys,” French added.
“Brad was happy with how we bounced back, we could of just rolled over and let them get away with the win there.”
“We weren’t getting too many good calls, we had a couple of injuries but Brad was talking about resilience all week and we did that.”
