Dyldam Parramatta Eels second-rower Tepai Moeroa says the key to their Round 21 clash will be limiting opportunities with the football for the Wests Tigers’ talented back line.
The Eels’ Western Sydney rivals are fresh from a 25-12 win over the St George-Illawarra Dragons, ranked 10th on the NRL Telstra Premiership ladder and looking to keep their run to the finals alive.
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“They’ll be fighting for their season and we’ll be fighting for pride and putting respect in the jersey,” Moeroa said.
“[It’s about] controlling their halves, their forwards get them going forward and that gives them confidence in the halves to play some good footy.”
“We’ve got to stop their key players like [James] Tedesco and Brooksy (Luke Brooks), and we’ve just got to limit their opportunities with with the ball.”
For the Blue and Gold, their hopes of reaching the finals have been put to bed with a 34-14 loss to the Gold Coast Titans, but Moeroa said the side’s approach wouldn’t change.
“We’re just trying to play our best,” Moeroa said.
“Just because we can’t make the finals, we don’t want to waste what we’ve built during the season. We just want to keep building, and get ready for next year.”
“Everyone is disappointed, everyone wants to make finals, but it’s going to take us another year to get there.”
“We’ve got to stay positive in that sense, it’s just going to take us longer to reach our goal.”
