The Eels made a statement in Indigenous Round, downing the high-flying Rabbitohs by 36-16 at Allianz Stadium on Friday.
The victory snapped the South Sydney's six-game winning streak, and put Parramatta back in the winner's circle in emphatic fashion on away turf.
Eels halves Dylan Brown and Mitchell Moses were imperial, orchestrating the 20-point triumph with standout displays. Brown won the Eric Simms Medal as man of the match with a try and 140 run metres, while the newly re-signed Moses laid on four try assists and kicked six goals from six attempts.
Dylan Brown flies for a try
J'maine Hopgood marked Indigenous Round with an excellent performance, making 39 tackles and 109 running metres.
The Eels silenced Allianz Stadium early with a scintillating start. A shortside raid gave Sean Russell room to move on the right wing, and he beat three defenders en route to the try line.
Eels off to a flyer!
Mitchell Moses’ sideline conversion, his 500th NRL goal, gave the Eels a 6-0 lead after three minutes.
Souths looked to have struck back moments later when Alex Johnston pounced on a kick, but Clint Gutherson saved the day with an extraordinary footed try-saver.
It only delayed the Rabbitohs’ prolific winger however, as he dived over shortly after from a one-on-one strip.
The next 20 minutes were a tense arm wrestle, before the Eels found a breakthrough off a piece of magic.
Dylan Brown sent Ryan Matterson into the backfield with a terrific offload, and the back-rower dashed 50 metres before handing it off for Bailey Simonsson to dive over in the corner.
Simonsson scores an Eels spectacular
Moses landed another sideline conversion to give the Eels an eight-point advantage.
The Eels made some desperate defensive plays to repel the Rabbitohs, but some silky play just before the break saw Johnston score his second try of the night.
Latrell Mitchell converted, but the Eels entered the sheds with a 12-10 lead.
Parramatta suffered a double blow early in the second half, losing Ryan Matterson for the remainder of the match with a calf injury before Campbell Graham scored a try to put Souths ahead for the first time.
The Eels had their backs against the wall, before Josh Hodgson turned the tide by pressuring Lachlan Ilias into kicking out on the full.
The Blue & Gold took full advantage, as Bryce Cartwright stormed onto a Moses short ball and carried two defenders over the line with him to score. The halfback added the extras from out wide, edging the Eels ahead 18-16.
Cartwright strikes for Parra!
After another Souths kick sailed out on the full, Parramatta laid on their fourth try to hit a crucial eight-point lead.
Dylan Brown's kick across the face of the posts fell down for Junior Paulo, and the Eels co-captain showed great awareness to get a pass away for Simonsson to stroll over.
The Eels keep it alive for a try
Moses maintained his perfect goal-kicking to make it 24-16 with just over 20 minutes to play.
Souths barely had a sniff thereafter, and the Eels landed the killer blow in the 71st minute.
Moses rolled a grubber to the in-goal and just as it looked to bounce dead, Dylan Brown pounced for a well-deserved try.
The Eels then put an exclamation point on their emphatic victory, as Will Penisini hit a gap and strolled over for Parramatta's sixth try.
Penisini seals the deal
Moses made it six conversions from six attempts, wrapping up an outstanding 36-16 victory for the Blue & Gold.
