2022 Parramatta Eels season

2022 Parramatta Eels season
NRL Rank	4th
Play-off result	Runners-up (Lost 12–28 vs Penrith Panthers, Grand Final)
World Club Challenge	DNQ
2022 record	Wins: 16; draws: 0; losses: 8
Points scored	For: 608; against: 489
Team information
CEO	Jim Sarantinos
Coach	Brad Arthur
Captain	Clinton Gutherson Junior Paulo
Stadium	CommBank Stadium (Capacity: 30,000) TIO Stadium (Capacity: 12,500)
Avg. attendance	20,015 (Home) 19,966 (Home & Away) 39,696 (Finals Series)
Agg. attendance	240,185 (Home) 479,180 (Home & Away) 158,784 (Finals Series)
High attendance	29,134 (16 September vs Canberra Raiders, 1st Semi-final)
←  2021 List of seasons 2023  →

The 2022 Parramatta Eels season was the 76th in the club's history. Coached by Brad Arthur and co-captained by Clinton Gutherson and Junior Paulo, they competed in the NRL's 2022 Telstra Premiership. ^[1]

Summary

Parramatta finished the 2022 regular season in fourth place. The season saw a club record membership tally of 34,264. ^[2] Along the way, the club defeated Penrith the defending premiers twice, the first of which was a 22–20 victory at Penrith Stadium which ended their long winning streak at the ground. The club also defeated Melbourne both home and away. Although the club finished within the top four, many pundits and experts wrote off Parramatta's premiership chances. In week one of the finals, Parramatta were beaten 27-8 by Penrith with Mitchell Moses being taken off injured in the second half. The following week in the elimination final, Parramatta comfortably defeated Canberra 40–4. This would set up a preliminary final meeting against North Queensland in Townsville. Parramatta headed into the game as outsiders but pulled off one of the biggest upsets in 2022 and NRL finals history defeating North Queensland 24–20. In the 2022 NRL Grand Final, Parramatta played against fellow Western Sydney club Penrith. Parramatta would go into the half-time break 18-0 down and would eventually lose 28–12 with Clinton Gutherson and Jake Arthur scoring Parramatta's tries. ^{[3] [4] [5]}

Squad information

The playing squad and coaching staff of the Parramatta Eels for the 2022 NRL season. ^[6]

Parramatta Eels

Top 30 squad						Extended squad		Coaching staff
Jake Arthur – HB, FE Waqa Blake – CE, WG Dylan Brown – FE, CE Nathan Brown – LK Reagan Campbell-Gillard – PR Bryce Cartwright – SR, LK Haze Dunster – WG Wiremu Greig – PR Clint Gutherson (c) – FB David Hollis – PR		Oregon Kaufusi – PR, LK Shaun Lane – SR Reed Mahoney – HK Makahesi Makatoa – PR, LK Ryan Matterson – LK, SR Mitchell Moses – HB Solomone Naiduki – WG Marata Niukore – SR, LK, CE Ofahiki Ogden – PR Tom Opacic – CE		Isaiah Papali'i – SR, LK Junior Paulo (c) – PR Will Penisini – CE, WG Hayze Perham – CE, FB, WG Mitch Rein – HK Ky Rodwell – LK, PR Sean Russell – WG Bailey Simonsson – WG Maika Sivo – WG Ray Stone – LK, SR, HK		Zac Cini – CE, WG Elie El-Zakhem – SR Brendan Hands – HK, LK, FE Samuel Loizou (DP) – CE, WG Toni Mataele (DP) – SR Luca Moretti – SR Josh Tuipulotu (DP) – FB, CE		Head coach Brad Arthur Assistant coaches Steve Murphy Ryan Carr Jordan Rankin (NSW Cup coach) Dean Feeney (Jersey Flegg coach) Paul McGregor (Coaching consultant) Michael Ennis (Coaching consultant) Legend: (c) Captain(s) (vc) Vice-captain(s) Updated: 4 October 2022 Source(s): Eels Team Profiles

Transfers

Main article: 2022 NRL season § Transfers

In:

Nat.	Pos.	Name	From	Transfer window	Date	Ref.
	HK	Mitch Rein	Gold Coast Titans	Pre-season	October 2021	[7]
	WG	Bailey Simonsson	Canberra Raiders	Pre-season	December 2021	[8]
	FB	Josh Tuipulotu	Youth	Pre-season	December 2021
	PR	Ofahiki Ogden	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs	Pre-season	February 2022	[9]

Out:

Nat.	Pos.	Name	To	Transfer window	Date	Ref.
	WG	Blake Ferguson	Green Rockets Tokatsu (rugby union)	Pre-season	September 2021	[10]
	HK	Joey Lussick	St Helens	Pre-season	September 2021	[10]
	WG	Michael Oldfield	Southport Tigers	Pre-season	September 2021	[10]
	PR	Sam Hughes	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs	Pre-season	September 2021	[10]
	FE	Will Smith	Gold Coast Titans	Pre-season	October 2021	[11]
	LK	Keegan Hipgrave	Retirement	Pre-season	November 2021	[12]

Pre-season

Main article: 2022 NRL pre-season results

20 February 2022	Parramatta Eels	22–26	St. George Illawarra Dragons	Parramatta
18:00 AEDT (UTC+11:00)		Report		Stadium: CommBank Stadium Attendance: TBA [13]

26 February 2022	Penrith Panthers	0–36	Parramatta Eels	Penrith
17:00 AEDT (UTC+11:00)		Report		Stadium: BlueBet Stadium Attendance: TBA [14] Referee: Ben Cummins

Home and away season

Main article: 2022 NRL season

League table

2022 NRL season v t e
Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	B	PF	PA	PD	Pts
1	Penrith Panthers (P)	24	20	0	4	1	636	330	+306	42
2	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	24	18	0	6	1	573	364	+209	38
3	North Queensland Cowboys	24	17	0	7	1	633	361	+272	36
4	Parramatta Eels	24	16	0	8	1	608	489	+119	34
5	Melbourne Storm	24	15	0	9	1	657	410	+247	32
6	Sydney Roosters	24	15	0	9	1	635	434	+201	32
7	South Sydney Rabbitohs	24	14	0	10	1	604	474	+130	30
8	Canberra Raiders	24	14	0	10	1	524	461	+63	30
9	Brisbane Broncos	24	13	0	11	1	514	550	−36	28
10	St. George Illawarra Dragons	24	12	0	12	1	469	569	−100	26
11	Manly Warringah Sea Eagles	24	9	0	15	1	490	595	−105	20
12	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs	24	7	0	17	1	383	575	−192	16
13	Gold Coast Titans	24	6	0	18	1	455	660	−205	14
14	Newcastle Knights	24	6	0	18	1	372	662	−290	14
15	New Zealand Warriors	24	6	0	18	1	408	700	−292	14
16	Wests Tigers	24	4	0	20	1	352	679	−327	10

Result by round

Round	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25
Ground	H	A	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	N	H	A	–	A	H	A	A	H	H	H	A	H	H	A	H
Result	W	L	W	W	W	L	W	L	W	L	W	W	B	L	W	L	W	W	L	W	W	L	W	W	W
Position	7	7	6	3	4	4	3	5	5	6	6	5	5	6	6	6	6	6	7	6	5	7	5	5	4
Points	2	2	4	6	8	8	10	10	12	12	14	16	18	18	20	20	22	24	24	26	18	28	30	32	34

Source: National Rugby League
A = Away; H = Home; N = Neutral; B = Bye; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Matches

Main article: 2022 NRL season results

Round 1: 13 March 2022	Parramatta Eels	32–28	Gold Coast Titans	Parramatta
16:05 AEDT	Tries: Russell  3', 7', 33' Lane  18' Blake  28' Goals: Moses 6/8  9', 30', 33', 66 pen', 71 pen', 79 pen'	Report Details	Tries: Sami  10', 41' Kelly  23', 37' Clark  35' Goals: Sexton 4/5  12', 25', 36', 43'	Stadium: CommBank Stadium Attendance: 18,211 Referee: Grant Atkins

Round 2: 19 March 2022	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	18–16	Parramatta Eels	Cronulla
17:30 AEDT	Tries: Mulitalo  11' Katoa  28' Tracey  57' Wilton  79' Goals: Hynes 1/4  80'	Report Details	Tries: Moses  39' Mahoney  62' Goals: Gutherson 4/4  40', 49 pen', 54 pen', 63'	Stadium: PointsBet Stadium Attendance: 11,459 Referee: Peter Gough

Round 3: 26 March 2022	Melbourne Storm	24–28 (g.p.)	Parramatta Eels	Melbourne
15:30 AEDT	Tries: B. Smith  11' Meaney  37', 43' Papenhuyzen  75' Goals: Papenhuyzen 4/4  13', 38', 44', 76'	Report Details	Tries: Gutherson  17' Blake  33' Opacic  58' Stone  70', 81' Goals: Moses 4/4  19', 34', 60', 72'	Stadium: AAMI Park Attendance: 15,691 Referee: Ashley Klein

Round 4: 3 April 2022	Parramatta Eels	48–14	St. George Illawarra Dragons	Parramatta
18:15 AEST	Tries: D. Brown  6' Moses  16', 75' N. Brown  43' Mahoney  50' Gutherson  52' Blake  59', 67' Goals: Moses 8/8  7', 18', 44', 51', 54', 60', 69', 76'	Report Details	Tries: Bird  34' Sims  70' Goals: Lomax 3/3  35', 40 pen', 71'	Stadium: CommBank Stadium Attendance: 19,711 Referee: Todd Smith

Round 5: 9 April 2022	Gold Coast Titans	20–26	Parramatta Eels	Gold Coast
19:35 AEST	Tries: Sami  51' Clark  59' Fifita  66' Marzhew  74' Goals: Sexton 2/4  61', 68'	Report Details	Tries: Gutherson  18', 32' Simonsson  25' Matterson  46' D. Brown  71' Goals: Moses 3/5  33', 47', 72' Sin bin: Paulo 61' to 71'	Stadium: Cbus Super Stadium Attendance: 14,478 Referee: Peter Gough

Round 6: 17 April 2022	Parramatta Eels	20–21	Wests Tigers	Parramatta
16:00 AEST	Tries: Gutherson  13' Papali'i  34' Mahoney  51' Niukore  68' Goals: Moses 2/4  15', 52'	Report Details	Tries: Leilua  10' Nofoaluma  22', 25' Maumalo  48' Goals: Brooks 1/3  11' Hastings 1/1  50' Field goals: Hastings  79'	Stadium: CommBank Stadium Attendance: 28,366 Referee: Chris Butler

Round 7: 24 April 2022	Newcastle Knights	2–39	Parramatta Eels	Newcastle
14:00 AEST	Goals: Clifford 1/1  8 pen'	Report Details	Tries: Lane  11' Perham  29' D. Brown  45' Papali'i  57', 66' Penisini  71' Goals: Moses 7/8  12', 31', 37 pen', 46', 51 pen', 59', 72' Field goals: Moses  79'	Stadium: McDonald Jones Stadium Attendance: 25,169 Referee: Ashley Klein

Round 8: 30 April 2022	Parramatta Eels	4–35	North Queensland Cowboys	Darwin
19:05 ACST	Tries: Perham  63' Goals: Moses 0/1	Report Details	Tries: Feldt  30', 37', 57' Dearden  74' Tabuai-Fidow  77' Drinkwater  78' Goals: Holmes 5/7  16 pen', 32', 38', 78', 79' Field goals: Holmes  39'	Stadium: TIO Stadium Attendance: 10,017 Referee: Todd Smith

Round 9: 6 May 2022	Penrith Panthers	20–22	Parramatta Eels	Penrith
19:55 AEST	Tries: Edwards  4' May  38', 53' Leniu  77' Goals: Cleary 2/4  6', 78'	Report Details	Tries: Gutherson  15' Mahoney  26' Matterson  66' D. Brown  69' Goals: Moses 3/4  27', 67', 70'	Stadium: BlueBet Stadium Attendance: 21,348 Referee: Gerard Sutton

Round 10: 15 May 2022	Sydney Roosters	31–24	Parramatta Eels	Brisbane
16:05 AEST	Tries: Waerea-Hargreaves  3' Tedesco  12' Walker  24' Sua'ali'i  43', 61' Goals: Walker 5/7  4', 13', 16 pen', 26', 73' Field goals: Walker  39'	Report Details	Tries: Papali'i  8', 47' Moses  49' Matterson  57' Goals: Moses 4/4  10', 48', 51', 59' Sin bin: Opacic 15' to 25'	Stadium: Suncorp Stadium Attendance: 43,401 Referee: Adam Gee

Round 11: 20 May 2022	Parramatta Eels	22–20	Manly Warringah Sea Eagles	Parramatta
19:55 AEST	Tries: Perham  17', 29' Opacic  59' Penisini  77' Goals: Moses 3/4  31', 60', 78' Sin bin: Moses 39' to 49'	Report Details	Tries: Garrick  13', 50' Tuipulotu  21' Harper  43' Goals: Garrick 2/4  15', 22' Sin bin: Keppie 72' to 80'	Stadium: CommBank Stadium Attendance: 18,778 Referee: Ben Cummins

Round 12: 29 May 2022	Canberra Raiders	20–28	Parramatta Eels	Canberra
16:05 AEST	Tries: Kris  8', 35' Whitehead  20' Goals: Fogarty 4/4  9', 22', 36', 43 pen'	Report Details	Tries: Penisini  11' D. Brown  16', 65' Simonsson  27', 53' Goals: Moses 4/5  13', 18', 55', 67'	Stadium: GIO Stadium Attendance: 16,244 Referee: Todd Smith

Round 13 (Bye for Parramatta Eels)

Round 14: 13 June 2022	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs	34–4	Parramatta Eels	Sydney Olympic Park
16:00 AEST	Tries: Addo-Carr  6', 47', 52' Averillo  14', 72' Kiraz  26' Goals: Burton 5/6  16', 28', 48', 54', 73'	Report Details	Tries: Penisini  67' Goals: Moses 0/1	Stadium: Accor Stadium Attendance: 20,184 Referee: Ashley Klein

Round 15: 18 June 2022	Parramatta Eels	26–16	Sydney Roosters	Parramatta
19:35 AEST	Tries: D. Brown  7' Papali'i  17' Gutherson  20' Sivo  31' Mahoney  33' Goals: Moses 3/5  8', 18', 35'	Report Details	Tries: Sua'ali'i  3', 47' Tupouniua  26' Goals: Walker 2/3  5', 27'	Stadium: CommBank Stadium Attendance: 21,757 Referee: Todd Smith

Round 16: 2 July 2022	South Sydney Rabbitohs	30–12	Parramatta Eels	Sydney Olympic Park
19:35 AEST	Tries: Johnston  3', 39' Arrow  16' Paulo  60' Cook  65' Goals: L. Mitchell 5/5  5', 18', 40', 62', 66'	Report Details	Tries: Gutherson  21', 72' Goals: Moses 2/2  22', 73'	Stadium: Accor Stadium Attendance: 10,102 Referee: Ben Cummins

Round 17: 9 July 2022	Wests Tigers	20–28	Parramatta Eels	Leichhardt
19:35 AEST	Tries: Brown  15' Laurie  25' Nofoaluma  70', 74' Goals: Doueihi 2/4  17', 26' Sin bin: Matamua 31' to 41'	Report Details	Tries: Campbell-Gillard  30' Sivo  37' Mahoney  39' Moses  42' Papali'i  67' Goals: Moses 4/5  31', 40', 44', 69'	Stadium: Leichhardt Oval Attendance: 13,214 Referee: Chris Butler

Round 18: 15 July 2022	Parramatta Eels	28–18	New Zealand Warriors	Parramatta
19:55 AEST	Tries: Blake  11', 21' Papali'i  53' Gutherson  56' Sivo  67' Goals: Moses 4/5  23', 55', 57', 68'	Report Details	Tries: Montoya  32' Kosi  75' Murchie  78' Goals: Johnson 3/3  34', 76', 78'	Stadium: CommBank Stadium Attendance: 12,279 Referee: Todd Smith

Round 19: 21 July 2022	Parramatta Eels	14–36	Brisbane Broncos	Parramatta
19:50 AEST	Tries: Sivo  4', 52' Blake  37' Goals: Moses 1/3  38' Sin bin: Penisini 31' to 41'	Report Details	Tries: Oates  10', 41' Haas  19' Riki  22' Capewell  32' Reynolds  69' Goals: Reynolds 6/6  12', 21', 24', 34', 42', 71'	Stadium: CommBank Stadium Attendance: 11,017 Referee: Gerard Sutton

Round 20: 29 July 2022	Parramatta Eels	34–10	Penrith Panthers	Parramatta
19:55 AEST	Tries: Papali'i  10' Sivo  14', 77' Mahoney  18', 26' Gutherson  34' Goals: Moses 5/6  12', 15', 19', 28', 35'	Report Details	Tries: O'Sullivan  6' Martin  62' Goals: Cleary 0/1 O'Sullivan 1/1  63' Sent off: Cleary  17'	Stadium: CommBank Stadium Attendance: 26,912 Referee: Todd Smith

Round 21: 5 August 2022	Manly Warringah Sea Eagles	20–36	Parramatta Eels	Brookvale
19:55 AEST	Tries: Koula  20' Saab  28' Tuipulotu  44' Goals: Garrick 4/5  22', 24 pen', 30', 52 pen'	Report Details	Tries: Sivo  2', 8' Opacic  33' Blake  55' Gutherson  61' Penisini  68' D. Brown  71' Goals: Gutherson 4/7  35', 63', 69', 73'	Stadium: 4 Pines Park Attendance: 17,134 Referee: Gerard Sutton

Round 22: 12 August 2022	Parramatta Eels	0–26	South Sydney Rabbitohs	Parramatta
19:55 AEST		Report Details	Tries: Walker  4', 69' Thompson  12' Johnston  26', 55' Goals: L. Mitchell 3/5  5', 56', 70'	Stadium: CommBank Stadium Attendance: 22,958 Referee: Grant Atkins

Round 23: 20 August 2022	Parramatta Eels	42–6	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs	Parramatta
15:00 AEST	Tries: Penisini  10' Blake  14', 78' Sivo  34' Matterson  45' Opacic  48' D. Brown  61', 65' Goals: Moses 5/8  11', 16', 46', 62', 66'	Report Details	Tries: Schoupp  28' Goals: Burton 1/2  5 pen'	Stadium: CommBank Stadium Attendance: 26,451 Referee: Ashley Klein

Round 24: 25 August 2022	Brisbane Broncos	6–53	Parramatta Eels	Brisbane
19:50 AEST	Tries: Lee  29' Goals: Staggs 1/1  31'	Report Details	Tries: Sivo  10' Opacic  16', 77' Gutherson  18', 36' Moses  26' Papali'i  65' Penisini  68' Blake  79' Goals: Moses 8/9  11', 17', 20', 28', 38', 67', 70', 80' Field goals: Moses  39'	Stadium: Suncorp Stadium Attendance: 30,371 Referee: Grant Atkins

Round 25: 1 September 2022	Parramatta Eels	22–14	Melbourne Storm	Parramatta
19:50 AEST	Tries: D. Brown  12' Penisini  43' Sivo  60' Goals: Moses 5/5  14', 30 pen', 44', 62', 71 pen'	Report Details	Tries: H. Grant  66' Meaney  76' Nofoaluma  78' Goals: Meaney 1/2  76' Munster 0/1	Stadium: CommBank Stadium Attendance: 23,758 Referee: Ashley Klein

Finals series

Main article: 2022 NRL finals series

See also: 2022 NRL Grand Final

Bracket

	Qualifying and elimination finals					Semi-finals						Preliminary finals					Grand final
	9 September – Sydney
	1	Penrith Panthers	27
	4	Parramatta Eels	8			16 September – Sydney
						Parramatta Eels		40
	10 September – Melbourne					Canberra Raiders		4				24 September – Sydney
	5	Melbourne Storm	20									Penrith Panthers		32
	8	Canberra Raiders	28									South Sydney Rabbitohs		12			2 October – Sydney
																	Penrith Panthers		28
	11 September – Sydney											23 September – Townsville					Parramatta Eels		12
	6	Sydney Roosters	14									North Queensland Cowboys		20
	7	South Sydney Rabbitohs	30			17 September – Sydney						Parramatta Eels		24
						Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks		12
	10 September – Sydney					South Sydney Rabbitohs		38
	2	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	30
	3	North Queensland Cowboys	32

Matches

QEF: 9 September 2022	Penrith Panthers	27–8	Parramatta Eels	Penrith
19:50 AEST	Tries: To'o  15', 51' Edwards  59' Fisher-Harris  61' Goals: Cleary 5/5  16', 53', 60', 63', 78 pen' Field goals: Cleary  37' Sin bin: May 11' to 21'	Report Details	Tries: Kaufusi  28' Goals: Moses 2/2  29', 46 pen'	Stadium: BlueBet Stadium Attendance: 21,863 Referee: Gerard Sutton

SF: 16 September 2022	Parramatta Eels	40–4	Canberra Raiders	Parramatta
19:50 AEST	Tries: Penisini  6' Opacic  14' Blake  19' Paulo  23' Moses  45' Niukore  70', 79' Goals: Moses 6/8  7', 21', 25', 47', 72', 75 pen'	Report Details	Tries: Savage  28' Goals: Fogarty 0/1	Stadium: CommBank Stadium Attendance: 29,134 Referee: Ashley Klein

PF: 23 September 2022	North Queensland Cowboys	20–24	Parramatta Eels	Townsville
19:50 AEST	Tries: Cotter  11' Leilua  25' Taulagi  52' Goals: Holmes 4/5  13', 38 pen', 49 pen', 54' Sin bin: Taumalolo 15' to 25'	Report Details	Tries: Penisini  6' Campbell-Gillard  18', 57' Sivo  64' Goals: Moses 4/4  8', 19', 58', 65'	Stadium: Queensland Country Bank Stadium Attendance: 25,372 Referee: Grant Atkins

GF: 2 October 2022	Penrith Panthers	28–12	Parramatta Eels	Sydney Olympic Park
19:30 AEDT	Tries: Crichton  10' To'o  17', 45' Sorensen  27' Staines  58' Goals: Cleary 4/6  12', 21 pen', 28', 60'	Report Details	Tries: Gutherson  76' Arthur  77' Goals: Moses 2/2  76', 78'	Stadium: Accor Stadium Attendance: 82,415 Referee: Ashley Klein

References

1. "Junior Paulo & Clint Gutherson Co-Captains". ParraEels.com.au. 4 February 2022.
2. "Parramatta Eels | Become an official member of the Parramatta Eels". Parramatta Eels.
3. "'See it in their eyes': The late-season pact and 'massive sacrifice' behind Eels surge". www.foxsports.com.au. 23 September 2022.
4. "Eels send ruthless title message, bury finals 'ghosts' in Raiders no-show: 3 Big Hits". www.foxsports.com.au. 16 September 2022.
5. "NRL Grand Final as it happened". www.theguardian.com.
6. "Teams". Parramatta Eels.
7. "Eels set to sign back up hooker following Lussick departure". Zero Tackle. 20 October 2021. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
8. "Eels confirm double signature amid mass exodus". Zero Tackle. 10 December 2021. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
9. "Parramatta Eels Extend Four Players". 19 February 2022.
10. "Eels farewell departing players". 22 September 2021.
11. "Smith to join Titans for '22". 15 October 2021.
12. "Keegan Hipgrave Announces Retirement". 12 November 2021. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
13. "NRL Trial: Sharks v Panthers | Eels v Dragons – CommBank Stadium".
14. "NRL Trial: Panthers v Eels – BlueBet Stadium".