PARRAMATTA halfback Brett Finch sparked the second-biggest comeback in the club's history against the Bulldogs in what Nathan Hindmarsh described as the best match he has ever been involved in.
The Eels rallied from a 20-0 halftime scoreline - the biggest lead the Bulldogs have squandered in their history. Asked if he'd ever played in a match like it, Hindmarsh said: "That's probably the best I've been involved in so far. It's hard to go back 200-odd games, but that's the best I've been involved in. There's not many coming back from 20-0 down. I've been on the end of those games so it's good to turn it around."
Despite being involved in all five of the Eels' second-half tries, Finch was resigned to handing back the No.7 jersey to Tim Smith, who made his return from a shoulder injury in the NSW Cup for Wentworthville yesterday.
"Whenever Smithy's ready I'll go out to five-eighth or if [coach Michael Hagan] wants to keep Feleti [Mateo] there, I can hopefully stay in the team somewhere," he said. "I've known all along I'm just playing halfback until Timmy's ready to come back."
Finch backed Hindmarsh's sentiments, also describing it as his best comeback.
"This takes the cake," he said.
There has been speculation Finch may walk away from the club at the end of the season, but he insisted his preference was to finish his career at the Eels. "I definitely want to stay. I'd love to finish my career here," he said.
"There's some salary-cap pressure … but we're going to be doing everything we can to stay, certainly."
Eels coach Hagan said he remained calm at the break despite an abject opening half. "That was probably the worst 40 minutes in my time here," he said. "One of the fans said that was one of the worst halves he'd seen and I'd have to agree. It was a Bulldogs fan, of course.
"But I'm happy to report our second half was what it needed to be for us to be good enough to stay in the game. It was a great reward for the players who stuck at what we know we can do. I thought there was a lot of composure shown by Brett Finch, in particular."
Bulldogs coach Steve Folkes was relatively upbeat despite the second-half capitulation
"We didn't have a lot of ball, a few things went against us," he said. "We didn't have a lot of luck, but you've got to credit them for controlling the ball and their field position … But I think there's more positives than negatives to come out of it."
The only bad news for the Eels was an ankle injury to Krisnan Inu. The Kiwi star is expected to be fit fo face the Warriors next Sunday, but will still go for precautionary scans today.
The only time the Eels have come back from a bigger deficit was in 1987, when they defeated Canberra 30-22 after trailing 22-0. Last night, they were behind for 69 minutes before Joel Reddy crossed for his second try of the evening.
In a heart-stopping finale, Mateo sealed the result just 30 seconds out from full-time, diving over after the ball deflected off a Bulldogs defender. Finch provided the spark and Hindmarsh the grit, the latter saving three tries to keep the Eels' chances alive in the face of an early onslaught from the Dogs.
In all, Hagan's side racked up 28 unanswered points after the Bulldogs totally dominated the opening 40 minutes. To make matters worse for the Dogs, Sonny Bill Williams seemed to be hampered by a leg injury, although he remained on the field to the end.
The Eels hit back immediately after the break. Finch provided Eric Grothe with a perfectly weighted cross-field kick, before Mateo capitalised on a brilliant offload from the halfback. Reddy's double then took the Eels into the lead, which they held to the end.
GUS'S VERDICT
I can't work out whether the Dogs were brilliant in the first half or if the Eels were disgraceful. Similarly, were the Eels so great in the second half or did the Dogs lose the plot? Actually I don't really care because it was tremendous entertainment. The Dogs showed real promise. Their attack has improved with better depth and shape to their play. They also look much fitter.Despite getting out of jail the Eels looked unfit and undisciplined. There's no doubting they have the skill and flair to beat anyone. But they need a real dose of reality on what it takes to win a premiership. Talent alone's not enough.
PHIL GOULD
