It was one of the great final indictments…only to fall heartbreakingly short.
The 2009 Eels team went on a seven-game winning streak before being brought down to earth by a 37-goal drubbing by the Dragons in the final round of the season.
But it didn’t matter. They had made their way into the top eight and were locked in to play in the finals… And they got their revenge the following week anyway when they stunned the Dragons 25-12.
A comprehensive win over the Titans in the semi-final followed by a victory over fierce rivals, the Bulldogs saw the Eels do the unexpected – book a place in the grand final.
“No one gave us a chance,” Eels legend Nathan Hindmarsh said on the Fox League podcast this week.
“I think we got there after the offload, being unpredictable and supporting game.”
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Tim Mannah, the young forward who was in his debut season, told foxsports.com.au: “I remember the feeling after we beat the Bulldogs in the preliminary, how surreal it was that we were going to a grand final.”
The Eels were the cheerleaders and carried this swagger and confidence that was almost contagious.
But it all came crashing down quickly and the Storm won the battle 23-16.
“I think we’ve changed it (the style of play). I think we’ll really screw up in the grand final,” Hindmarsh said.
“We freaked out because we realized we had Melbourne, I can’t speak for everyone else, but I did.
“I tightened up and tensed up instead of playing that style of football that got us there, which was just ‘let’s go out there and play footballers.’ That’s what really got us there.
“I think we all got a bit tense knowing it was a grand final and knowing it was the Melbourne Storm.
“Straight away you say ‘well shit, how are we going to beat the Storm’ because it’s a lot like Penrith now – they’re the side that if you think you’ve got them down, the next set they’ll do it. just go back to their formation, do the that they do and regain ascendancy in this way. They can only be ignited in this way.”
Mannah said the week leading up to the big day is “a bit of a blur” and she doesn’t know if that’s because she was so busy or if she “blocked it from my memory”.
But he agreed with Hindmarsh.
“I think we handled it a little bit differently. We always had music and we were confident going into every game, but this was the first time we were nervous and got away from what worked for us, which was a relaxed, carefree style of play “, he said.
“They taught us a lesson. It was my first grand final and I think it was Melbourne’s third in a row, they just handled it so much better than us. Those 20 minutes blew us out of the park.”
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Being so early in his career, Mannah admitted he was “heartbroken” but honestly thought he would have another shot at a grand final.
“Looking back, I probably took it for granted,” he said.
“It was my first season in first grade and coming through the junior system we always made grand finals and won them, so it was nothing new for us. Then I thought “we lost this year but we’ll be back here soon”.
How wrong I was. This year is the first time the Eels have reached the grand final since 2009.
No doubt every member of the ’09 squad will be at the Accor Stadium or glued to their TV screens; after all, 12 of the 17 are still involved in rugby league.
Some train, others work in welfare with NRL clubs and a couple are still playing.
Then there are the guys who have moved on with life away from the game, like Joel Reddy, who is in the medical device industry, or Eric Grothe Jr, who runs an event rental business.
Here’s what’s up so far in Eels Square ’09.
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1. JARRYD HAYNE
Jarryd Hayne’s 2009 season was one of the greatest of the modern era, but he has since suffered a horrific fall from grace. The 34-year-old was found guilty of sexual assault last year and was sentenced to five years and nine months in prison. However, in February the Court of Appeal overturned the conviction and he walked free. A month later, the Director of Public Prosecutions announced that they would try Hayne for a third time. He was last seen celebrating the Eels’ preliminary final win over the Cowboys.
2. LUKE BURT
The winger and Eels favorite hung up his boots after the 2012 season and now works as the Titans’ partnership manager. However, immediately after retirement, Burt spent a further five years with the Eels progressing from education and welfare officer to development and skills coach and finally coach of the New York team. He then moved to the Gold Coast to be an assistant to NRL coach Garth Brennan, but left the field after the 2019 season and moved to the commercial team.
Luke Burt and Billy Slater chase the ball down the touchline during the NRL grand final between the Melbourne Storm and the Parramatta Eels at ANZ Stadium, Sunday October 4, 2009. (AAP Picture/Paul Miller) Source: AAP
3. INU CHRISTIANITY
At 35, Krisnan Inu is still going strong, playing for Leigh Centurions in the UK’s second-tier competition. He quit the Eels in 2010 to join the Warriors for two seasons and then spent three seasons with the Bulldogs, where he featured in the 2012 Grand Final, once again losing to the Storm.
4. JOEL REDDY
Joel Reddy finished at the club in 2011 and joined the Tigers for two seasons before ending his career at the Rabbitohs. But away from the field he also busied himself completing a degree in exercise physiology which saw him transition from NRL player to exercise physiologist and personal trainer once he hung up his boots. He now works in the medical device industry as an associate territory manager.
Joel Reddy scores during the NRL Grand Final. (AAP Image/Paul Miller)Source: AAP
5. ERIC GROTHE JR
Like many members of that team, Eric Grothe Jr retired shortly after the 2009 season. He played one more year with the Eels, although an injury sidelined him for most of the 2010 season, before calling time on his career… Or so we thought. The explosive winger came out of retirement and signed a one-year contract with the Sharks for the 2014 season, but another injury prevented him from playing a game. These days Grothe Jr owns and runs an event hire company called Marquee Hire Sydney along with his Parramatta legend father and a couple of other investors. It’s a busy gig, but Grothe Jr said, “We love it because it keeps us active and moving our bodies all day with lifting and carrying.”
Eric Grothe Jr tries to break up the Storm’s Cameron Smith and Dallas Johnson during the NRL grand final between the Melbourne Storm and the Parramatta Eels at ANZ Stadium, Sunday October 4, 2009. (AAP Image /Dean Lewins) Source: AAP
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6. DANIEL MORTIMER
He didn’t experience the euphoria of a premiership in 2009, but four years later Daniel Mortimer lifted the trophy in his first season with the Roosters. Mortimer moved north of the border in mid-2014 to join the Titans before finishing his NRL career with the Sharks. He had a short stint with Leigh in Super League and then hung up his boots. Mortimer has a degree in education but works as a sales executive and cellar door manager with Mortimer Wines in Orange, the famous family winery which has been running since 1995.
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Daniel Mortimer is chased by Will Chambers during the 2009 NRL Grand Final. (AAP Picture/Paul Miller)Source: AAP
7. JEFF ROBSON
Robson enjoyed a breakout season in 2009 and played in the NRL for a further nine years before retiring. He left the Eels after the 2010 season to join the Sharks for four seasons. He moved to the Warriors in 2016 but returned to the Eels after a mid-season release and finished his career in blue and gold, scoring a try in his only NRL game in 2017. The 40-year-old years now lives a quiet life. in the Shire, but is still very much involved with the game, working as the Sharks’ welfare and education manager.
8. NATHAN CAYLESS
The club legend retired at the end of 2010 with 259 first grade caps to his name as well as 39 Tests for New Zealand. He is now an NRL assistant coach at the Tigers but, interestingly, didn’t dive straight into coaching after hanging up his boots. Cayless worked in real estate for a year before joining the Eels’ corporate sales team. He got closer to the action as manager of the elite player program with the club and then left to take up his first coaching gig with the Warriors’ NSW Cup side. Cayless joined the Roosters coaching staff ahead of the 2020 season and then joined the Tigers this season, but was told his services are no longer required.
Nathan Cayless looks to pass as he is tackled during the NRL grand final between the Melbourne Storm and the Parramatta Eels at ANZ Stadium, Sunday October 4, 2009. (AAP Picture/Dean Lewins).Source: AAP
9. MATTHEW KEATING
Keating was the unsung hero in charge of the Eels in the grand final, but his spell with the club ended in 2013. He fell into the ‘maybe’ pile in Ricky Stuart…