Batting after Bradman: Arthur hits 244 not out in milestone week

If coaching after Jack Gibson is rugby league’s equivalent of batting after Don Bradman, it’s fair to say Brad Arthur has done a mighty job on a testing pitch since going in at No.10 for Parramatta.

Taking charge as the Eels’ full-time head coach in 2014, Arthur was the 10th man to follow in the footsteps of the Supercoach, who took the club to three straight premierships from 1981 to ’83.

From Brian Smith, the man whose record Arthur breaks on Monday as Parramatta’s longest-serving coach, to Daniel Anderson, who took the Eels to the 2009 grand final, only John Monie has been able to deliver another title to add to Jack’s triple treat.

In his first three years at the club, Monie went to a grand final in 1984, preliminary final in 1985 and tasted premiership glory in 1986 in the company of Eels royalty Peter Sterling, Brett Kenny, Mick Cronin, Ray Price and Steve Ella.

These were golden days in Sydney’s golden west, but the ensuing 36 seasons have delivered as many wooden spoons as grand final appearances and enough heartache to last a lifetime for the club’s army of supporters.

After sending Cronin and Price out on a high by downing arch-rivals Canterbury 4-2 in the ’86 decider, the Eels floundered for a decade before Smith’s arrival from Bradford in 1997 triggered a revival.

Across 243 games and a decade at the helm, Smith took his team to the finals on eight occasions and all the way to a grand final in 2001, where only some Andrew Johns brilliance derailed the Eels.

In his first year in charge in 2009, Daniel Anderson also took Parra to the big dance only to be beaten by the Storm, before a horror seven-year stretch in which they finished no higher than 10th under Anderson (2010), Stephen Kearney (2011-12), Ricky Stuart (2013) and Arthur (2014-16).

In stark contrast to Gibson, who inherited a team packed with superstars in the sweet spot of their careers, Arthur took charge of a side that had won just 11 games across two seasons on its way to back-to-back wooden spoons.

Thanks to the efforts of Terry Fearnley, who led the Eels to four successive finals series between 1976-79 including back-to-back grand finals, Big Jack had a big head start, and he wasn’t about to waste it.

“Jack was the perfect man to capitalise on the work Terry and John Peard [in 1980] had done before him,” said Eels great Peter Wynn, who was part of all four premierships in the 80s.

“Jack used to say you’re only as good as the stock you’ve got on your books, and he had some pretty fair stock at his disposal.

“Brad Arthur arrived on the back of two wooden spoons and the club had to move into a new era after blokes like Nathan Hindmarsh and Luke Burt had retired in 2012.

He had some tough times at the start but he holds himself well, he’s respected by his players and he gets the best out of them.

Peter Wynn on Eels coach Brad Arthur

“It’s a 24-7 job being an NRL coach, it’s every bit as brutal off the field as it is on it.

“Brad has built a strong side and they did a great job to make the grand final last year but comps ate hard to win and it has been a long dry spell.”

The drought was 15 years old when Smith’s Class of 2001 scored more points and ran in more tries than any side in history to cruise to the minor premiership before belting the Warriors and bouncing the Broncos to progress to the decider.

With Hindmarsh, Burt, Jamie Lyon, Jason Taylor, Nathan Cayless and Brett Hodgson at the peak of their powers, the Eels went in as favourites against the Knights but were blown off the park in a 24-0 first-half rout.

They restored some pride with four second-half tries but the damage had been done and the opportunity lost, another one not coming their way until 2009 in Anderson’s debut season as coach.

With favourite sons Hindmarsh, Cayless and Burt seeking redemption for 2001 and a posse of young guns including Krisnan Inu, Jarryd Hayne, Daniel Mortimer and Tim Mannah, the Eels went toe to toe with the might of Melbourne before succumbing 23-16.

The Eels faithful then endured another 13-year wait before Arthur guided them into the 2022 grand final against the Panthers, the opening 40 minutes playing out in eerily similar fashion to 2001 as the blue and gold were run ragged.

Trailing 18-0 at half-time the Eels gave up two more tries to Brian To’o and Charlie Staines before finally getting on the board in the 77th minute when the sting had gone out of the game and many of their fans had gone out of the stadium.

Having come so close to the Holy Grail in his 230th game as Eels coach, Arthur was keen to focus on the positives in the wake of the defeat.

“I’m extremely proud of the team, the staff, the club. It’s a tough road to get here and maybe the tough road took its toll on us,” he said post-match.

“It’s a big achievement, we’re not just putting the cue in the rack and saying we’re content with that, but I just want to focus on how proud I am of the guys as individuals and as men, what good men they are.”

Having signed a contract extension in March that takes him through to the end of 2025, Arthur has at least two more shots at the crown that has eluded the Eels since Wynn and his mates savoured their fourth success in 1986.

“Every coach Parra has had has given their heart and soul to try and emulate what happened in the 80s,” said Wynn.

“They are all fine men but it has just eluded them, it’s a tough gig.

“You’re dealing with men and their money and their family and the players have to want to do it for you as much as they want to do it for themselves.

“First-grade coaches get better and better with experience and Brad has been around for a while now and done a great job to pick himself back up after the spoon in 2018.

“He has also had to weather the salary cap drama in 2016 and other issues with the board but he has stuck solid and always stands by his men.”

It’s these traits that have allowed Arthur to ride out the tough times along a 10-year journey that reaches a high point on Monday when he becomes Parramatta’s longest-serving coach… but it’s the first day of October when he’d really like to be etching his name in Eels folklore.