Eels coach Brad Arthur has an sudden choice dilemma on his fingers after the rise of younger hooker Brendan Hands.
Former Raider Josh Hodgson joined the membership within the low season, signing a two-year deal to exchange Reed Mahoney who departed for the Bulldogs.
Meanwhile, 23-year-old Hands made his debut in opposition to the Panthers in Round 4 earlier than Parramatta handed him a two-year extension till the tip of 2025.
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Hodgson, 33, returned this season after an ACL tear dominated him out for 2022 and Arthur has opted in opposition to taking part in the veteran dummy-half for prolonged minutes in current video games.
That transfer has given Hands a chance to excel and the younger gun has been one of many Eels’ finest, offering pace and spark in the midst of the sphere.
The Daily Telegraph’s David Riccio believes there’s an underlying “issue” surrounding Hodgson after Parramatta’s squad had been excited to play with their new teammate within the low season.
“I went to Kellyville for pre-season training for Parramatta, I spent some time with the players talking about the arrival of Josh Hodgson,” Riccio mentioned on SEN 1170.
“I couldn’t tell you how excited and how pumped they were to have Josh Hodgson providing service and class out of dummy-half.
“Particularly Mitchell Moses couldn’t wait to play with Hodgson, everything he had done in pre-season training was outstanding, particularly his work ethic, he turned up to training well in advance of what his actual start date was.
“But there’s an issue here with Josh Hodgson, he played 31 minutes last weekend, he came from the field, he had one run, largely no impact, to be fair, Parramatta were terrible in that first half.”
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Hodgson began the 12 months with three 80-minute performances, however hasn’t performed greater than 52 since and in opposition to the Broncos solely featured for 31 minutes.
Hands additionally averages extra metres per recreation, extra runs per recreation and has tallied a try to a strive help to equal Hodgson’s stats.
When he comes on, Riccio believes Hands is the distinction for the Eels and could possibly be the “future” of the membership.
“He (Hodgson) comes from the field and Brendan Hands comes on and plays the rest of the game, Hands has certainly sharpened up that attack, Parramatta were a far better side in that second half,” Riccio mentioned.
“There’s a big decision here… I’m intrigued to see how this unfolds this weekend… but going forward, Brendan Hands, as far as I’m concerned, it looks like he’s the future for Parramatta.
“This one-two punch, is Brad Arthur better off going with another forward off the bench than two dummy-halves?”
Source: www.foxsports.com.au