Written by Oliver Kellner-Dunk
Last night’s game between the Gold Coast Titans and Parramatta Eels ended up much closer than what most were expecting, especially after a poor first half from the Titans that saw them continue their streak of being unable to score for an entire half in every game this season.
Justin Holbrook’s men were poor in defence and that trend continued in the early stages of the second half before the Titans gained momentum in attack and clawed their way back to being within a converted try of the Eels.
Parramatta would then go on to extend their lead with a late try from Greg Marzhew not enough to get the Gold Coast a victory.
The big talking point coming out of the game was the sin-binning of Eels forward Junior Paulo with a little under 18 minutes to go in the game when he put a big hit on Titans five-eighth AJ Brimson.
In the aftermath of the tackle, Brimson could be seen clutching at his shoulder but Paulo was sent to the sin bin for contact with the head.
Did this deserve 10 in the 🗑?
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Whether or not Paulo made contact with Brimson anywhere above his shoulder is the point of contention for many and was even disputed by Fox League pundit Michael Ennis who was in the commentary box for the game.
“He hits him shoulder to shoulder,” said Ennis.
“It’s a brutal shot but I don’t think it’s illegal.”
Paulo himself has also commented on the situation to Fox League.
“I thought it was (harsh), I thought I hit him around the shoulder,” said Paulo.
“It’s all part of the game. We’re trying to keep it a safe game as well.
“I’ll cop that and move on to next week.”
The Eels’ next game will be their annual Easter Monday clash with the Wests Tigers which is generally played out in front of crowds over 20,000 in capacity.
As for their opponents last night, the Titans will travel to 4 Pines Park on Saturday to face a Manly Sea Eagles side that will be looking for their fourth straight win of the season.
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