Top 10 players Parramatta have let go since 2000

The Eels have let go of some quality this century.

STAFF WRITER | June 4, 2019 - 5:17pm

It is fair to say that Parramatta Eels fans have experienced more heartache than most in the past few seasons.

This includes three wooden spoons since 2012 as well as having to endure the repercussions of the now infamous salary cap scandal that led to the club being docked 12 competition points and fined $1 million by the NRL.

However, since the appointment of Brad Arthur as head coach, performances have been on a steady incline at Parramatta, barring the unexpected train wreck that was the 2018 season. This upturn in performances has led to Arthur attracting and assembling a top eight quality squad, but inept talent identification and salary cap management throughout the years has led to the Eels losing some serious star power that Brad Arthur and previous Eels coaches would no doubt have loved to have at their disposal in the recent trying times.

Here are the top 10 players the Eels have let go, not re-signed or released since 2000.

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5. Brett Hodgson

Another player on this list who is widely renowned for his time in rivals’ colours, those of the Wests Tigers, six-time NSW Origin representative Brett Hodgson actually made a name for himself in his formative years at the Parramatta Eels.

After turning down an opportunity to join new joint venture side the Wests Tigers after playing his whole junior career at Western Suburbs, Hodgson signed with the Parramatta Eels to get an opportunity to nail down the starting fullback jersey.

In his four-year 73 game stint at the Eels, Hodgson formed a reputation as being a “lethal attacking fullback” according to Alan Whiticker and Glen Hudson’s Encyclopedia of Rugby League Players and led the club to the 2001 Grand Final. In the following years, he would feature consistently for City Origin, as well as gaining selection in the 2002 NSW Origin side.

In 2004, and just about to hit his prime at the age of 26, Hodgson moved back to his junior club, signing a deal with the Wests Tigers. After enduring consistent injuries during his four-year stint at the Eels, Hodgson’s move home was a blessing for both the club and the player. His five-year stint at the Tigers would prove to be extremely productive, being named Club Captain from 2006-2008, as well as winning the 2005 Dally M Fullback of the year off the back of being the competitions leading point scorer.

His stellar form helped lead the Tigers to an unlikely premiership in 2005, combining magnificently throughout the season with fellow attacking maestros Robbie Farah and Benji Marshall. This stellar form through the 2005 season also led to an unlikely reinstatement in the NSW State of Origin side, and additionally, although seemingly approaching the end of his career in 2008, Hodgson turned back the clock to be named Members’ Player of the Year in his final season at the Tigers.

By the time Hodgson hung up the boots, he was able to call himself a premiership winner, Origin player and Dally M Fullback of the Year, all accomplishments that Eels fans can now only wish he achieved in the blue and gold of Parramatta.