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Eels destroy 'laughing stock' Broncos in NRL finals rout

Australian Associated Press

Parramatta have thrown the NRL finals wide open with a record 58-0 thrashing of Brisbane which is set to send shockwaves through the Queensland glamour club.

The Eels have set up a date with minor premiers Melbourne in a sudden-death semi-final next Saturday however they could be without playmaker Dylan Brown after he was put on report for a crusher tackle on Anthony Milford.

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Despite Brown being in doubt for next week, it was hard to dampen the Eels' euphoria after they put 11 tries through the Broncos.

The margin was the biggest loss in NRL finals history, eclipsing Newtown's 55-7 thrashing of St George in 1944.

It was also the Eels' biggest win over Brisbane and the Broncos' biggest loss during Anthony Seibold's tenure, the club set to undergo a summer of soul searching having been flagged as a top four side this year.

While Siebold's side boast the best young pack in the competition, their lack of direction in the spine was telling and their title drought has now stretched into a 13th season.

The Parramatta Eels, pictured celebrating a try, gave the Brisbane Broncos a historic thumping in their NRL elimination final.
Clint Gutherson of the Eels celebrates a try by Maika Sivo of the Eels during the NRL Elimination Final match between the Parramatta Eels and the Brisbane Broncos at Bankwest Stadium on September 15, 2019 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)

The Eels put the Broncos to the sword with three tries in eight minutes and the game was essentially over at the 20-minute mark at 16-0.

Mitchell Moses was instrumental in the rout, having a hand in all of his side's opening 12 points, bombing for Michael Jennings before doing it all himself when he kicked, regathered and fended off Alex Glenn's attempt to hold him up.

The Eels simply overawed Brisbane with speed, enthusiasm and aggression and when they led 24-0 at halftime, the Broncos still hadn't had a tackle inside their opposition's 20 metre zone.

Even when play broke down, like it did when Moses found himself with nowhere to go on the last tackle, they still found a way through after the Eels No.7 spiralled a 30m cut out pass and Maika Sivo crossed.

The ground-record crowd of 29,372 rose to their feet every time Sivo touched the ball and when the Fijian try-scoring sensation got his second of the day and 22nd of the season, his name rang out around Bankwest.

Clint Gutherson was also instrumental in the thrashing, running for 171 metres in the game. He set up Sivo in the 49th minute before slicing through some soft defence to put Dylan Brown over four minutes later.