LeagueNews.co | Jason Patrick
The Parramatta Eels' interim coach has come out swinging after his team's devastating collapse on Friday night, putting the blame squarely on his own players in a fiery press conference.
Trent Barrett did not hold back, calling out specific players for their costly mistakes in the Eels' 30-24 loss to the Broncos at Suncorp Stadium.
The Eels had raced to a 16-0 lead within the first 11 minutes, only to see it slip away due to a series of errors that allowed Brisbane back into the game.
"I would have gladly taken a 16-0 lead if you had offered it to me before the match, but the performance in the second half was just not good enough," Barrett ranted.
"Maika Sivo's dropped ball, the intercept pass that led to a try for Reno - we missed golden opportunities to put the game away.
Kelma Tuilagi's charge down was a rookie mistake that cost us dearly.
These are the kinds of errors that simply cannot happen if we want to win games."
With their finals hopes hanging by a thread, the Eels will need to regroup quickly and learn from their mistakes if they want to salvage their season.
It's clear that Barrett is not afraid to crack the whip and demand better performances from his players moving forward.