Mitchell Moses has opened up on the moment Brad Arthur told him to flee Townsville to be at the birth of his daughter. His simple reply: “I can’t leave these boys”.
Thirteen years on from being in the stands as a fan for Parramatta’s last grand final loss, the Eels No.7 has delivered an emotional message on what it would mean for him to help finally end the club’s 36-year title drought.
Moses returned to training on Monday after watching the birth of his first child via FaceTime only hours before their gripping preliminary final win over the Cowboys last Friday night.
“[Brad] said, ‘what are you doing here? Get out of here’. I just looked at him and said, ‘I can’t. I can’t leave these boys here given how hard we’ve worked all year’,” Moses said.
“He addressed all the boys in the sheds and let everyone know I’d had my first child over FaceTime about an hour ago. It was a pretty special moment. All the boys got around me and I felt very comfortable on the field.
“I would have loved to have been there for my first daughter. It’s just how it happened.
Mitchell Moses at Monday’s Eels fans day.Credit:Steven Siewert
“She wasn’t meant to come until this week. She pretty much came at the wrong time, but that’s alright. It was still a special moment, but unfortunately, I couldn’t be there. That’s just how it happens.
“[But] we got off the flight and I jumped straight in my car and drove there as fast as I could to soak in the moment and meet her.”
Moses was the star attraction at the Eels’ fan day at Kellyville on Monday, which attracted about 3000 diehard fans desperate to see their team break the NRL’s longest active title drought.
Few would cherish the win more than Moses, a boyhood Eels fan who made his NRL debut at the Tigers before linking with Arthur at Parramatta midway through the 2017 season as Parramatta emerged from a salary cap crisis.
Moses was just 15 the last time Jarryd Hayne inspired the Eels to a grand final appearance, venturing to Sydney Olympic Park as the Storm ruined the Parramatta fairytale.
“I supported Parramatta since I was a little kid and grew up in the area,” Moses said. “I haven’t seen a grand final won by Parramatta and for me to be the halfback leading them to a comp, that would be unbelievable.
“I’ve been through [what the fans have been through] as well. It’s not just me that’s been through most of it, it’s every single player here. Most of us are playing in our first grand final, so we’re excited, pumped up and ready to go.”
The one-time NSW State of Origin representative will lock horns with the game’s best No.7, Nathan Cleary, in the western Sydney grand final against Penrith.
But Moses’ Eels teammates have spoken about the 28-year-old’s newfound maturity, dealing with a whirlwind week in which he farewelled his grandmother and then welcomed a baby girl into the world four days later.
Asked did he think Moses would stay in Townsville for the grand final qualifier, back-rower Ryan Matterson said: “To be honest, yes. Because that’s Mitch. He wants to win.
“We’re grateful he made that big sacrifice. He’s a footy fanatic, and he’s been dreaming of a grand final for a very long time. He was never going to turn that down. He kicked two balls out on the full [in the first half], I was going to kill him. But he just flushed it and stayed in the game.”
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