Footy fan finds Hollywood omen pointing to Parramatta win over Penrith – as the Eels try to end the longest premiership drought in the NRL
Parramatta takes on Penrith in NRL Grand Final on Sunday night in Sydney
Eels haven’t won the premiership since beating Canterbury in 1986
It is the longest premiership drought of all clubs currently in the NRL
Parramatta’s win in 1986 was their fourth title in six seasons
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Parramatta fans have left no stone unturned in their search for positive omens ahead of Sunday’s grand finale.
The Eels are just one win away from ending 36 years of waiting for a premiership, the longest drought among NRL clubs.
Reigning Prime Minister Penrith may be the bookmakers’ favourite, but the Blue and Gold stalwarts have found plenty of signs that this could finally be the year they get to win the Provan-Summons Trophy.
Parramatta fans have endured the longest premiership drought of any club in the NRL, with their last win in 1986
The Cast Patrol podcast on Twitter took omens to a new level, noting that in 1986, the last time Parramatta won the competition, Top Gun was the top-grossing film of the year.
Fast forward 36 years and the second chapter of the franchise currently tops the box office rankings.
The lowest scoring Grand Final since Balmain defeated Souths 3-0 in 1924, the Eels’ 4-2 win over Canterbury in the 1986 decider capped an extraordinary run for Parramatta.
Top Gun (left) was the highest grossing film when The Eels last won the competition in 1986, while the second chapter of the franchise is the highest grossing film this year
The Eels reached five major finals in six years in the mid-1980s, winning three premierships between 1981 and 1983 and losing to the Bulldogs in 1984.
However, since 1986, Parramatta has only returned to the NRL decider twice, losing to Newcastle in 2001 and to Melbourne eight years later – the Storm was subsequently stripped of the title for salary cap violations.
And if the Blue and Gold stalwarts are looking for an omen, perhaps one can be found in Penrith’s dominant recent record.
Parra’s 1986 win over the Bulldogs marked their fourth title in six seasons
The Panthers are only the third club in the NRL era to make three consecutive Grand Finals, along with the Roosters between 2002 and 2004 and the Storm between 2016 and 2018.
Worryingly for the Panthers, both the Roosters and Melbourne won just once of the three consecutive Grand Finals they played in.
The Storm won two of the three consecutive Grand Finals they reached between 2007 and 2009, only to be stripped of their two premierships.