Anderson keeps faith in struggling Eels

(AAP) - Daniel Anderson is standing by his struggling Parramatta side despite rumours a cull of the NRL underperformers was looming.

Several players, particularly long-serving captain Nathan Cayless, were reported to
be on the verge of the axe after last weekend's insipid 11-0 loss to the previously
win-less Sharks.
That defeat left last year's grand final runners-up with a 1-3 record this year but
Anderson has named a largely unchanged team to play Canberra on Monday night.
Only veteran winger Luke Burt and backrower Ben Smith have been brought into the
squad to take on the Raiders with Krisnan Inu and Justin Horo moving onto a six-man
bench.
Anderson feels the return of Burt (knee) and Smith (ankle) from injury will add some
much needed experience to the team.
"Luke Burt and Ben Smith will be worthy inclusions to the team as a couple of
seasoned players added to the side," Anderson said.
"We're going through a bit of a rough trot so having those guys back in the team
will add some stability to the side."
The Raiders have named an extended bench as cover for forward Trevor Thurling, who
was named by coach David Furner despite suffering a knee injury in last weekend's
loss to Wests Tigers.
"Trevor was unable to go back on the field on Sunday after hyper-extending his knee
so we have a couple of options on the bench if he's unable to play," Furner said.
St George Illawarra coach Wayne Bennett has made just the one change from the team
which lost 17-4 to Melbourne last week, with Nick Emmett replacing Ricky Thorby.
Young Dragons front-rower Trent Merrin will come onto a five-man bench for the visit
of struggling Brisbane.
Bennett would barely recognise his former club's line-up with Dale Copley and
Dunamis Lui brought into the bottom-placed Broncos' line-up.
They replace Ben Te'o and Antonio Winterstein after they were dropped for
disciplinary reasons, with Josh Hoffman coming onto a five-man bench.
Melbourne have named an unchanged squad for their clash on the Gold Coast, with the
Titans recalling Anthony Laffranchi from a lower-back injury in what will be Ashley
Harrison's 200th NRL match.
South Sydney have added Michael Crocker to the team which defeated Canterbury on
Monday for their clash with Newcastle, while the Knights have named an unchanged
side from that which lost to Penrith on Monday.
The Panthers have brought New Zealand forward Frank Pritchard into their starting
line-up for Saturday's visit by the Sydney Roosters.
Brian Smith has brought Jason Ryles onto the bench for the Roosters but has stuck by
the starting 13 which defeated Brisbane on Friday night.
Queensland centre Brent Tate will captain the Warriors in their match against the
Bulldogs after Micheal Luck was ruled out with injury, while Canterbury will give
injured front rower Jarrad Hickey every opportunity to recover from a bruised lung
suffered in Monday's loss to South Sydney.
Former Manly prop Tim Browne will make his debut for the Bulldogs, whilst back rower
Gary Warburton will return after a two week suspension.
Tigers coach Tim Sheens has named centre Blake Ayshford (knee) while awaiting
results on a scan, with North Queensland sticking with the team which beat the
Titans last weekend for Saturday's match at Dairy Farmers Stadium.
Manly and Cronulla have named virtually unchanged teams for their clash at Brookvale
Oval on Saturday night, with the major change coming from the Sharks with Taulima
Tautai brought in for the injured Luke Covell.