New halves a 'perfect fit' as energetic Eels seal much-needed win ...

The Eels have hung on to seal a 27-20 win over the Cowboys with their new-look halves pairing delivering when it mattered most.

The Cowboys had a red-hot start to the game at CommBank Stadium with their milestone man Scott Drinkwater setting up their first two tries and “torturing the left edge of Parramatta” according to Fox League analyst Michael Ennis.

MATCH CENTRE: Eels vs Cowboys live score

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But the Eels hung in there to go into the half-time break with a four-point lead despite having twice the amount of errors and missed tackles than the Cowboys.

They came out in the second half ready to fight and were forced to do that as the Cowboys scored two tries — one to Drinkwater, who pointed to his family as he scored.

But the Eels’ engine room dug in with Junior Paulo and Reagan Campbell-Gillard making 126 and 138 metres respectively in what coach Brad Arthur said was an “unbelievable effort.”

Their new halves pairing of Dylan Brown and Daejarn Asi also pulled through with three crucial moments. Brown set up a try, while Asi scored one and nailed a field goal in the final four minutes.

MORE PASSION, MORE ENERGY

Eels coach Brad Arthur revealed pre-game that he “challenged the boys about being excited to play” and that message was heard loud and clear.

The team had a bit of a scare in the first five minutes but got into the grind to eventually shift the momentum.

It became clear just how much the little moments meant to them when the Cowboys coughed up the ball in the dying minutes of the first half and skipper Clint Gutherson let out a roar.

“I just hate losing… win everything, win every play,” an exhausted Gutherson told Fox League at half time.

The Cowboys tried to claw their way back into the game in the second half but the Eels fought hard — with their inspirational skipper leading the way, who Meninga said “led by example.”

Gutherson finished with a try assist, a linebreak assist, a tackle busts and 116 metres. But what the stats don’t show is his determination to turn things around after the Eels’ 41-8 loss to the Raiders.

“We got embarrassed last week and we spoke about it all week — we had a tough meeting the first day back (at training),” he told Fox League post-game.

“We just wanted to come back and play the footy we know we can play. It was scrappy but we just kept turning it up… that’s what won us the game in the end.”

Meninga saw “guts and determination” in the win, while Cooper Cronk said they played with “spirit, a little bit of heart and character.”

EELS’ NEW HALVES PAIRING A ‘PERFECT FIT’

Daejarn Asi did a solid job while filling in last season so it was a head-scratcher that coach Brad Arthur didn’t call on him in the first place.

Nonetheless, the versatile Asi got his opportunity — and will keep it until Mitchell Moses returns from a foot injury in Round 12.

Arthur told Fox League pre-game that bringing Asi into the halves had given the team “a little bit of confidence” because he’s more experienced than 19-year-old Blaze Talagi, who spent the last fortnight at five-eighth.

“It just adds to Dylan’s comfort, so he doesn’t feel like he has to do everything for us,” Arthur added.

“DJ will just give him a bit of help steering the team around, he’ll take a bit of stress out of Dylan’s game.”

It seemed to do the trick. Dylan Brown set up a try with a perfectly-weighted grubber and ran over 100 metres.

Meanwhile, Asi overcame a shaky start to score what ended up being the matchwinning try and iced the game with a field goal in the 76th minute.

“Daejarn coming into the team definitely helped our attack. Having a left-foot kicker makes your last-tackle options much easier,” Brown told Fox League post-game.

“Mitchy’s gone, but we’ve got troops there ready to go and I feel like Daejarn is the perfect fit for it.”

COWBOYS’ ‘ACHILLES HEEL’ STRIKES AGAIN

Cowboys coach Todd Payten made it clear before the game he wanted an 80-minute performance, telling Fox League “we’ve been quite patchy… and have played 60 minutes at best.”

But what his team dished up was far from an 80-minute performance.

They had a red-hot start that would’ve had Eels fans feeling a little nervous but let the Eels off the hook with silly errors and penalties.

Fox League summed them up best when he said: “for all the good Cowboys do, they can just go away for periods of the game.”

Michael Ennis added: “It’s been their Achilles heel to start the season, their lack of concentration and allowing opposition teams back into the game.”

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TEAMS

Eels: 1. Clinton Gutherson 2. Bailey Simonsson 3. Viliami Penisini 4. Morgan Harper 5. Sean Russell 6. Daejarn Asi 7. Dylan Brown 8. Reagan Campbell-Gillard 9. Joey Lussick 16. Joe Ofahengaue 11. Shaun Lane 12. Bryce Cartwright 13. J’maine Hopgood 10. Junior Paulo 14. Luca Moretti 15. Ryan Matterson 17. Kelma Tuilagi. 18th man: 19. Blaize Talagi

Cowboys: 1. Scott Drinkwater 2. Kyle Feldt 3. Valentine Holmes 4. Tomas Chester 5. Murray Taulagi 6. Tom Dearden 7. Chad Townsend 8. Jordan McLean 9. Reece Robson 10. Jason Taumalolo 11. Kulikefu Finefeuiaki 12. Jeremiah Nanai 13. Reuben Cotter 14. Jake Granville 15. Griffin Neame 16. Sam McIntyre 17. Jack Gosiewski. 18th man: 19. Thomas Mikaele