Parramatta is bracing for a week of "tough conversations" after capitulating to the Dolphins but coach Brad Arthur would not commit to dropping players after the 44-16 thrashing.
For the second time in three weeks, the Eels collapsed in a heap after half-time, leaking 40 second-half points to slump to a heavy defeat in Darwin.
The undermanned Dolphins were particularly damaging from long range as they ran in eight tries to one after the break.
Arthur accused the Eels of being a "part-time footy side" that "gave up" once the Dolphins' pressure became too much to handle.
"There's only a handful of players in this club at the moment that pick to choose to come every week with the right mentality and toughness," the coach said.
The Eels' season is already entering a critical phase; talismanic halfback Mitch Moses is not due back from his foot fracture for another month and in that time, Parramatta faces three tough opponents in Manly, Brisbane and Melbourne.
Lose those games and the Eels will fall to a 3-7 record with the State of Origin period approaching.
Captain Clint Gutherson said the time was right for heart-to-heart chats at Parramatta, who are set to finish the weekend in the bottom four.
"We have to have those tough conversations and look at each other in the eyes," the fullback said.
"You know if you're doing your job. If you're questioning if you did do your job or you didn't, you haven't.
"There's a handful that are doing it but you need 17 players every single week to do their job to win an NRL game of footy and we didn't do it this week."
But coach Arthur would not commit to swinging the axe, aware Parramatta beat North Queensland in round six with much the same 17 as that which lost to the Dolphins.
"We've seen it (those players perform)," Arthur said. "We chose poor options against Canberra (in round five) and then the next week we came out against Cowboys, one of the really good teams in the competition, and we chose to do those tough actions and we showed that we can play football.
"We chose to do it for the first 30 minutes tonight. We did it for the first 30 minutes but then we make an error and then we choose to take soft options, they score a try and things are going against us and we feel sorry for ourselves."
Eels halfback Dylan Brown told ABC Sport his side had thrown away a good start to the match.
"Honestly weak, embarrassing. [Dolphins hooker] Marshall King shredded us up through the middle," he said.
"We didn't want to make tackles. You can't win footy without the ball.
"We started well in the first half, that's exactly what we needed to do in the second half but we went and did the opposite."
Earlier, the Dragons pulled a shock upset on the Warriors as they routed the Kiwi club 30-18 in Wollongong.
Look back at how the action unfolded in our blog.
AAP/ABC
Key events
- Brad Arthur is not happy in his press conference
- Well done Kristian Woolf
- FT: Dolphins ambush Eels to win 44-16
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Live updates
That is all for the blog this evening
By Michael Doyle
What a night of rugby league.
Two commanding wins to the team who came in as underdogs.
The Dragons and Dolphins were magnificent tonight.
The Warriors were off their game. Parramatta were plain awful in the second half.
We will be back tomorrow to bring you more live coverage of the NRL.
Goodnight.
Dolphins 44 def. Parramatta Eels 16
By Michael Doyle
The Dolphins have overcome an injury crisis, torrid Darwin conditions and their coach's absence, parlaying a second-half onslaught into a 44-16 NRL thrashing of Parramatta.
The Eels' loss on Friday night will renew concerns about their ability to win without Mitch Moses and to make matters worse, replacement playmaker Daejarn Asi concussed himself in the second half.
He will miss next week's game against Manly through the league's concussion policy.
Parramatta have now lost three of four games without Moses and as in their round-five loss to Canberra, they fell in a heap and conceded 40 points after the break.
The undermanned Dolphins ran in eight consecutive tries after halftime, the first five of those in 14 minutes, to blow the Eels out of the water.
Tom Gilbert, Thomas Flegler, Felise Kaufusi, Herbie Farnworth and Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow all missed through injury, with coach Wayne Bennett also remaining in Brisbane with the flu.
But the absences counted for little as the spine put on an absolute clinic, attacking with reckless abandon from distance despite the hot and humid conditions.
Scheming hooker Jeremy Marshall-King helped set the fireworks in motion, twice catching Parramatta's defence napping by dashing out of dummy-half and setting up long range tries.
Stand-in fullback Trai Fuller grabbed the second of those, having been called into the team from outside of the top 30 squad amid the injury carnage.
The 27-year-old was superb in only his second NRL game but it was difficult to find a player in red who didn't shine.
Max Plath had a try-scoring double as reward for his support play, while Tesi Niu packed on two tries of his own, the first of those after a beautiful flat pass from Isaiya Katoa.
Breakout winger Jack Bostock finally had results for his first-half effort by completing a hat-trick in the final minutes.
The Eels' capitulation came after they dominated territory in the first half, but only had an 8-4 lead to show for it.
Halves combination Dylan Brown and Asi were uninspired attacking the Dolphins' line, appearing fresh out of ideas once Fuller proved he was able to withstand the extra pressure they applied to him.
The Dolphins were patient amid the onslaught and seemed to only become livelier as the conditions wore their opponents down.
Things aren't about to get any easier for the Eels, who face heavyweights the Sea Eagles, Brisbane and Melbourne in their next three games.
AAP
Key Event
Brad Arthur is not happy in his press conference
By Michael Doyle
Parramatta coach Brad Arthur is fuming.
He has called his team "part time" and said many players are not performing at the level expected of them.
"Probably what's wrong with out season is we are a part time footy team at the moment," he said,
"We pick and choose when we want to play. We pick and choose in the 80 minutes when we want to make a tough choice and a soft choice.
"That second half wasn't good enough.
"There's only a handful of players in this club, at the moment, that pick and choose to come every week to play with the right mentality and toughness."
Dylan Brown calls Parramatta's performance 'weak, embarrassing'
Dylan Brown has spoken to ABC Sport after the Eels were thumped in Darwin.
"Honestly weak, embarrassing. [Dolphins hooker] Marshall King shredded us up through the middle … We didn't want to make tackles. You can't win footy without the ball.
"We started well in the first half, that's exactly what we needed to do in the second half but we went and did the opposite."
Key Event
Well done Kristian Woolf
By Michael Doyle
Kristian Woolf was the Dolphins' coach tonight.
He will take over from Wayne Bennett at the end fo the year.
Wayne did not go to Darwin due to illness.
Woolf has done a masterful job with his men tonight.
"I can't tell you exactly [when we found out] but similar time to you guys," Bostock told ABC Sport.
"Woolfy's well-prepared to be a head coach, he'll take over with a lot of ease next year."
'That was Dolphins footy': Hatrick hero Bostock says that's how his team wants to play
By Michael Doyle
Jack Bostock was brilliant tonight, scoring three tries.
He capped off some beautiful passages of play.
Speaking to ABC Sport, he said he believed the hot conditions would suit the Dolphins.
"That was Dolphins footy. That's how we play our footy," he said.
"We train at high intensity, we try to play like that."
Key Event
FT: Dolphins ambush Eels to win 44-16
By Michael Doyle
What a win.
The Dolphins have blown the Eels away.
Eight tries in the second half.
40 unanswered points at one stage.
A remarkable win.
No coach. So many injuries. Going outside of their 30-man squad to field a side.
An amazing win.
Key Event
79' TRY: Dylan Brown scores for the Eels
By Michael Doyle
Parramatta finally got some field position, and the get a consolation try.
Brown, near the line, steps and ducks through the defence to score.
Statistics from that last try
By Michael Doyle
Ending with Jack Bostock's third try.
Of the previous 20 sets of six, the Dolphins had 15 of them, for eight tries.
Remarkable.
Key Event
75 TRY: Bostock has a hattrick. The Dolphins are in again
By Michael Doyle
I can't type fast enough.
A fifth tackle bomb. Nobody catches it/.
Plath gets the ball, he passes to the left, Bostock is on his own on the wing.
They get the ball to him. Bostock scores.
The Dolphins have scored 40 point for the first time in the NRL
By Michael Doyle
Key Event
72' TRY: Tesi Niu scores. Seven second half tries
By Michael Doyle
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Parramatta are completely gone.
Third tackle off the restart and they go the short side.
Isaiya Katoa throws a flat ball to the wing — Bostock is away.
Gutherson is the lone Eels defender.
Bostock has a choice of who to pass it too. He chooses Niu, and Niu will score.
The conversion is successful.
Key Event
70' TRY: Bostock scores. What a try for the Dolphins
By Michael Doyle
Trai Fuller is 30 metres out and grubbers.
He will get there before Gutherson.
Fuller toes it forward with his left foot. He collects Gutherson who is in pain.
Jack Bostock is chasing, and chasing, and chasing, AND HE GOT THERE.
He looked second-best against the deadball line, but he never gave up.
His second try of the night.
Parramatta have been utterly thumped in this second half.
Key Event
64' TRY: Dolphins score again
By Michael Doyle
Jake Averillo wins the race to ground a grubber kick.
It goes to the Bunker, and YEP, Averillo got there.
Five tries in 12 minutes.
They have blown this game open.
Key Event
58' TRY: Plath is in. DOLPHINS SCORE AGAIN
By Michael Doyle
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What a team try from the Dolphins.
Off the kick off they just rolled down the field again.
The Eels' are running backwards.
They are on half way. They go right, and Parramatta's Daejarn Asi has been concussed in a tackle.
It has created a gap that the Dolphins have marched through.
A couple of offloads later, and Plath is in for his second try.
The Dolphins have four tries in nine minutes.
Dolphins lead 26-10.
Key Event
55' TRY: The Dolphins are in again
By Michael Doyle
The Dolphins are running downhill.
This is brilliant.
They are tearing the Eels' defence apart.
Marshall-King again darts from dummy half, ANDMax Plath is there in support.
Plath is in the whole and is under the posts.
Dolphins lead Eels 22-10.
Key Event
52 TRY: The Dolphins go BANG, BANG and take the lead
By Michael Doyle
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Oh yes.
The Dolphins are in again.
Third tackle from the kick off andJeremy Marshall-King takes a run from dummy half.
He busts the line, AND GIVE THE OFFLOAD TO JOSH KERR.
Kerr approaches the fullback, and gives the pass to Trai Fuller.
The Queensland Cup stalwart streaks away and scores under the posts.
Dolphins lead 16-10.
Key Event
50' TRY: Niu crashes through and scores for the Dolphins
By Michael Doyle
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The Dolphins are in.
It came from a Parramatta knock-on in their own half.
The Dolphins received two set restarts, and that was enough.
The Dolphins swing to the left.
Isaiya Katoa runs to the line, holds the ball, now gives the ball to Tesi Niu into a whole.
Niu scores.
Jamayne Isaako converts.
It is 10-all.
Key Event
45': Eels kick penalty goal
By Michael Doyle
The second half is underway, and the arm wrestle continues.
The Eels get a penalty within goal kicking range.
Oryn Keeley is the Dolphin who has been penalised.
He hit a kicker late at the end of the Eels set of six.
Clint Gutherson, who has more bandaging on him than The Mummy, kicks the goal.
Eels 10 - 4 Dolphins.
Key Event
HT: Eels lead Dolphins 8-4 in hot and humid conditions
By Michael Doyle
Not much to separate the two sides.
Parramatta had the better of the opening 40 minutes and scored two tries to take a four-point lead.
However, the Dolphins had opportunities and converted one of them into points.
It is hot and humid in Darwin. It looks like we might be having a war of attrition.
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