Parramatta coach Brad Arthur remains confident in prop Reagan Campbell-Gillard despite NSW mentor Brad Fittler repeatedly overlooking him for a State of Origin recall.
Campbell-Gillard was one of only three Blues forwards to run for over 100 metres in the series opener but was dropped from the extended squad altogether as one of seven changes that followed NSW's 16-10 loss.
The Eels prop was then passed over when Payne Haas withdrew from Origin III selection through injury and again when Haas' replacement Jordan McLean suffered a hamstring injury on Thursday.
Rather than recall Campbell-Gillard, Fittler will hand Newcastle prop Jacob Saifiti his Origin debut in the series decider.
Arthur said he was unsure what Campbell-Gillard had done wrong in the series opener to be overlooked so consistently.
"It's disappointing for Reg," Arthur said.
"I thought he saved a couple of tries and did what he needed to do (in Origin I).
"I don't pick the Blues side but we're happy with what Reg does for us.
"He's a good front rower, a play-one front-rower, he takes those tough carries for you, gets down, plays the ball and does a lot of work for us in defence and gets good minutes out."
Campbell-Gillard's omission from the Origin side means he is free to play for Parramatta in Saturday's clash with the Wests Tigers at Leichhardt Oval.
Arthur said Campbell-Gillard would need to account for the absence of NSW Origin prop and Parramatta co-captain Junior Paulo.
"He needs to stand up," Arthur said.
"He's lost his front row partner Junior, so a lot of the workload is going to fall on Reg's shoulders."
The Eels will aim to bounce back from last week's hefty loss to South Sydney and keep in touch with the top four when they face the struggling Tigers, who have already upset them once this season.
Arthur said the Eels needed to focus on starting well; Parramatta have conceded the first try and trailed at half time in each of their six losses this season - all of which came against teams lower on the ladder before kick-off.
"The Tigers will come with plenty of energy and intent early. Our start is going to be a real priority for us," Arthur said.
"It's when a couple of things go against us, we're just snowballing out of control with blokes trying to hard to make things happen on their own."
Second-rower Ryan Matterson took on a lighter load at training on Tuesday as he recovered from a rib injury and still had to get through the captain's run to take his place in the side.
