Brisbane Broncos 16–10 Parramatta Eels — Preliminary Final, 2000 NRL Finals Series
20 Aug 2000 · Stadium Australia, Sydney Olympic Park, NSW · Attendance: 31,087
Data last verified: 11 August 2026.
Preliminary Final, 2000 NRL finals series: Brisbane Broncos 16–10 Parramatta Eels, at Stadium Australia, Sydney Olympic Park, NSW on 20 Aug 2000.
Sourcing caveat: No try-scoring minutes were found for this fixture. 1 of Parramatta's 2 tries could not be identified despite checking multiple sources — recorded as "Try scorer unconfirmed". Winger Luke Burt (replacing Pat Richards, not in this lineup) is listed with jersey #24 — reported exactly as sourced. Shane Webcke returned to Brisbane's starting side here, reportedly playing on with a fractured arm sustained in round 24 of the regular season.
Scorers
| Brisbane Broncos | Tries: Lockyer; Tallis; Thorn Goals: De Vere (2/4 conversions) |
| Parramatta Eels | Tries: Burt; Try scorer unconfirmed Goals: Schifcofske (1/2 conversions) |
Team sheets
| Brisbane Broncos | Parramatta Eels | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Darren Lockyer | Fullback | Clinton Schifcofske | 1 |
| 2 | Lote Tuqiri | Wing | Luke Burt | 24 |
| 3 | Tonie Carroll | Centre | Jamie Lyon | 3 |
| 4 | Michael De Vere | Centre | David Vaealiki | 4 |
| 5 | Wendell Sailor | Wing | Jason Moodie | 5 |
| 6 | Ben Ikin | Five-Eighth | Daniel Wagon | 6 |
| 7 | Kevin Walters (c) | Halfback | PJ Marsh | 7 |
| 8 | Shane Webcke | Prop | Nathan Cayless (c) | 8 |
| 9 | Luke Priddis | Hooker | Jim Dymock | 9 |
| 10 | Dane Carlaw | Prop | Michael Vella | 10 |
| 11 | Gorden Tallis | Second Row | Nathan Hindmarsh | 11 |
| 12 | Brad Thorn | Second Row | Ian Hindmarsh | 12 |
| 13 | Kevin Campion | Lock | Andrew Ryan | 13 |
| Substitutes | ||||
| 14 | Harvey Howard | Dennis Moran | 14 | |
| 16 | Michael Hancock | Stuart Kelly | 15 | |
| 17 | Shaun Berrigan | Jason Cayless | 16 | |
| 18 | Ashley Harrison | David Westley | 17 | |
| Wayne Bennett | Coach | Brian Smith | ||
Match officials
| Referee | Tim Mander |
Match report
Brisbane's ruthless finals form continued, jumping to a 12-0 halftime lead behind Darren Lockyer's try and generalship before holding off a fast-finishing Parramatta outfit. Described by Parramatta's own club retrospective as "Third Time Unlucky", it was their third straight season ending in a Preliminary Final defeat. Brisbane's win booked their fifth Grand Final appearance in nine seasons.