Mitchell Moses has revealed he told Brad Arthur it was time for him to step up and absorb more pressure at Parramatta, before making the switch to the left side of the field.
The Eels' attack underwent a significant renovation in the off-season, with Moses and Ryan Matterson moving to the left and Dylan Brown and Shaun Lane going right.
Moses on Monday confirmed the move was more about taking the kick pressure off Brown, with both right-footers and kicking on the left therefore being more tricky.
The shift was, however, questioned by Eels great Peter Sterling after round one, noting that Moses is their No.1 option and should have priority.
Moses has not played left-edge since his junior days at Wests Tigers, while Brown had always commanded that side of the field since his debut in 2019.
But Moses kicked well on Thursday night against Melbourne, controlling the game, and claimed he was now comfortable on the left.
"I said to Brad put all the pressure on me and take it off Dylan," Moses said.
"He's only early in his career, he'll get better and better.
"Having Dyl on the right side takes a bit of pressure off him and puts more pressure on me on the left side as a right-foot kicker.
"But it's an easy way to learn kicking on the right side as a right-foot kicker with the pressure from the inside... It's worked really well putting all the pressure on me."
Moses said it was a "no-brainer" for the halves' second-rowers to move with them, given the combinations that had been formed in recent years.
There is, however, no guarantee Moses will have Matterson next to him on Saturday night against Cronulla.
The Eels back-rower is still completing his concussion protocols with the Eels after Felise Kaufusi pushed his elbow down onto the the head of Matterson as he fell in a tackle on Thursday night.
Matterson did not train on Monday.
Missing two weeks with concussion last season, Matterson has a history of head knocks dating back to his time at both the Tigers and the Sydney Roosters.
Working in his favour is a nine-day turnaround but the Eels would still need to have him seen by an independent doctor for him to play against the Sharks.
"He looks pretty fine. He has handled this one a lot better than how he has in the past," Moses said of Matterson.
"He's alright, we'll just have to see how he goes ... We need him on the field to play our best."
