SYDNEY, - The Hayne Plane was back in service as 2012 NRL wooden spooners Parramatta began life under Ricky Stuart with an eye-catching 40-10 NRL thumping of the Warriors.
Eels superstar Jarryd Hayne lit up Parramatta Stadium with a breathtaking hat-trick in his first game as co-captain, his combination with rejuvenated halfback Chris Sandow - who finished with 16 points of his own - gave the blue and gold faithful hope the dark days of last year may be ending.
Three unanswered tries in the first half set up the win, but Stuart would no doubt have been impressed with the resolve his players showed in the second half when the Warriors threatened a comeback.
Jacob Lillyman and Dane Nielsen both scored for a largely disappointing visitors outfit to trim Parramatta's lead to 18-10, but the Eels kicked clear thanks largely to their talismanic fullback.
Hayne's effort to chase down his own bomb on 63 minutes gave the Eels a repeat set of six, off the back of which Ken Sio scored in the corner.
It shifted the momentum back Parramatta's way, Hayne putting the exclamation mark on an outstanding performance with great support play to score tries in the 66th and 69th minutes, Sio scoring his second in the dying stages.