By CASEY O’CONNOR
WHAT a week of football. NSW came out swinging determined to keep the Origin series alive and post Origin the club games have been extraordinary with most results on a knife edge until the full time siren. No-one could say fans are not getting bang for their buck, but results are certainly tough to predict.
There are not enough superlatives to describe the Broncos win over the Storm. It was an outstanding game. For the student of statistics, the Broncos had to make 453 tackles compared to the Storm’s 323.
Brisbane was not entitled to win given the amount of possession their opponents had, but win they did on the back of their outstanding defence.
They are back to Suncorp on Friday night to host the Knights in what could be a danger game for them after such a physically challenging game.
After bursting out the blocks in the opening games of the season, it now looks almost impossible for Newcastle to make the playoffs.
The Knights must win seven of their last 10 games, and on current form that looks unlikely. The head-to-head record favours the Broncos, however the Knights have been known to upset the party in Brisbane before. Despite some fine individual performances, the Knights twice let a 10-point lead slip from their grasp against Cronulla. They cannot afford those lapses against the Broncos, and it looks likely Brisbane will add another notch to their belt.
South of the border, the premiers go head to head with Manly at ANZ. The Bunnies had a bye in round 15 and will still be smarting after their lacklustre performance against the Tigers.
Manly posted a decisive win over the Tigers at Brookvale Oval and perhaps it was the win they needed to turn their season around.
Bunnies coach Mick Maguire put his team through some gruelling training sessions before giving his players a few days off ahead of Friday night’s encounter.
Manly were vastly improved at Brookvale. DCE answered his critics with a return to form alongside Keiran Foran.
There will be plenty of sibling rivalry in this game as the Stewart brothers go head to head and Luke Burgess faces his brothers. Manly may have turned the corner but the Bunnies on fresh legs can hop back into premiership contention.
The Canberra Raiders make the trip across the ditch to take on the Warriors after a heart breaking loss to the Cowboys.
The men in green must pick themselves up and dust themselves off after that thief in the night Thurston stole their points. It is not the first game this season where the Raiders have played well but come up empty handed. Their season is now at the crossroads.
They have lost their last four games against the Warriors, with the Kiwis scoring more than 50 points in three of those encounters. The Warriors were impressive last weekend against the Titans coming from behind the eight ball in the first half to score a dominant win.
Canberra must shut down Shaun Johnston to come away from NZ with a win. That I think is unlikely, but you never know which Warriors team is going to turn up.
The Cowboys are back to 1300 Smiles and shooting for an unbeaten dozen when they take on Cronulla after inflicting their own brand of capital punishment on Canberra. It was the fourth time this season they have pinched the points in the final minute of the game. The win was particularly impressive with three of their Origin contingent backing up after the bruising Origin game.
Under coach Paul Green the Cowboys are cool under pressure. They are sticking to their game plan and have found their winning way.
Cronulla has a great record in Townsville and cannot be overlooked. In a game that saw the lead switch on a number of occasions, the Sharks were impressive against the Knights. Despite sitting outside the eight, they have some impressive scalps this season having already twice beaten the Roosters and have a win over the Bunnies. Consistency is their downfall. You have to wonder when the NQ run will come to an end and this is a danger game for them. I expect the Cowboys to win here, but if the Sharks cause an upset it would be no great surprise.
Despite having the bye in round 15, there is more drama at the Eels. The Keiran Foran deal appears to have gone and the future of coach Brad Arthur looks shaky as the Eels continue to spiral out of control. It cannot be helping a football side looking down the barrel of another wooden spoon despite their win over Melbourne in round 14. It was not a pretty win but the Eels were unpredictable and carried early momentum through the game. Chris Sandow was on song, and when he plays well the side has success. This week against the Dragons will be a tester.
In a game that could have gone either way, the Dragons went down to the Roosters on Monday night. They squandered an early lead but paid the price of a 5/1 penalty count in the opening stages. The Dragons surrendered the lead and were forced to chase for the remainder of the game. They finished strongly but could not peg back the Roosters. Difficult to see a win coming here for the Eels
The Roosters moved into the top four on Monday night. The tri colours were without their first-choice props Jared Waerea-Hargreaves (calf) and Sam Moa (suspension) but their forwards filled the gap impressively outmuscling the Dragons. The side was unaffected by the controversy surrounding their star Michael Jennings. Their opponents in round 16, the Titans currently have at least a dozen of their top players benched with injury.
The arrival of Nene Macdonald and Chad Redman last week could not have come at a more opportune time. The Titans have a better away record than home record this season, and with the game to be played at Gosford Stadium anything could happen, however the Roosters look to have too much firepower.
The Tigers Panthers game at Leichardt is a tough one for tipsters. The Panthers continue to be wracked by injury concerns and adding to their woes James Segeyaro has a medial ligament strain in the game.
On paper, the Tigers should be winning games but continue to disappoint or sneak up and bite you when you don’t tip them. In the wet conditions at Brookvale, they played their share of good football. The Tigers must build consistency into their game and the coach will be asking for better preparation and execution in what should be a Tigers win.
The Bulldogs and Melbourne go toe to toe in the final game of the round – another tough one for tipsters.
Melbourne had enough ball to win three football games, but came up empty handed against the Broncos. They have the task ahead of them for the remainder of the season as they cover the loss of Slater and in the immediate future Cronk.
The Dogs will be without Josh Jackson but will still have plenty of bite. Despite Hasler’s claims that State of Origin is “killing football” his Dogs were impressive winners over the Panthers. They sit in eighth spot on the ladder and although this will be a tough game at Belmore, a win for the Dogs should at least silence Hasler’s bellyaching.
Casey’s tips
Broncos
Bunnies
Warriors
Cowboys
Dragons
Roosters
Tigers
Bulldogs
