NRL Round 15 Preview
With the representative round behind us and a week consisting of an enticing grand final rematch as well as a number of season defining games for teams top 8 aspirations read on as we take a look at these fixtures and what could be the most important round during the State of Origin period.
Wests Tigers ($2.60) vs South Sydney Rabbitohs ($1.50)
Thursday, 27th June 7:50pm, Bankwest Stadium
The first game of round 15 sees the second placed South Sydney Rabbitohs off a 3 game losing streak come up against the ninth placed Wests Tigers who snapped a 3 game losing streak of their own with their golden point victory over the North Queensland Cowboys last round. This game sees the second time these two teams have met this year with the first time resulting in a 32-16 victory for the Rabbitohs in a game where their forwards dominated the middle and only allowed one Tigers forward to pass the 100 metre run mark. Interestingly, this game was the last time that the Rabbitohs tasted victory and coach Wayne Bennet will be hoping that the return of Braidon Burns in the centres, Adam Reynolds in the halves and George Burgess to the forwards will help spark his team back into the force that saw them sit on top of the table through the first two months of the season. For the Tigers they will be looking to push their case for finals footy this year by posting another victory and coach Michael Maguire has dropped Ben Matulino and recalled Elijah Taylor as he looks to tackle the mammoth South Sydney forward pack. Maguire will also be hoping that his team can alter their form at the venue of Thursday nights game in Bankwest Stadium, which has seen them score just 6 points and concede 79 points in two losses to the Eels and the Raiders. Unfortunately for Maguire, this record coupled with the return of some big name players for the Rabbitohs leads us to feel that they will suffer their second defeat to the Rabbitohs in 2019 and their 3rd straight at Bankwest Stadium too.
Recommended Bet: South Sydney Rabbitohs 1-12 $2.80
St. George Illawarra Dragons ($1.53) vs North Queensland Cowboys ($2.50)
Friday, 28th June 6:00pm, WIN Stadium
A replay of the round one fixture that saw the North Queensland Cowboys defeat the St. George Illawarra Dragons by 24 points to 12 up in Townsville is brought to us as the 6pm game in what looks to be a season defining clash for both sides. The Cowboys recent form has improved significantly over the last 6 weeks and they will be disappointed to have lost their last two matches by a combined total of 3 points in what could be argued as controversial circumstances after they were on a 3 game winning streak. For the Dragons not much has gone right over the last two months as they have only one game from their last 7 meetings and have shown some concerning defensive signs that has seen them concede more than 30 points in 3 of these losses. Thankfully for the Dragons they have named Tim Lafai to return in the centres and Jeremy Latimore comes onto the bench for Jai Field as they look to take on the monster Cowboys forward pack. For the Cowboys they have named former Storm back Scott Drinkwater to debut for the club at fullback, Jordan McLean has come in for the suspended Josh McGuire, Coen Hess is out injured and replaced by Shane Wright and Reuben Cotter comes in for Kurt Baptiste, who did his ACL in the representative round. Despite the number of changes for the Cowboys if they are to mirror their performances from the last month of NRL and continue on with their impressive away form then we are confident that they can cause an upset against a team that they have already defeated once this season.
Recommended Bet: North Queensland Cowboys $2.50
Sydney Roosters ($1.93) vs Melbourne Storm ($1.87)
Friday, 28th June 7:55pm, Adelaide Oval
Without a doubt the game of the round sees both of last years grand finalists travel to Adelaide Oval in what proves to be a mouthwatering clash that will have a huge influence on the way the top four sits at the end of the season. The Melbourne Storm will be eager to avenge their last two losses to the Sydney Roosters, which have come in last years grand final and round 6 of this season, and will be hoping that in doing this they can extend their four point buffer at the top of the table. The Roosters, however, will be looking to eradicate a concerning State of Origin form slump that has seen them win just one of their previous four games and to do so coach Trent Robinson has ensured that he will take an almost full strength squad to Adelaide. As a result James Tedesco is recalled at fullback, which sees Joseph Manu move back to the centres and Mitch Aubusson to the bench whilst Zane Tetevano starts as prop with Isaac Liu shifting to lock. For the Storm coach Craig Bellamy has struck true to the same 17 that has provided him with 5 consecutive wins as all of his representative players came through last weeks games unscathed. With the odds currently sitting relatively even for this game it is interesting to look at the Storms away record, which currently sits at 5 wins and 1 loss for 2019. This record coupled with the fact that the Roosters are without both Luke Keary and Jake Friend for this games sees us leaning towards the Storm notching up a 6th consecutive win, albeit in a close game.
Recommended Bet: Melbourne Storm 1-12 $2.95
Gold Coast Titans ($2.40) vs Manly Sea Eagles ($1.58)
Saturday, 29th June 3:00pm, Cbus Super Stadium
Saturday’s first game sees the 6th placed Manly Sea Eagles travel up to the glitter strip as they look to avenge a 36-18 loss to the 15th placed Gold Coast Titans from a mere 4 weeks ago. This win was the first of an interesting form line for the Titans over the last month that has seen them win both their away games against the Sea Eagles and the Broncos whilst losing their home games to the Cowboys and the Warriors. There is no doubt that coach Garth Brennan will have highlighted this to his team and he will be hoping that they can stop their concerning home form despite missing key representative forwards in Jai Arrow and Kevin Proctor as well as halfback Ashley Taylor. For the Sea Eagles this loss came at a time when they were without both Tom Trbojevic and Daly Cherry-Evans, who have both been named to back up from their State of Origin performances from last Sunday. Manly coach Des Hasler will be hoping that with all of his origin players available to back up they are able to ease the pain of losing star hooker Api Koroisau to an ankle injury as he is replaced by Manase Fainu. Interestingly the Titans are currently riding a 3 game winning streak against the Sea Eagles but the Sea Eagles level of performance over the last 2 weeks has been exceptional and with their consistent form we are leaning towards the Sea Eagles notching a 3rd consecutive victory.
Recommended Bet: Manly Sea Eagles -4 Line $1.85
Newcastle Knights ($1.64) vs Brisbane Broncos ($2.25)
Saturday, 29th June 5:30pm, McDonald Jones Stadium
Brisbane Broncos coach Anthony Seibold will be desperate for a victory in Saturday’s 5:30pm game as his team face the reality of slipping further and further away from the top 8 in the midst of some contrasting home and away form. In his way are the impressive Newcastle Knights who currently sit 5th on the ladder and have won 6 of their last 7, with their only loss coming at the hands of the current top of the table side, the Melbourne Storm. For the Broncos they will be desperate to show an improved effort away from home after their embarrassing 38-10 loss to the Eels in Sydney in their last match. This loss saw the Broncos away record slip to two wins from seven games and highlighted their struggle to score points as they have averaged 36 points over their last 3 matches. As a result the Broncos have recalled Andrew McCullough to the starting side, replaced Jamayne Isaako with Richie Kennar and origin forward Joe Ofahengaue returns on the bench. For the Knights coach Nathan Brown has named Kalyn Ponga to back up from origin as well as naming Mitchell Pearce to play after being under an injury cloud. Two interesting names on Newcastle’s extended reserves are David Klemmer and Aidan Guerra who are both pushing to return from injuries and their availability will be something to watch as kick off approaches. The last time these two teams met as in round 5 of 2018 where the Knights ran out 15-10 winners whilst at home and with the more consistent form surrounding the Knights as well as the Broncos shaky form in New South Wales then we are leaning towards a second successive victory for them against the Broncos.
Recommended Bet: Newcastle Knights -3.5 Line $1.90
Parramatta Eels ($2.15) vs Canberra Raiders ($1.71)
Saturday, 29th June, 7:35pm, TIO Stadium
Saturday’s prime time game sees the two top four hopefuls in the 8th placed Parramatta Eels and the 4th placed Canberra Raiders come together at TIO stadium in the warm and humid setting of the Northern Territory. Despite both teams sitting within the top 8 they come from polarising form lines as the Eels haven't strung together back-to-back wins since the opening two rounds whilst the Raiders are currently riding a 3 game winning streak after being on a 3 game losing streak. For the Eels they are coming off an impressive 38-10 win against the Broncos at Bankwest Stadium but it is quickly becoming a pattern in the Eels that their home performances are significantly better than their away performances as they have won 5 from 7 at home whilst only winning 2 from 7 away from home. On the other hand the Canberra Raiders away form has been impressive as they have won 4 from 6 away from home and they also boast an impressive 19-0 home win against the Eels from round 5 of this season. The Eels will be hoping that the return of young half Dylan Brown will help improve their away form whilst Raiders fans will be delighted to see that England international Josh Hodgson has been named to return from a thumb injury as well as Corey Horsburgh on the bench but they lose Nick Cotric to a leg injury. With the return of arguably the Raiders most important player in Hodgson to go with their already impressive form line then we are leaning towards a comfortable win for them against the Eels for the second time this year.
Recommended Bet: Canberra Raiders -2 Line $1.90
New Zealand Warriors ($1.60) vs Penrith Panthers ($2.35)
Sunday, 30th June 2:00pm, Mt Smart Stadium
Two teams with aspirations to continue their climb up the ladder in the 10th placed New Zealand Warriors and the 14th placed Penrith Panthers will meet at the Warriors home ground of Mt Smart Stadium in what looks to be a season defining clash for both teams. The Panthers of the last month have been significantly different to the team that lost to the Warriors 30-10 just 5 weeks ago as they are currently riding a 4 game winning streak in a bid to revive their season. The Warriors will also be looking improve their consistency by posting back to back wins for the first time since rounds 9 & 10 of this year. To do this the Warriors will have to make do without Tohu Harris who is out with a knee injury as well as Isaac Luke and Lachlan Burr who lose their spots to Nathaniel Roache and Sam Lisone respectively. For the Panthers they will be without NSW Blues halfback in Nathan Cleary who is out with a syndesmosis injury and is replaced by Jarome Luai whilst star centre Dean Whare has been named among the extended reserves and could be a late inclusion. The last time these two teams met the Panthers missed a whopping 52 tackles to go with 14 errors and coach Ivan Cleary will be hoping for a much improved defensive performance if they are to win at Mt Smart Stadium for the first time since 2017. Panthers record as the away underdog isn’t much better as they have only won 3 of their last 9 when listed as the underdog and we are trusting the Warriors at home to secure their second win against the Panthers in 2019.
Recommended Bet: New Zealand Warriors 1-12 $2.85
Canterbury Bulldogs ($3.30) vs Cronulla Sharks ($1.33)
Sunday, 30th June 4:05pm, ANZ Stadium
The final game of the round sees the 7th placed Cronulla Sharks come up against the 16th placed Canterbury Bulldogs at ANZ stadium as both teams will be looking to bounce back from a last round lost. For the Sharks their loss came up against the 4th placed Canberra Raiders as they trailed 20-0 after only 25 minutes of play to only lose by 2 points as they slipped to 7th on the ladder. On the other hand the Bulldogs loss to the Roosters meant they have now slumped to a 4 game losing streak and in the process have conceded 114 points whilst only scoring 40 points through this period. These numbers prove grim reading for Bulldogs coach Dean Pay and to make matters worse starting hooker Jeremy Marshall-King is out with injury and is replaced by Michael Lichaa as well as Raymond Faitala-Mariner being dropped for Chris Smith but they welcome Jack Cogger back into the halves. For the Sharks their origin stars have been named to back up with Wade Graham moving into the starting side after his impressive performance in origin, Jayden Brailey returns at hooker and shifts his brother Blayke to the bench and Braden Hamlin-Uele starts in light of Andrew Fifita’s suspension. In recent history the Sharks have dominated this contest in winning the last 6 matches, with the Bulldogs having not defeated them since 2014, and we are confident that the Sharks can continue this streak with a dominant victory against the Bulldogs.
Recommended Bet: Cronulla Sharks -8.5 Line $1.90
