NRL Round 16 Talking Points

NRL Round 16 Talking Points

Fri 24 Jun             Panthers v Rabbitohs     Pepper Stadium

• No Adam Reynolds, how will Souths halves respond? Cody Walker should partner Keary in the halves with Alex Johnson to move to fullback.
• Luke Keary departs. Keary announced deal with Roosters this week, he’ll be looking to finish the year off strongly for the red and green.
• Nathan Clearly playing 3^rd first grade game. 1 tough loss v Storm and just got home against under strengthen Manly. At only 18, how will he handle week to week rigours of NRL? No doubt he can expect some heavy traffic from the likes of Brown, Sutton and the Burgess boys.

Sat 25 Jun            Knights v Dragons            Hunter Stadium

• Dugan returns. Injured elbow prior to Origin 1 and has been sidelined since. Will want to put in a strong performance to get back in the team for game 3.
• Struggling Knights. Their team list woes have been we documented with the departure of Tapine and Sims mid-season. $500k winger, Uate is running around in reserve grade. Do they have the personnel to trouble the dour Dragons?
• Dragons attacking woes. They have the 2^nd worst attack in comp only behind the struggling Knights. They were only able to post 20 points week against a severely depleted Storm side. This will be their best opportunity to post a big score this season, can they show some razzle dazzle?

Sat 25 Jun            Sharks v Warriors             Shark Park

• Gunning for 11. Sharkies have posted 10 straight wins and are sitting pretty on top of the ladder. Can they make it 11?
• Shaun Johnson showing some glimpses of his best. Can he put his best foot forward against the competitions best
• Warriors had their customary slow start to the year and now have strung together 3 wins on the trot. Will they go on with the job this year?

Sat 25 Jun            Bulldogs v Broncos          ANZ Stadium

• Greg Eastwood, Josh Morris, Tim Browne, Raymond Faitala-Mariner all late outs for the Dogs
• Broncos lose Sam Thaiday due to dangerous throw charge in Origin. They’ve got 4 players backing up from Origin and they were found wanting in their previous post-Origin match. Bennett will have his men switched on for this danger game against the Dogs.
• Broncos won 4 of the last 5 against the Dogs

Sun 26 Jun           Titans v Raiders                 Cbus Super Stadium

• Continue to be the surprise packets of the NRL. Touted to run last this season but continue to put their best foot forward and sit 8^th on the ladder.
• Robert and Taylor shine. They’re a young combination and were written off at the start of the year but they have showed plenty of promise steering their big, mobile forward pack around. Taylor in particular has shown terrific composure and game management throughout the year
• Point scoring green-machine. Raiders are currently 3^rd for most points scored this year. They’ve got the ability to put points on and put them on quickly. Biggest criticism is their tendency to drift in and out of games. If their can curb that trend, they’ll be a force to be reckoned with.

Sun 26 Jun           Storm v Tigers                   AAMI Park

• Who will line up for the Storm? Two starts ago, Bellamy didn’t name Smith and Cronk yet they were late inclusions in their side. Last week against the Dragons, Blake Green and Cameron Munster were named however both were late omissions due to injury.
• Without their starts last week, Storm lacked direction and composure as to be expected. It was their first loss in 8 weeks and will no doubt be looking to get back into the winners circle.
• No Robbie, how will they fare? Robbie Farah looks likely to be rested for the clash after copping a concussion in Origin. They stuck it to the Storm going down by 1 at Leichhardt in round 7, they won’t get a better opportunity to knock off one of the competition heavyweights

Mon 27 Jun         Cowboys v Sea Eagles    1300Smiles Stadium

• Return of DCE. Manly welcome back star half Daly Cherry-Evans in what has been a rotten year of injuries for the Northern beaches outfit. Daly’s form this year has been patchy at best and injuries haven’t helped his cause in the slightest. They’ll need him at his best if he’s to inspire the team to victory.
• Morgan out for a month. Over the last 24 months, Morgan has been a vital cog in the North Queensland engine. His speed and vision compliments the wizardly of Johnathan Thurston beautifully, it will be interesting to see what sort of disruption his injury will bring to the dynamic of the team.