NRL Round 2 Preview
Round 1 of the 2020 NRL season saw a number of big performances from sides with genuine premiership credentials whilst the start of the Roosters second consecutive premiership defence began with a shock loss to the men from Penrith. Read on as we look at how round 2 is set to play out in front of no public crowds as a result of the current global coronavirus pandemic.
Canterbury Bulldogs ($2.18) vs North Queensland Cowboys ($1.68)
Thursday, 19th March 8:05pm, ANZ Stadium
The round's first game sees the Canterbury Bulldogs welcome the North Queensland Cowboys to an empty ANZ stadium as both sides will be searching for their first win of the 2020 campaign. Last week both the Bulldogs and the Cowboys were downed by 6 and 7 points respectively despite significantly winning the possession count against their opposition. This stat would concern both coaches as their failure to capitalise on their time with the ball was a characteristic that marred their 2019 campaigns. As a result both coaches have made one change for their round 2 meeting with the Bulldogs calling in Jake Averillo, for Kerrod Holland, who is set to make his NRL debut whilst the Cowboys welcome back QLD origin forward Josh McGuire from injury & suspension as he takes the place of Corey Jensen, with John Asiata reverting to the bench. Last year these two teams shared one win a piece as the Cowboys won their home fixture whilst the Bulldogs won at ANZ. Despite losing their last meeting with the Bulldogs in Sydney the Cowboys hold a strong record against them on the road as they had won their previous four meetings and Cowboys coach Paul Green will be hoping to defuse any concerns about their form on the road after winning only 4 of 12 games away from home last year. For us we find it hard to tip the Bulldogs after they only managed 2 points last week and with the Cowboys showing an extra leg in attack with the addition of Valentine Holmes then we are confident they can notch their first win for 2020.
Recommended Bet: North Queensland Cowboys 1-12 $2.90
St. George Illawarra Dragons ($2.25) vs Penrith Panthers ($1.65)
Friday, 20th March 6:00pm, Netstrata Jubilee Stadium
Friday’s 6pm game sees a clash of two teams looking to return to finals football in 2020 after missing out last year in the St. George Illawarra Dragons and the Penrith Panthers. Last week couldn’t have gone any more different for either side too as the Panthers provided possibly the upset of the round in defeating the defending premiers by 20-14, an impressive come from behind victory, whilst the Dragons squandered a host of chances as they fell to the Tigers by 24 points to 14. In this fixture the Dragons completed at a mesely 59% and will have to improve significantly if they are to trouble a Panthers side that outmuscled and outran the Roosters after trailing by 14-8 with 20 minutes to go. This week sees a shuffle around for both teams as Mikaele Ravalawa’s injury opens the door for Matt Dufty to return from injury at fullback with Zac Lomax reverting to the wing and NSW origin play Tariq Sims is suspended, meaning that Tyrell Fuimaono comes into the starting side and Jacob Host joins the bench. For the Panthers, big man Viliame Kikau proved his fitness with a second half try last week and returns to the starting side this week whilst Jack Hetherington’s suspension allows Billy Burns to come onto the bench for his first game for the year. The last time these two teams met the Panthers triumphed 40-18 as they have won their last 2 against the Dragons and after last weeks disjointed performance from the Dragons as well as them missing Cameron McInnes and the two Sims brothers it is hard to see them getting past a reinvigorated Panthers this week.
Recommended Bet: Penrith Panthers -3.5 Line $1.90
Brisbane Broncos ($1.84) vs South Sydney Rabbitohs ($1.96)
Friday, 20th March 8:05pm, Suncorp Stadium
Friday’s prime time game sees the South Sydney Rabbitohs travel interstate to take on the Brisbane Broncos in a rematch between the two teams who were involved in the historical coach swap of Anthoney Seibold and Wayne Bennett at the start of last season. As a result of this the ensuing clashes between the two teams have been riddled with stories of bad blood between the two coaches and it was Bennett who came out on top after winning both meetings between the two sides last year. This time round both sides come in off the back of close but impressive wins with the Broncos downing archrivals the Cowboys away from home whilst Souths held on to defeat the Sharks at home. Subsequently Bennett has named the same 17 from last weeks victory and the only change that Seibold has made for the Broncos has been due to Tevita Pangai’s 4 week suspension, which has opened the door for youngster Jamil Hopoate to move into the starting side with Ethan Bullemor coming onto the bench to make his debut. Over recent years the clashes between these two sides have been characterised by high scoring affairs, with the last 12 meetings between these sides averaging just over 47 points. This proves interesting with the current totals market being set well below that and with that in mind as well as the high scoring games that both teams were involved in last round then we are happy to look at another high scoring fixture between the two teams.
Recommended Bet: Total Points Over 41.5 Points $1.86
New Zealand Warriors ($4.25) vs Canberra Raiders ($1.22)
Saturday, 21st March 3:00pm, Cbus Super Stadium
Despite this game featuring two teams from outside the state of Queensland we are set to see the New Zealand Warriors take on the Canberra Raiders at the Gold Coast Titans home stadium, Cbus Super Stadium in the first game on Saturday. The reason behind this stems from the unfortunate situation surrounding Coronavirus and the fact that the Warriors are unable to travel back home to host the game at its original location of Eden Park in Auckland. Hopefully for the Warriors sake they will have settled into the Australian climate after their second consecutive week here as they look to bounce back from a 20-0 defeat at the hands of the Knights. Although they have the unfortunate task of coming up against a team who put in one of the most impressive performances of last round in the Raiders, who knocked off the Titans 24-6 in a performance that mirrored their strong defensive focus from 2019. This doesn’t bode well for an attack that looked dysfunctional throughout round one and coach Stephen Kearney will have his work cut out for him as Patrick Herbert and Peta Hiku returned home for family reasons meaning that Adam Keighran and Adam Pompey come into the side. On the other hand the Raiders have named the same 17 from their impressive victory with the only minor change being Corey Horsburgh shifting to lock with Joseph Tapine taking his spot in the back row. With the uncertainty and unsettlement that is surrounding the Warriors at the moment it is hard to see them improving their attack against the 3rd ranked defensive side from last year and we are predicting the Raiders to run away with this one in convincing fashion.
Recommended Bet: Canberra Raiders 13+ $1.90
Sydney Roosters ($1.52) vs Manly Sea Eagles ($2.55)
Saturday, 21st March 5:30pm, Leichhardt Stadium
Saturday's second game is also the second game of the round that has been forced to move stadiums as the defending premiers, the Sydney Roosters, and last year's semi-finalists, the Manly Sea Eagles, come together at Leichhardt Oval. Originally slated for Central Coast Stadium the game has been moved to Sydney due to the closing of games to the general public in this round and Leichhardt acting as a closer option for both teams. Last week also saw both teams surprisingly lose their first game of the year as the Roosters lost on the road to the Panthers whilst the Sea Eagles failed to score a try against a Melbourne Storm that completely outmuscled them at the Sea Eagles home ground. Despite this loss Sea Eagles coach Des Hasler has remained faithful to the same 17 as they look to overturn a 3 game losing streak against the Roosters. For the Roosters they welcome back Angus Crichton from injury as he takes Sitili Tupouniua’s place in the back row, who is out with a knee injury. With the Roosters welcoming back NSW origin player Crichton as well as boasting the aforementioned record against the Sea Eagles, which includes 2 wins away from home and 2 wins by 8 points or under, then we are leaning towards the Roosters notching their first win for 2019 in close fashion.
Recommended Bet: Sydney Roosters 1-12 $2.70
Cronulla Sharks ($2.60) vs Melbourne Storm ($1.50)
Saturday, 21st March 7:35pm, Netstrata Jubilee Stadium
One of the great modern day rivalries is brought to us at the unusual home ground for the Cronulla Sharks in Netstrata Jubilee Stadium as the Melbourne Storm travel interstate to reignite a rivalry that stems from the 2016 grand final. Over recent years the Sharks have been one of the few teams who hold a positive record against the Storm with them winning 5 of their last 8 meetings but the Storm can take confidence from their 40-16 win against them in their last clash in round 17 of 2019. The Storm will also be much more confident after notching up an impressive 18-4 win away from home against the Sea Eagles whilst the Sharks will be ruing the 14 errors they made and a 67% completion rate in their 4 point loss to the Rabbitohs. Unfortunately for the Sharks a number of their backline stars are still a number of weeks away as Bronson Xerri and Matt Moylan remain injured whilst Josh Dugan has only just made the extended bench. For the Storm they will keep the same 17 that got the job done last week as they look to put together consecutive wins against the Sharks for the first time since 2015. Despite the Sharks appearing to be the Storms bogey team of recent years it is hard to ignore the Storms traditional early season form and we are predicting them to come out with a tight win against a gallant but depleted Sharks side.
Recommended Bet: Melbourne Storm 1-12 $2.70
Wests Tigers ($1.84) vs Newcastle Knights ($1.96)
Sunday, 22nd March 4:05pm, Leichhardt Oval
The 9th and 11th placegetters from last year's season in the Wests Tigers and Newcastle Knights will meet for the first time in 2020 in what could be an important early season game for their finals aspirations. With both teams hovering around the top 8 over recent years and coming off early season wins then the pressure will be on both sides to prove their 2020 finals credentials. Last week saw the Knights put together a well rounded performance as they completed at 80% and kept the Warriors scoreless in a 20-0 win whilst the Tigers were able to come 14 points to 8 down to score 16 unanswered points in a 24-14 win against the Dragons. As a result new Knights coach Adam O’Brien has kept the same 17 that triumphed last week whilst the Tigers have made just the one change with Paul Momirovski coming onto the bench in place of Michael Chee Kam. In recent history the Tigers have dominated this contest by winning their last 3 meetings but it is hard to ignore the Knights form from last week as well as the Tigers being without Luke Brooks, Moses Mbye and Jacob Liddle. With the bookies leaning towards the Tigers we are happy to take them on and are predicting a Knights win on enemy territory.
Recommended Bet: Newcastle Knights $1.96
Gold Coast Titans ($2.90) vs Parramatta Eels ($1.41)
Sunday, 22nd March 6:15pm, Cbus Super Stadium
The last game of the round sees the Gold Coast Titans welcome the Parramatta Eels to Cbus Super Stadium as they look to earn new coach Justin Holbrook his first win in the NRL as coach. Last week the Titans were completely outclassed by a powerful Raiders side as they went down by 18 points in a performance that was marred by a whopping 45 missed tackles. On the other hand the Eels managed to score a late 8-2 win against the Bulldogs in a game that featured 26 errors from both sides in what was a sloppy start to the 2020 season. This week both coaches will be calling for a renewed focus on handling & tackling and as a result Holbrook has dropped Tyrone Peachey to the bench with Brian Kelly taking his place, Moeaki Fotuaika takes Jaiman Joliffe’s place on the bench and AJ Brimson & Shannon Boyd push for a return from the extended reserves. For the Eels they have stuck faith with the same 17 from last week's victory as they look to extend a 3 game winning streak against the Titans, which includes a 36-12 victory at Cbus Super Stadium from last year. With the Eels last 3 wins against the Titans being an average of just over 20 points we are confident that they have the firepower to cover the much smaller line that is set this week.
Recommended Bet: Parramatta Eels -7.5 Line $1.90
