Round 3
Holy Haas! Demolition Derby! Payne Unleashed. Looks like last week’s Beef problem has been solved according to the Courier Mail so we might be back on track. Fascinating stuff but more on the Broncos later.
Round 3 started off with the grand final rematch and what a game it was. The Storm running out winners 32-24 but the Panthers showed enough on the night to make everybody think that they’ll still be around come September. Obviously the loss of Cleary was a big blow and Bellamy wouldn’t have been 100% happy with the aspects of the Storm performance but nevertheless they won the game. Big Nelson proved again just how dangerous he is, not only to the opposition, but to his own players when he broke poor Meaney’s jaw! It was a high quality game, well worth watching and certainly these two sides will be right in the mix.
The early game on Friday night saw the Warriors home against the Roosters. It was a tight game, but it didn’t reach any great heights with the Warriors running out 14 points to 6cwinners. The new rugby union convert proved that he will be a fair player for the Roosters, and he had some nice touches during the game. Metcalf again was good for the Warriors, and he gave good direction which they needed. Maybe if they can keep their home record in touch they may go near the 8. The big local Derby in Brisbane of course had the Broncs up against the Cowboys. The Broncos weren’t overly impressive, but they were lucky that the Cowboys were again poor. These are worrying signs for the coach and, surely, he has to be concerned about his long term future given the way that they’re applying his brand of footy. The Cowboys have started the season without a win and a minus 64 in the points differential
The three games on Saturday led out with the Sharks’ comprehensive victory over the Rabbitohs. If you get the chance, have a little look at Cronulla tries, especially the two long range ones. Certainly the Sharks have genuine speed and applying that to their new found punch up the middle puts them in as a contender. The second game saw a disappointing Dolphins in a 12 point loss to the West Tigers. I’m not sure I’d be backing the West Tigers to win the premiership at this stage of the season but certainly the Dolphins look like they have a long road ahead of them. All of a sudden, the Bennett curse is out there again. Another complete change of fortune saw the Titans put on their best display in a number of years where they shut the Knights out in the first half to lead 20-nil at half-time and end up running away with the game 26 points to 6. If only the Titans could build consistency into their performance, they could certainly match it with other sides. Big Tino was terrific and I know that Haas gained all the platitudes from the Courier Mail but big Tino’s game showed that he is as good a forward as there is in the comp. Certainly Origin 1 -Tino versus Haas – will be worth the entry fee.
The first game on Sunday saw the Bulldogs beat the Eels 16 points to 8 in what could only be described as a very poor performance by both sides. The Bulldogs can’t win big games playing like that and the Eels will continue to lose all games playing the way they did. It wasn’t a great spectacle as a game other than the fact that the scores were close at the end. Finally, what can we say about poor Ricky? Manly absolutely belted the Raiders and the Horsburg binning is a sin bin every day of the week. I’m not sure what the complaint was there. The obstruction rule it has its moments in every game, but I felt that the call was most probably OK. Manly looked very good until Tuesday night when the Cherry bomb delivered itself so it will be interesting to see how that will affect their performance.
Round 4 starts start off on Thursday with the Rabbitohs at home against the Panthers. Even though the Panthers have been struggling I think they will have a little bit too much for the Rabbits. South have been playing a good brand of football, but I just feel that Penrith will be too clinical in this match for them.
Friday night has two games with the Roosters playing the Titans in the early game and it will be interesting to see if the Titans can hold their form from last week. Likewise, even though the Roosters went down last week they performed much better than they had been and have a number of players coming back. The late game has some interest especially for Dolphins fans as they’re playing the Broncos in a home match at Suncorp. It seems very difficult to see how the Dolphins will be able to beat the Broncos. I can’t wait for the Courier Mail headline, and which letter the alliteration will take! I think the Broncos will defeat them.
There are three games Saturday starting off with the Dragons against the Storm. It’s impossible to see the Storm losing this match. There is real interest in the second game where the Cowboys are at home to the Raiders. Obviously Ricky is still fuming from last week’s shellacking but likewise the Cowboys are under a great deal of pressure. There were situations in the Cowboys v Broncos match where even if it was touch footy the Broncos would’ve scored. The Haas try being a good example. The final game on Saturday night has the Sharks up against the Bulldog and I know that I haven’t been a Sharks fan in the past but I am starting to warm to them. They play an exciting brand of football and they will certainly put the sword through the Bulldogs if they play like they did last week.
Sunday has two games where the Sea Eagles will be way too good for the Eels, even given the dramas Manly have had through the week. The Eels were better last week but you have to console yourself with the fact that they could not possibly have been worse! Finally, Wests Tigers are up against the Warriors is a very interesting game to cap off the round. How the Warriors play away from home will really determine where they finish. The Tigers have been better over the last couple of weeks and are certainly a better side than the last few years, but I am not game to say where they are at just yet. Newcastle has the bye.
Top Eight (in order)
1 Melbourne 3 Manly 5 Brisbane 6 Cronullaargh 11 Souths 12 Penrith 14 Roosters 16 Cowboys.
Fact Stat for the day: Mascots
With all the talk about Reggie the Rabbit this week, I thought we should look at each team’s mascot.
Saint George have Scorch the Dragon, Penrith have Claws and the Gold Coast Titans have Blade. The Sydney Roosters have Rocky to cock a doodle do whilst the Newcastle Knights have Novo. Manly have the family pair of Egor and Ellie and of course the Brisbane Broncos have Buck who has done more laps than Keiron Perkins. The Canterbury Bulldogs have Spike, George and Brutus whilst the West Tigers have Timmy the Tiger. The New Zealand Warriors have Tiki whilst Parramatta have Sparky the Eel. North Queensland Cowboys have Bluey and the Melbourne Storm have Storm Man. Cronulla have the MC Hammerhead and Reefy whilst as we all know Souths have Reggie and Canberra have Vicktor the Viking. The latest club,the Dolphins have Phini the Dolphin so that’s the mascots for the 17 NRL clubs and let’s hope Reggie gets off as the Mascots do a great job.
Tipping Stats – I am on top with 5 others in the Almanac comp and moved up 2400 places last week to go into the top 14000. My 4 outed tipsters performed better after a little bit of pressure was applied to them, however they still seem to be anchored to the bottom. Remember I am watching your progress.
You gotta love footy!
To read our library of rugby league stories click HERE.
To return to our Footy Almanac home page click HERE.
To see the full 2025 season draw for the NRL click HERE.
To see the full 2025 season draw for the NRLW click HERE.
To see the details for State of Origin in 2025 click HERE.
Our writers are independent contributors. The opinions expressed in their articles are their own. They are not the views, nor do they reflect the views, of Malarkey Publications.
Do you enjoy the Almanac concept?
And want to ensure it continues in its current form, and better? To help things keep ticking over please consider making your own contribution.
Become an Almanac (annual) member – CLICK HERE.
Leave a Comment