2026 NRL – Upsets on and off the field

 

 

A mini rant

Fancy sacking a coach less than a month into the new season! Sure, Manly isn’t going well, but what do expect after the departure of their key player of the past 15 years? Immediate success when you only have a modest herd of cattle on the paddock? What about the ‘modest’ recruitment (now there’s a euphemism!) over the past couple years? Only Fogarty cuts the mustard; the rest are blancmange.  Throw in an injury or two and what did Seibold have to work with? I’m no great fan of him as a coach, especially after the disaster at the Broncos where he did have a good herd, but he makes an easy scapegoat when the reality is more broadly based problems within the club.

The only question now is which coach is next on the block? Flanagan? Ten days ago it might have been Payten, but how has that changed? It’s a ruthless, brutal business.

And I wouldn’t mind betting that they’ll be less than happy at Dolphin Oval after Isaako signed with the Storm for 2027. Upset at the very least!

 

Round 4

Premierships aren’t won in March but, by golly, the Panthers are making a one horse race of it at the moment. Daylight second. Let’s see what sort of opposition the Melbourne Storm can provide this week.

The Roosters looked a bit better once they got into gear against Manly but are still clunky and way short of what their roster should produce. Still good enough for top 8 though. First upset of the weekend went to the Wests Tigers who gave the Wahs a head start and still knocked them off – and away from home and without Luai to boot! Doueihi was all class. The Broncos/Dolphins game was the pick of the weekend, a high paced game that could have gone either way. In the end it was the defence of the Broncos that won it for them. But are they back? Carrigan is a world class forward! The Dolphins will win more games than they lose if they play like that every week. The Knights were the second big upset – no Ponga, no Brown, but heaps of enthusiasm, commitment and guts. A well deserved win! But I bet they’ll be upset at Belmore this week – that should have been two points in the bag. The Eels are coming back to reality as they were blown away by the Panthers. A tough year ahead for Ryles. The next apple cart to be upended came up north where the Cowboys gave Storm a start and ran them down 28-24. Worries for Bellamy with the Panthers to come; relief for the besieged Payten – for now. Are the Cowboys back on track? ‘Sticky’ will be upset with the Raiders who are at risk of falling off the pace. They look a bit ramshackle at the moment. Horsburgh needs to pull his head in – ultimately, the damage caused by his early indiscretion cost them the game. He’s a leopard who needs to change his spots for the sake of his team. The Sharks will be happy with the two points but I can’t see them challenging for honours on the form they showed – they leak too many points. Finally, a win for Josh Hannay at the Titans but it was a true wooden spoon quality game. September can’t come fast enough for both sides.

 

Round 5

Tomorrow night the Dolphins host the Sea Eagles. Two questions: will it be a case of an immediate strike for stand-in Manly coach Foran in his first game on the clipboard? Will the Dolphins be off their game after the Isaako shock? On paper it’s the home side comfortably, but since when was rugby league ever comfortable? I’ll pick the Dolphins to have too much class all over the field.

The Rabbitohs and Bulldogs play their now traditional Good Friday afternoon game with both sides looking for a win to make a statement – ‘we’re here and we’re the real deal’. Which Rabbitohs will emerge from the burrow? Will the Dogs’ attack be off the leash? Can Cody control his composure? Will BLM cut out the crap? Can ‘Critter’ capture his best form to create chaos? There’s a lot riding on this one – Bulldogs. Then the Panthers take on the Storm in the match of the round. Or will it be another walkover? When did the Storm last lose two matches in a row? And how much longer since they lost three on the trot? Expect Melbourne to come out all aggressive to try to ruffle Cleary’s mob. But I can’t see it playing out any other way than a Panthers win.

Saturday afternoon starts with the destitute Dragons up against the Cowboys with their respective trajectories heading in opposite directions. The Dragons are in the basement and it’s hard to see them coming out; the Cowboys have rediscovered their mojo and are on the up, for now at least. Here’s their chance to consolidate and get back onto the top half of the ladder – Cowboys. The evening game has the Titans against the Broncos, a similar scenario. Big brother Brisbane in a canter.

Sunday sees the Sharks hosting the Hyphens (no less than 7 in their 19-man squad this week!), another good game with both needing the win – the Sharks to show that they are top 8 material, the Warriors to show that last weekend was an aberration. Nervous days ahead for both sides as they approach this one. Not easy for tipsters either. Somehow I think the Warriors have a bit more to offer. Later on it’s the Knights and the Raiders, another challenging result to predict. The Knights are smashing it at the moment but can they sustain that standard? The Raiders are off the boil but a simmering coach Stuart will surely turn up the heat on them this week. Another loss now and they’re just about cooked. Canberra is too good for that to happen while the Knights can’t keep over-performing. So I’ll go with the Raiders.

The round closes out on Easter Monday afternoon with the Eels taking on the Wests Tigers. The Eels have run into a wall while the Tigers are taking everything in their stride of late. Benji’s boys are the feel good story of the moment and I think they’ll continue to impress with another win this week. Wests Tigers.

 

Tipping

The less said the better – 3/8! It’s been the slippery slope these past two weeks. But three cheers to Mattress’ Mum who charged up the ladder with a score of 6 to sit equal with the man himself! Listen to your mum, Prop!

 

The Round

To see the who, where and when of Round 5 click here.

 

Competition

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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.

 

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