The preliminaries are over and now it’s on to the real thing! NRL season 2026 kicks off in Las Vegas on Sunday afternoon (Australian time) with two matches before Round 1 is completed back home in Australia from Thursday 5th March. It’s time to sit up and take notice.
Footy Tipping
But before I go any further, here’s an urgent reminder to make sure you’ve entered the Footy Almanac NRL Tipping Competition. Entries must be received and paid before kick-off in Las Vegas for you to be eligible for the comp’s prizes at the end of the season. Here’s the link to follow – https://www.footyalmanac.com.au/almanac-footy-tipping-the-2026-comps-all-in-one-place/
The Pre-season
What did we learn from the pre-season?
Perhaps that the Charity Shield has been demoted in status and dishonoured in spirit by playing it in the pre-season. I don’t like it!;
Perhaps that the Rabbitohs and Wests Tigers looked good when they put close to their best players on the field – real hopes or false dawns?
Perhaps that the Panthers feel they really need Nathan Cleary on the field for a couple big games to start the season after challenging his high tackle charge and risking an extra week’s suspension. Somehow they got their wish with the charge downgraded and no suspension. Looks to me like a situation where different people see the exact same video very differently. Let’s look for consistency as the season unfolds.
Perhaps that the Broncos have to learn once and for all that the game starts when the referee blows his whistle to begin the first half. You can’t play catch up every week. How does Madge get them to switch on immediately?
Down to business
Anyway, the best thing about the pre-season is that it’s over and done with. The Vegas extravaganza begins with the newly crowned World Club champions HKR up against the Leeds Rhinos. Just another game in the Super League season but an opportunity for Leeds to claim a prize scalp if they’re good enough. Can HKR come down from Cloud 9 to the harsh realities of the season grind and continue on their merry way?
The Knights and Cowboys start the NRL season and come into the game with contrasting lead-up form. The Knights haven’t won a thing and looked ordinary while they were at it; the Cowboys had two wins out of two with their full squad looking the goods in their demolition of the Penrith Seconds. Did the northerners use the opportunity to play themselves into form? Or is pre-season form all too fickle? Will Dylan Brown be the key that’s been missing at Newcastle? I’ll go with my gut feeling and tip the Cowboys to win the opener.
Then the Bulldogs take on the Dragons, with this game to be televised live on free to air as per usual on a Sunday afternoon. Both teams had a win and a loss in the pre-season but the Doggies probably looked the better of the two. The Bulldogs were disappointed with themselves at the end of last year after such a good campaign throughout the season, so I expect them to come out keen to make early inroads on the ladder. The Dragons, by contrast, just don’t have that convincing look about them even before we get serious. I’ll stick with the Bulldogs.
To see the full schedule for Sunday’s games click here.
Our NRL coverage
The Footy Almanac is expanding its NRL coverage in 2026, adding an additional columnist to our team. I’ll set the scene for the week on Wednesdays with the fixture list as well as commentary on what’s happening in the game. Prop by the Sea and Rabbit in the Vineyard return on Thursdays with their individual idiosyncratic perspectives. No doubt RITV will be buoyed by the signing of Payne Haas for 2027 and the return of several experienced players this year after long-term injuries. Prop will be Prop, so expect anything! Each week I wonder what he’s going to send my way!
They’ll be joined on Thursdays by The Prospector who will take an overall perspective on the code, the personnel, the issues and the incidents – anything and everything – with a ‘free to roam and comment’ brief. His first offering appears tomorrow.
There’ll also be our weekly Newsletter email, also on Thursdays, to highlight our columnists and offer links to other articles on the site that pique my interest. If you’d like to receive that Newsletter, please contact us at [email protected]
We’re always keen to find new writers so, if you fancy having a go, write to us at that same email address and see you name ‘up in lights’ on the Almanac site. Don’t be backward in coming forward.
And away we go!
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About Ian Hauser
A Noosa-based retiree with a (very) modest sporting CV. A Queenslander through and through, especially when it comes to cricket and rugby league. Enjoys travel, coffee and cake, reading, McWilliam's Cream Apera and a glass or three of wine. Footy Almanac's Thursday online editor who moonlights as a hobby editor.
The judiciary, referees and forward passes are the grist for the mill that keeps the game churning week to week, and the word “consistency” is the most used word in reference to the above mentioned. You summed it up perfectly, different people looking at the same thing and coming up with different conclusions. I think long after i have left this earth they will still be asking for consistency.
All I can say is
Lighten up while you still can
Don’t even try to understand
Just find a place to make your stand and take it easy
And that’s the end of my Eagles week! But 8 coaches may use that mantra over the next 10 days!
Great entree Ian. Vegas is an amazing venture. All I can say is that I wish J Edgar Hoover would stick to rugby league and get his nose out of NSW horseracing. Maybe then we might a Saturday meeting at Warwick Farm, even if the Warwick and Chipping Norton Stakes are gone forever.