Prop by the Sea
You gotta love Footy – Round 16
The Courier Mail Bronco headline was non-existent. It’s hard to believe but it’s taken until Round 16 before the Courier had no significant information about the Broncos. They obviously didn’t have a game and the headline that we had was all about Origin. Licence to Thrill! Let us hope that is correct.
Round 15 started with the Sharks playing Saint George. Saint George were very ordinary in this game with the Sharks running out winners 30 points to 18. I’m not sure however if the Sharks did enough to reverse the slide they’ve had for the last few weeks.
The first game on Saturday saw the Titans up against Manly. Manly slipped away to an early lead with two very soft tries. However from there it was all backwards. The Titans scored 28 points and Manly played very poorly. The injury to their big front rower Olakau’atu didn’t help and DCE most probably didn’t have the game he wanted to have given his non selection in the Origin team. The second Saturday night game saw the Roosters beat the Knights 12 points to 8. The Knights tried hard and led 8-nil deep into the second half when they bombed a try, Again, they couldn’t find a way to win that game and their season is now on the precipice. The Roosters on the other hand have moved into the 8th for the first time this year on the back of their star fullback Tedesco and look like a side that could be dangerous. The second Saturday game so a woeful Cowboys get flogged by the Dolphins 58 points to 4. Bostock scored four tries and should have had five and the Dolphins look like a team that are going places as opposed to the Cowboys who were poor in all facets of the game.
The final game of the round was on Sunday where the Bulldogs ran out winners 24 points to 18 over the Rabbitohs. The Rabbits tried hard but were never really in the game and the Bulldogs were able to control it throughout. The Bulldogs continue to look like a top four side and they are certainly positioning themselves to be in that position by the end of the season.
Round 16 is obviously affected by the State of Origin so there is a bit of a lottery in selecting these games. On Friday night the first game has the West Tigers up against Canberra. Whilst the Tigers have shown more pluck in recent weeks Canberra will be too strong for them and neither team is overly affected by Origin withdrawals.
On Saturday, the first game has the Warriors up against the Panthers however it has been reported that coach Cleary will rest all of his origin players because of the distance from WA to New Zealand. It does seem really strange scheduling to ask your team to do that particular trip especially when the Warriors only have Capewell involved compared to all the Panthers involved. I am going to tip the Panthers. In the second Saturday night game the Dolphins are up against the Knights. Given the form the Dolphins showed last week you have to think that they will beat the Knights however the Knights have mixed their own form up a little dominating much of last week’s game before faltering to the Roosters. It is a desperate match for the Knights but I think the Dolphins will have this one. The final game has the Rabbitohs at home against the Storm but I can’t see the Storm letting this one slip away.
On Sunday there are three games with the first one having the Broncos up against the Sharks. The Broncos as we know are desperate for a win but so too are the Sharks. This is a game that could go either way with both sides showing a real lack of aptitude over the last couple of weeks. Admittedly, the Broncos won their last game but they should have and they need to repeat that with a better performance in this match. The second Sunday game has the Roosters up against the Cowboys. I’m not sure how the Cowboys can improve on last week’s performance against the Roosters and the Roosters are showing great form. Tedesco is in almost career best form and he certainly is the glue that has held that Roosters side together. The Cowboys are in a desperate situation and have to improve. Dearden’s return from origin is critical. The final game of the round has the Eels up against the Titans. This is a very difficult game to tip especially given Moses is out for the Eels and the Titans are coming off a pretty good win over Manly in their last match. I’m gonna stick with the Titans but without any real sense of security.
Top Eight (in order)
4 Melbourne 5 Cronullaargh 7 Broncos 8 Roosters 9 Manly 9 Panthers 10 Cowboys
11 Manly 14 Rabbitohs
Fact / Stat for the day- Queensland has not lost 4 in a row since 1996-97. Hopefully when you read this it will still be the case!
Tipping Stats- I have dropped to 7th and below 60000 in the overall comp.
Finally, I’m in Perth for the second State of Origin match where I’m expecting to see Queensland level the series. Because I’m at the game these are my thoughts, and I hope I’m right publishing them before kick-off.
Origin momentum shifts like the tides at Tower 39 at Main Beach and I reckon this one’s rolling north. Queensland, backed into a corner after Game 1, are staring down the barrel and we know one thing about Maroons: they don’t (can’t) ebb’ -they have to flow!
I expect Billy Slater’s crew to unleash that signature blend of chaos and composure with Dearden leading the charge behind a much better forward pack. I think Queensland will win because the neutral ground will favour us (I said that in Melbourne last year) and drown out the Blues’ edge. We will have bounce-back energy with vengeance written into every set and Munster and Grant have to play better. Game-changers who I felt were below par in Game 1.
My big plays are to look forward to Xavier Coates tries – airborne and born for the big stage and the front rowers to measure up as the tide will begin in the middle. My final call is 22-14 Qld!
You gotta love footy!
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And any tips for Ascot (UK) tonight?