NRL Round 25 and NRLW Round 8 – Obstructions and audacity

 

 

 

If the last few weeks are anything to go by, it seems like we may have to nominate contenders for a new category in the annual Dally Ms – the Award for Best Actor in a (mis)Leading Role. The two most recent nominees would be Mitchell Moses and Harry Grant. To be fair, the penalties they won for their respective sides were correct within the current laws of the code, but the overacting in both cases was cinematic in proportion. Heaven forbid that ‘diving’, that scourge of association football, becomes entrenched in our game! Just as bad is the whinging by this week’s supposedly aggrieved party when a roll of the historical videotape soon exposes the hypocrisy of the complainant!

 

Let’s face it, every team tries to push the boundaries to the extent to which they can get away with it. Always have, always will. Sometimes with craft and subtlety, sometimes with a complete lack of finesse. Going by the odds, you’ll get away with it some of the time, on other days not. Suck it up! Yes, Moses and Harry made sure the ref didn’t miss it, but the reality is that both Nanai (ran the wrong line) and Leota (moved laterally) got it wrong. A more deserving case of ‘WTF?’ might be argued by the Dragons who seemed to cop a pretty raw deal on a non-call. Ah, the joys of sport where, regardless of the level of the competition, the human element will always be there to exasperate and fascinate us.

 

At the same time as all of that was going on, how about Harry’s match winning play in golden point? The absolute audacity of it! I’d like to know who was in on it? Did they train for it? Was it premeditated or pure instinct? Whatever, you could only sit back and laugh, admire and/or applaud a play that made the defending champion team look like a group of Under 6s, such was the simplicity, deception and utterly devastating effectiveness of a dummy, a step to the left and a saloon passage, untouched, to score under the posts. I dips me lid, Harry! (Not recognised as much in the lead-up was the surging run by Munster to get the ball deep into Penrith territory to create the opportunity for a field goal or Harry’s cunning plan.)

 

NRL

In Round 24 the Warriors finally came good to hold off a plucky, perhaps unlucky, Dragons outfit to regain the crucial fourth spot on the ladder. It will be a battle to the end of the regular season to see if they or the Panthers secure the double chance. The Roosters are in the top eight at last after downing a disappointing Bulldogs side. The Doggies have hit a bad patch at just the wrong time but have enough competition points up their sleeves to hold on to third spot. But that won’t count for too much in September if they continue on their current trajectory. The Sharks really hit their straps in trouncing the terrible Titans but it came at the cost of losing McInnes for the rest of the season, quite a blow! On the coast, Des can start packing his bags. The Broncos did very well with their new halves pairing and Walsh had one of his best games for ages. It seems that the Dolphins will just miss the cut again unless results go their way over the next couple of weeks. But wasn’t it good to see Trai Fuller carving them up again? The Rabbitohs made it two in a row over the Eels. Jye Gray should be signed for life on a much higher salary than he’s currently getting. He was the difference between winning and losing. Some of his more exalted teammates would do well to match Gray’s determination and commitment. Cody had a couple of nice touches when he came on late in the piece. It was woe upon woe for the Sea Eagles with DCE copping the brunt of criticism. Yes, he had an unusually poor game but he wasn’t the only one. To their credit, the Tigers were in their face all day and put on a few good moves of their own to run away with it. How good were the Cowboys? Or was it a case of how bad were the Knights? Drinkwater was sensational.

 

Round 25 this week and every result counts in one way or another. Tonight South Sydney will be looking to make it three on the trot and it’s not out of the question up against the Dragons. But unless there is more support for Gray, the Dragons are showing enough that they might take this one out. But they’ve got lots of ‘outs’ through injury so I’ll give the kiss of death to Souths.

 

Tomorrow evening it’s the Panthers up against the Raiders in Mudgee. This is the game that the Raiders need before the finals come along as it provides them with a more realistic evaluation of how good they are (or aren’t, as the case may be). The Raiders want top spot, the Panthers want fourth for the double chance. Should be a ding dong battle. What’s the story with Yeo? Is Strange really that good? Can Papa and co hold Leota and friends in the middle? For just how long can the Panthers keep getting enough energy to defend their four flags in a row? I’ll go with Penrith. The late game is just as critical. Storm must win to have any hope of finishing as minor premiers; the Bulldogs need to stem an ebbing tide. Can Ciraldo resurrect them? I have to follow my own maxim, so I can’t pick against the Storm (although I did last week, and lost), especially in Melbourne.

 

Saturday afternoon kicks off with the Sea Eagles at home for DCE’s 350th game as they take on the desperate Dolphins who just have to win to stay in contention. Will the Brookvale factor and the Cherry-Evans milestone be enough to show that last week was an aberration? Will the Dolphins’ spate of injuries cruel them again? I fear so, and I think DCE is a wonderful captain who will remind us all of his greatness. Get on the Sea Eagles. The twilight game has the Titans at home to the Warriors. Yet another ‘must win’ for the Warriors and, after their awful outing last weekend, who could possibly tip the Titans? Not me, that’s for sure! So the Warriors to hold on to fourth spot for another week. The late game set the Eels hosting the Roosters who are in really hot form. One way traffic – Roosters.

 

The lamentable Knights can’t put on a performance like last week at home this week against the Broncos, surely! Brisbane want to secure a finals berth and showed they still had the firepower even without Reynolds, Mamm and Cobbo. I can’t see a turnaround of the magnitude required for the home side to trouble the visitors, so I’ll go with the Broncos. The round ends with the Wests Tigers up against the Cowboys, potentially a very entertaining game after last week’s respective results. A shoot out in prospect?  I’m always a bit loathe to tip the Cows away from home so, again, I’ll stick with my instinct and go with the Wests Tigers.

 

The Sharks have the bye.

 

Players’ milestone: Both Ben Hunt and Daly Cherry-Evans play their 350th NRL match this weekend. Hunt debuted in 2009, DCE in 2011.

 

NRLW

The Roosters and Broncos confirmed their top two status with strong wins in Round 7.  Then it looks like a three-way battle between the Knights (not the power they were), Cowboys (the big improvers) and Sharks (who keep doing enough to win most games) for the other two top four spots. The Raiders and Wests Tigers had their first wins of the season but languish at the bottom of the ladder. I think it’s a two horse race.

 

In Round 8, the fixtures begin with the Bulldogs hosting the Raiders, so let’s see if last week was the start of something better for the capital girls. I’m willing to give them my tip – Canberra. Then the Titans play the Dragons in a mid-table game that has little bearing on anything much. Since they’re from north of the Tweed River, I’ll go with the Titans. Later on the Eels will become the latest victim of the unstoppable Roosters.

 

On Sunday the Knights take on the Broncos in the match of the round. Will Tamika Upton return to Newcastle to heap misery on her former teammates? My guess is that she will so I’ll be on the Broncos who finally got it together for most of the game last weekend. Then the Warriors meet the Sharks who can cement a finals berth with another win and create a gap between themselves and those below them on the ladder. The Warriors are likely to be weakened by suspensions after last week’s poor discipline, so I’ll go with the Sharks. Finally, the Wests Tigers take on the Cowboys where form suggests that the Cowboys should have sufficient energy and skill to halt the home side in their tracks.

 

Finally, a reminder of the forthcoming annual Tom Brock Lecture to be held at the Petersham RSL on September 1. See the details here.

 

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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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