Penrith Panthers vs South Sydney Rabbitohs – Friday night – CommBank Stadium

Successive losses for the Panthers against teams outside the top eight. Given their lead on the NRL ladder I doubt anyone in Pantherland is lunging for the In case of Emergency break glass button. With Origin three on the near horizon, some key omissions for the home side in Cleary, Yeo and Martin. Papali'i is also out following a head knock last week. For the Rabbits, they'll take to the field without Murray and Johnston who picked up a calf injury. A timely return for the visitors in Wighton who slots back in the centres, allowing rising star Duncan to return to the back row. The Rabbitohs will like their chances on Friday night, and they can clearly win this. But, the Panthers record at their de facto home ground is hard to ignore, and even with all that wiggle room at the top of the ladder I'm quite sure they won't want to lose three in a row.

Verdict - Panthers by 4

Result - Panthers 36 defeated Rabbitohs 14

St George Illawarra Dragons vs Wests Tigers – Saturday afternoon – St George Venues Jubilee Stadium

It won't be easy for the Dragons to avoid the wooden spoon this year, but their run home is favourable enough and it's not an impossible goal. Winning this would help, and this is winnable. The Tigers are without Luai and Taylan May on Saturday, with no changes for the Dragons after their narrow loss to the Raiders last week. I won't tip the Dragons very often but I think they can get away with this one.

Verdict - Dragons by 2

Result - Dragons 24 defeated Tigers 10

Brisbane Broncos vs Cronulla Sharks – Saturday night – Suncorp Stadium

The Broncos will say all the right things, but their finals campaign in season 2026 is over. They'll need to win 8 of their last 9 games, including this one, to sneak into the top eight. Only one of those 9 games is against a team below them on the ladder, and they have to play the teams currently in 1st, 2nd and 3rd place. Granted they went on a run last year (and what a run), but something seems missing this season. What's missing on Saturday night is their Origin reps (Haas, Carrigan, Walsh) along with Karapani (???), Gosiewski and Tawha. The Sharks lose three players to Origin themselves (Nikora, Fonua-Blake, Brailey) but what remains is a side with depth and talent. You'd like to think that a big home crowd would give the Broncos an edge, but just two wins from 9 games at Suncorp Stadium this season would suggest otherwise.

Verdict - Sharks by 4

Result - Sharks 28 defeated Broncos 16

Parramatta Eels vs Manly Sea Eagles – Sunday afternoon – CommBank Stadium

The Eels lose Moses to Origin but Pezet returns from a hamstring issue to fill the void. He's a handy replacement, but he doesn't have the kicking game of Moses, an important asset that can turn a poor set of six with the ball onto a less poor one. Manly are without Olakau'atu and Toula (Origin) and the injured Brooks. Walsh is the new halves partner with Fogarty, and he'll be better this weekend on the back of a better preparation. The visitors also have Faulalo, Garrick and Hetherington back on Sunday, bolstering a squad that already looked better than their opponent. Hard to see anything but a Manly win here.

Verdict - Sea Eagles by 8

Result - Eels 23 defeated Sea Eagles 14

Newcastle Knights vs Redcliffe Dolphins – Sunday afternoon – McDonald Jones Stadium

The Dolphins are clearly the form team in the NRL right now, with 8 wins on the trot. The next best winning sequence is three. This Sunday afternoon is a fair test of their depth, with five players away on Origin duty and Katoa nursing a fractured wrist. Some key returns though, with Gilbert and Averillo back this weekend. Less movement for the home side, but when you take Ponga and Best out of the line-up they are clearly an easier opponent to contend with. While the Knights have won their last two, they didn't win my much. Notably in their last 6 games they haven't played a side in the top ten. Admittedly, the Dolphins are bringing their best line-up but this will still be the toughest opponent the Knights have had to contend with in a while.

Verdict - Dolphins by 4

Result - Knights 13 defeated Dolphins 12

Wally Lewis - round eighteen selections (in bold)

Note: tips from Wally will be published on Wednesday night or Thursday morning

• PANTHERS vs Rabbitohs
• Dragons vs TIGERS
• Broncos vs SHARKS
• Eels vs SEA EAGLES
• Knights vs DOLPHINS