Wests Tigers vs New Zealand Warriors – Friday night – Leichhardt Oval

Well isn't this a challenging little contest to kick off the round? The Tigers have, on paper anyway, found some form, but they have to make do without Robbie Farah on Friday night. The Warriors aren't knocked around by Origin representation but they have some key figures missing (Friend, Locke, Ropati, Luck) through injury. That is quite a list, but for mine the absence of Farah is the key to this game. That parochial Leichhardt crowd will do their darnedest to lift the Tigers forwards but I can't see them matching the Warriors in that regard. One just has to cast an eye over the Warriors interchange (Rapira, Brown, Lousi and Lillyman) to see the strength of their engine room. Clever playmakers can help out their forwards with a clever kicking game, but without Robbie Farah I don't think the Tigers have a clever kicking game. The Tigers don't lose at Leichhardt Oval very often, the Warriors don't win in Sydney out of turn and the Thinker couldn't tip a placegetter in a three-horse race at the moment, but:

Verdict – Warriors

Result - Tigers 24 defeated Warriors 22

North Queensland Cowboys vs Penrith Panthers – Saturday night – Dairy Farmers Stadium

I have to assume that Phil Gould and Ivan Cleary handed out copies of my bitter but entirely accurate rant about the Panthers to the players before their Monday night clash with the Dragons. It's nice to make a difference. Unfortunately they have a very short back-up from that game and they have to travel all the way to reality to play the Cowboys. Granted the Cowboys are without their most important player in Thurston, but that is still one almighty line-up the Cowboys have named for Saturday night. Matt Bowen and Ashley Graham have scored as many tries this season as the entire Panthers seventeen. Even without Scott and Tamou in the forwards that Cowboys pack has plenty of punch. I'm not sure if we have an easy tip this weekend, but if we do then this is it. 

Verdict – Cowboys

Result - Cowboys 30 defeated Panthers 28

Manly Sea Eagles vs Sydney Roosters – Sunday afternoon – Brookval Oval

Braith Anasta graduated with honours from the Corey Parker Goalkicking Academy, and his three conversions from eight attempts went much of the way toward costing the Roosters (and the Thinker) the points last weekend. He'll need to improve on that, and much of his game will have to be stepped up with Mitchell Pearce unavailable as he bonds with the rest of the New South Wales squad. He'll have some company from the Manly mob, with the Stewart brothers and Jamie Buhrer lining up on Wednesday night. How Anthony Watmough missed NSW selection is puzzling to me, but I'm sure Mal Meninga did a little dance when he saw his ommision. Watmough was apparently unavailable through injury, but trained with Manly this week and will play on Sunday. Hmmmm. It sounds dodgier than the sideshow alley at a county fair, and Watmough will be keen to prove to the Brookvale faithful that his shoulder works just fine. At any other venue I'd give the chooks a chance, but Brookie on a Sunday afternoon has been a tough patch for better teams than the tricolours.

Verdict – Sea Eagles

Result - Sea Eagles 18 defeated Roosters 10

St George Illawarra Dragons vs South Sydney Rabbitohs – Sunday afternoon – WIN Jubilee Oval

All the Rabbitohs form is stacking up nicely. The last time they played they beat the Sharks who then came out and knocked off Melbourne. Prior to that they beat the Cowboys who have been humming along. And even their loss to the Warriors doesn't look too bad right now. What worries me a little is that they face the Dragons without Greg Inglis and Dave Taylor, and those two have been responsible for many of the points the Bunnies have been racking up in recent weeks. Moving Inglis to fullback has been a long time coming, but boy oh boy the boy can play. If he stays fit and finds some consistency he'll be challenging Billy Slater as the best player in the game, and even I can't believe I'm saying such things. Certainly the Rabbits will miss Inglis and Taylor, but the Dragons have to find a pack of forwards in time for Sunday afternoon. This weekend they'll be without (deep breath) Weyman, Scott, Fien, Prior, Creagh and Merrin. Sheesh! You can't win a game of footy without your big men.

Verdict – Rabbitohs

Result - Rabbitohs 19 defeated Dragons 18 (golden point)

Canterbury Bulldogs vs Cronulla Sharks – Monday night – ANZ Stadium

If the Rabbitohs form looks good then the Sharks form looks like a lingerie calendar. So what the heck am I doing tipping the Bulldogs - a team that couldn't beat the Titans last weekend? I'll try to explain, although I would understand if you are all shaking your heads in dismay. Bulldogs coach Des Hasler isn't the sort of coach to take losing to the Titans lightly, and when Des gets cranky his team responds. They are close to full-strength, while the Sharks are without Gallen and Carney. Now I know the Sharks beat the undefeatable Storm without Gallen last weekend, but without Carney they lose much of their attacking potency and their first-choice goalkicker. If the Sharks win they'll do it with defence in a low-scoring contest. If the Dogs win they'll do it through Ben Barba. Medicate me please as I must be unwell.

Verdict – Bulldogs

Result - Bulldogs 26 defeated Sharks 6

Wally Lewis - round eleven selections (in bold)

Note: tips from Wally will be published as soon as possible (usually on Thursday night or early Friday morning).

• Tigers vs WARRIORS
• COWBOYS vs Panthers
• SEA EAGLES vs Roosters
• Dragons vs RABBITOHS
• BULLDOGS vs Sharks