Melbourne Storm vs Brisbane Broncos – Friday night – AAMI Park

It is something of a shame this game is in Melbourne, if only because the Broncos at Suncorp would give this a huge shake. Their narrow loss to the Warriors was as impressive as narrow losses go and it's quite clear that, at their best, they are a finals football team. Getting there isn't getting any easier, and backing up from a trip to New Zealand (a few days after an Origin game) with a trip to Melbourne is a hard way to earn two points. Cameron Smith returns and I don't need to tell you how important he is to everything the Storm do in attack. The Broncos won't lose any admirers, but the Storm will get the points.

Verdict – Storm

Result - Storm 32 defeated Broncos 0

Cronulla Sharks vs Wests Tigers – Friday night – Sharks Stadium

I keep on tipping against the Tigers and they keep on proving me wrong, and I'm giving them yet another opportunity to prove me wrong again. The Sharks be without captain Paul Gallen but they have a tremendous pack of forwards with or without him. Former Tigers Andrew Fifita, Chris Heighington and Bryce Gibbs will be keen to show their old club what they let go, and Beau Ryan hopes to pass a fitness test as well. Luke Lewis shifting to the centres for this game shores up my confidence. Injuries this season have forced the Tigers to test some emerging talent. There's been a few shining lights but none brighter than Tim Simona - let's hope we're all talking about him in five years time. What do the Tigers have to do for me to tip them? Their record against the Sharks is pretty darn good. Meh! 

Verdict – Sharks

Result - Sharks 36 defeated Tigers 22

St George Illawarra Dragons vs Sydney Roosters – Saturday night – WIN Jubilee Oval

There are no good things in the NRL, but the Roosters look an awful lot like it. They've lost just one away game all season (in Canberra) and they've won their last two matches against strong opponents with Sonny Bill Williams playing at halfback. James Maloney returns and his goal-kicking, kicking in play and composure adds to their (near) invincibility. Josh Dugan has accepted a one-match ban for something that looked a little like a shoulder charge. No doubt he'll spend his free time climbing scaffolding or lawn fishing as he prepares for Origin game three in his uniquely Dugan-esque way. For the life of me I can't see how the Dragons can score many points on Saturday night, and they sure as heck can't score more than the Roosters will. I've done the Maths based on those assumptions. Chooks by 20.

Verdict – Roosters

Result - Roosters 36 defeated Dragons 0

Gold Coast Titans vs Penrith Panthers – Saturday night – TIO Stadium (Darwin)

Just the second NRL game to be played at TIO Stadium (for the trivia buffs - the first was between the Cowboys and the Roosters in 2012). The Titans were never in the hunt last weekend and I'm sure that Panthers coach Ivan Cleary noticed the Knights targeting the Titans on the left edge once Jamal Idris did that rather hideous thing to his leg (seriously Jamal - when you dislocate your ankle and fracture your leg you don't have to get up and walk off the field - those medicabs are there for a reason). The Titans have an imposing pack of forwards but those injuries to Idris and Zillman leave that Titans backline looking a little fragile to my eye. Expect a big game from Panthers man mountain Tim Grant - he's returning from injury and will be hoping to make an impression on Laurie Daley before teams are named for the deciding game of the Origin series. An upset result...of sorts.

Verdict – Panthers

Result - Panthers 40 defeated Titans 18

Canberra Raiders vs North Queensland Cowboys – Sunday afternoon – Canberra Stadium

This is the game that had me thinkering for the longest this round. The Cowboys recent record against the Raiders is worth noting, and it even includes two pretty convincing wins in Canberra. Their recent form is on the improve and an in-form Jonathan Thurston is reason enough to give them a hope. I've played it safe and gone with the home team for three reasons:

1. The Raiders are undefeated at home this season
2. The forecast maximum for Canberra on Saturday is a rather chilly ten degrees (ten degrees in Canberra feels like half that)
3. The Cowboys only wins away from home this season have been against lessor opponents than the Raiders.

Those three reasons aren't enough to give me confidence, but I'll take the Raiders in what should be an entertaining game of football.

Verdict – Raiders

Result - Raiders 25 defeated Cowboys 18

Canterbury Bulldogs vs Newcastle Knights – Sunday afternoon – Mackay Stadium

The last time the Bulldogs took a home game to Mackay they knocked off the Melbourne Storm - the team that went on to beat them in the 2012 grand final. Hometown hero Ben Barba started what may be the longest try in the history of the NRL (109 metres - can't get much longer). The Bulldogs are heading back to the banks of the mighty Pioneer River and I'm sure the Queensland-based clubs were interested to hear that Ben Barba would like to return to Queensland on a more permanent basis. The Knights were tremendous last week and they were tremendous in round ten when they beat the Bulldogs by 36 points. In between those two games the Knights haven't beaten anybody, and it's that inconsistency that has me reluctant to tip them here. After about ten minutes we'll know if we're watching the good Knights or the bad Knights. Without the benefit of hindsight I'll tip the bad Knights. Another good game for the people of Mackay - although I doubt they're getting a grand final preview this year.

Verdict – Bulldogs

Result - Knights 18 defeated Bulldogs 12

South Sydney Rabbitohs vs New Zealand Warriors – Sunday afternoon – NIB Stadium (Perth)

If you're going to give up your home ground advantage to take a game to Perth it does make sense to select an opponent who is more disadvantaged by the travel than you are. The Warriors flight to Perth departed just after the completion of round eight last year which should see them landing in Perth about ten minutes before kick-off. They might be on the road trip from hell but you can't ignore the form of the Warriors at the moment. Their narrow win over the Broncos was football of the highest quality and that makes for five wins in a row against some very handy opposition. They've won four of the last six clashes with the Rabbits and when they have lost they haven't lost by much (they went down by just two points in round five). I'm sticking solid with my superhero-sponsored Bunnies - they don't let me down too often and all those ex-pats Poms in Perth will be cheering for the Burgess brothers. Bunnies...just...in what could prove to be one of the games of the season.

Verdict – Rabbitohs

Result - Rabbitohs 30 defeated Warriors 13

Manly Sea Eagles vs Parramatta Eels – Monday night – Brookvale Oval

David 'Wolfman' Williams and Andrew 'Joey' Johns late on a Monday night in Kings Cross - what could possibly go wrong? Mind you, I was in Kings Cross last weekend with Ms Thinker and we found it all rather tame and delightful. Had a nice dinner, went for a late walk, no queues for a cab, all the women I saw had clothes on - it was all rather pleasant really. Maybe we were in the wrong street. Anyway I decided to talk about my social life here because, quite frankly, I can't think of a single interesting thing to say about this game. Monday night football used to spring an upset from time to time, but not this Monday night.

Verdict – Sea Eagles

Result - Sea Eagles 50 defeated Eels 10

Wally Lewis - round seventeen selections (in bold)

Note: tips from Wally will be published on Thursday night or early Friday morning.

• STORM vs Broncos
• SHARKS vs Tigers
• Dragons vs ROOSTERS
• Titans vs PANTHERS
• RAIDERS vs Cowboys
• BULLDOGS vs Knights
• RABBITOHS vs Warriors
• SEA EAGLES vs Eels