South Sydney Rabbitohs vs Canterbury Bulldogs – Friday afternoon – ANZ Stadium
Plenty of people are having a go at Greg Inglis after his field goal attempt against the Dragons, but he was just trying to make a point. Ow......my sides. No doubt GI will be keen to make amends after his mathematical miscalculations but he is, much like the value of a field goal, just one man. One other man, the great Terry Lamb, will be at the ground on Friday to remind Greg that he's not alone...even if it feels like it. The Bulldogs pack is the last pack of forwards you'd want to be facing without your best forward, and the Bunnies best forward is clearly Sam Burgess. Paul Carter is also an unlikely starter despite being named. It seems almost indecent to tip against the Bunnies over the Easter long weekend but I'm backing my barking dogs again. Can you buy a beer at the footy on Good Friday?
Verdict – Bulldogs by 2
Result - Bulldogs 42 defeated Rabbitohs 12
Brisbane Broncos vs North Queensland Cowboys – Friday night – Suncorp Stadium
It's pretty amazing that the Cowboys still have the same seventeen that won them the 2015 premiership. It's also pretty amazing that the same seventeen have been available to play every game so far this season...including this one. For those living on one of the outer planets of our solar system (Manly fans mostly) this game is a replay of the 2015 grand final which was, to be perfectly frank, a bloody good game of football. We can't possibly reach those dizzying heights again, but we can, to be perfectly frank, get bloody well near it. Don't forget that the last time these sides met at Suncorp was close to the high water mark for season 2015 (and yours truly got to sit right next to the Broncos bench for that game...ah sweet memories). Jack Reed is out on Friday night - not a bad idea as it was probably his defensive lapse in the grand final that let the Cowboys square things up in the final minute. Ben Hunt, on the other hand, must play through his demons. I'm a little bit surprised by the price on offer for the Cowboys. Surely this game is a toin coss, and no-one should give you $2.40 for heads. I'll take heads, and hope that the wise old heads of Thurston, Scott and company prevail.
Verdict – Cowboys by 1 (you heard me...by 1)
Result - Broncos 21 defeated Cowboys 20
Canberra Raiders vs Gold Coast Titans – Saturday afternoon – GIO Stadium
Whenever I see that the Raiders are a short-priced favourite I shudder - their capacity to lose when people expect them to win is a little bit legendary, and one of the main reasons Ricky Stuart is such a cranky little so-and-so. Yes they were good against the Panthers in round one, but since then they've beaten the Chooks by a point and drawn with the Knights...and that doesn't exactly read like strong form to me. The Titans haven't won away from home this year but their two wins at home were impressive enough. Kudos for halfback Ashley Taylor whose been in great form even though he still looks like he's 14 years old. I spruiked him at the start of the season but I didn't expect him to rise to the challenges of first grade so quickly. Losing Cherry-Evans and Sezer could prove to be a blessing in the end. The Titans at crazy and tempting odds to cause one of those early season upsets we get to see so often in this competition. Ricky Stuart to be a cranky so-and-so, another thing we get to see so often in this competition.
Verdict – Titans by 2
Result - Titans 24 defeated Raiders 20
Sydney Roosters vs Manly Sea Eagles – Saturday night – Allianz Stadium
In my 2016 season preview I was kinda joking when I said the Roosters might run last this year, but that joke isn't funny anymore. Absolutely nothing is going right for the tricolours this season. To make matters worse, the Sea Eagles appear to have finally found some form. They found themselves in a deep shark-infested hole on Monday night but they never panicked, pulled themselves out and ended up winning convincingly. I can't see Taupau lining up for the Sea Eagles but Jamie Buhrer returns to plug the gap. And make sure you have a good look at Eloni Vunakece for the Chooks when he comes off the bench - he's pretty funny looking.
Verdict – Sea Eagles by 10
Result - Sea Eagles 22 defeated Roosters 20
St George Illawarra Dragons vs Penrith Panthers – Sunday afternoon – WIN Stadium
We had a few surprise winners in round three, and here's two of them. The Dragons and Panthers dragged themselves off the bottom rung of the ladder with gutsy victories over high-flying opponents on the top rung of the ladder. Clearly the Panthers have more points in their backline than the Dragons, and the team that scores the most points wins (just ask Greg Inglis). I have no idea what sort of weather we'll be playing in on Sunday afternoon, but we're in an El Nino pattern so I'm assuming sunshine. If it's wet I'd probably like the opportunity to pick again.
Verdict – Panthers by 2
Result - Dragons 14 defeated Panthers 12
New Zealand Warriors vs Newcastle Knights – Monday afternoon – Mt Smart Stadium
If Jesus truly rose on Easter Sunday you can be sure and certain he wasn't getting up to watch this. Take your kids fishing. Mow the lawn. Take your kids mowing. Anything but this.
Verdict – Warriors by default...and by 10
Result - Warriors 40 defeated Knights 18
Wests Tigers vs Parramatta Eels – Monday afternoon – ANZ Stadium
The Eels were my sneaky pick for a finals berth this season, but after the first game of season 2016 I decided I was wrong. Two more games later, and I'm starting to think I was wrong to think I was wrong, and that I may have been right all along (I haven't made that very clear). Foran and Norman works, the Fijian winger is racking up plenty of meat pies to shore up his citizenship status and that pack of Eels forwards is actually playing like a pack of forwards. Conversely, I'm concerned that the Tigers are about to replicate their performance in season 2015 - which started with so much promise but then wilted as the long campaign wore on. Farah returns, but whether he is an asset or a liability these days is currently up for discussion. I'm with the Eels, but this could prove to be one of the games of the round. If you only watch one NRL game on Monday afternoon make sure it's this one. Hopefully Jesus hasn't given up on the NRL after the Warriors/Knights debacle. With luck, he'll plonk himself on the couch, finish off the kids Easter eggs and wonder out loud what Andrew Voss did to upset all those hard heads at the Nine Network. God knows JC. God only knows.
Verdict – Eels by 10
Result - Eels 8 defeated Tigers 0
Cronulla Sharks vs Melbourne Storm – Monday night – Shark Park
Whether you like them or not the Storm are far and away the most consistent side in the NRL. While they haven't been at their best they are undefeated and have gradually improved with each game. Last weekend against the Warriors they completed 89% of their sets and I think their best is still in front of them. If the Storm got off to the start the Sharks had on Monday night against the Sea Eagles there is no way known they would have let that game slip, and that's what separates the purple machine from the also-rans..they know how to get the job done. Clearly the Sharks can win this game (the bookies certainly think so) but the overall head-to-head record (9 wins from 29 games) tells me this is a team the Sharkies don't like to play.
Verdict – Storm by 1
Result - Sharks 14 defeated Storm 6
Wally Lewis - round four selections (in bold)
Note: tips from Wally will be published on Wednesday night or early Thursday morning.
- Rabbitohs vs Bulldogs
- Broncos vs Cowboys
- Raiders vs Titans
- Roosters vs Sea Eagles
- Dragons vs Panthers
- Warriors vs Knights
- Tigers vs Eels
- Sharks vs Storm
Comments
Submitted by Dragons fanboy 2007 on
Yeah thanks Coach. Yeah I agree we might of been lucky but in my opinion the kickoff, McCrone's foot was just on the line as he caught the ball but the Merrin touch might've been unlucky. But it was a great game. Credit to the Panthers they did well to get it to the wire alongside us.
Submitted by Dragons fanboy 2007 on
Thanks 'A' for changing the scores even though I went one score down. Good luck on Saturday night. Get ready for the boys from the North to lose.
Submitted by Coach Potato on
Was that the other week you mean off a kick off? If it was I cant agree. I saw a Dragon put their foot over the dead ball after taking the catch, thereby making the ball dead themselves. Line drop not penalty. Refs were too damn scared to question it - although their job description doesn't actually include being scared to make the right call.
Panthers I think got their try on the back of the Will Smith head clash penalty which was a load of shit that the Bunker couldn't change the call, they saw it at least twice in slow-mo.
I reckon if you're in the Bunker, better stay in there. People are outside with pitchforks.
Submitted by Dragons fanboy 2007 on
Yeah I was talking about the other match against rabbitohs. I think I've lost my mind. That was a head clash, not a shoulder charge. That should not of been a penalty. I agree with you. But what can you do, it's happened now and there's no going back. I don't know what has gotten into the bunker in the last couple of weeks. The calls that have been made in the last couples of weeks from the bunker have been loads of bullshit. And what makes it worse is when there's miscommunication from then refs on the field like the Bulldogs-Eels game in round 3.
Submitted by Coach Potato on
A little bit balanced, I think it's so good that they talk their way through the process but why do they insist on rolling the chocolate wheel at the end??? Would it be so f....n hard to at the end to say something like "Camera 5 confirms ball grounded inside the deadball line and we have a TRY".... or " Camera 37 confirms player loses control, fails to regrip the ball before it hits the ground. We have a NO TRY". Why the f....ng need for suspense after each review? It's not Australian Idol.
Submitted by Baggy_Gee on
How else do you get people to stay watching instead of hitting the head? I agree, one call, it stands on its own merit. There are always going to be contentious calls or missed calls, but the guy with the whistle needs to be protected to make the call as he sees it and not have it dissected. I.e. the JT knock on, on so he knocked it on, but Edan touched the ball while he was in touch and also knocked it on before JT did. Should have been the Cowboys ball, but they should have had the field goal before the first forward pass try. JT set and Granville runs away and makes a "bad" call.
Submitted by Coach Potato on
Oh that reminds me Mr Gee, did you get to have your say on ball control this week, or through blue and gold eyes, happy to walk quietly to Round 5?
Submitted by Baggy_Gee on
Well I only saw what I could on the radio, but when you are listening to both Andrew Jones and Stirlo complaining about the skill level, it must be a rough game. But I did see some good calls in the Bronco's game where loose carry was called more than it has in the past. As to walking quietly into the next round, bring on the Panthers, the BOYS are going to feast well on Sunday.
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