Parramatta Eels vs Brisbane Broncos – Thursday night – Pirtek Stadium

The Eels have put that unused Jarryd Hayne money to good use with some notable recruiting in the off-season. The two Michaels (Gordon and Jennings) add speed and experience to the backline, and Beau Scott adds fortitude to a pack that is better than most of us believe. The key addition though, is Keiran Foran in the halves. The Eels are convinced they can build a team with premiership credentials around Foran. They may be right, but he is in doubt for Thursday, and I'm here to talk about Thursday. The Broncos have, but for the debutant on one wing and a representative forward in the front row, named the side that all but won the grand final last year. Hodges has retired and he's hard to replace but he had to be replaced eventually - Roberts is clearly no slouch. They aren't over the line on Thursday - they're backing up from an international road trip and the Eels have a history of winning (often unexpectedly) in round one in recent years. With Foran I could lean that way, but without Foran the Broncos should be too strong.

Verdict – Broncos by 8

Result - Broncos 17 defeated Eels 4

Manly Sea Eagles vs Canterbury Bulldogs – Friday night – Brookvale Oval

The Sea Eagles new coach gets to test his new-look forward pack on Friday night. The Bulldogs pack are a fair test, but the Sea Eagles have recruited well and, on paper at least, appear to have addressed their weaknesses in the middle of the paddock. And I'm calling it now - Martin Taupau will be a Brookvale superstar by the end of this season. The other new faces around him (Myles and Brown) aren't too shabby either. That Manly backline, even after the departure of Foran, is representative class from jerseys 1 through 7, and they'll get their chance to shine in season 2016. I had high hopes for the Bulldogs this year, but with two Origin reps in Morris (Brett) and Klemmer (Colonel) unavailable, I have to tip the Eagles at home.

Verdict – Sea Eagles by 10

Result - Bulldogs 28 defeated Sea Eagles 6

Canberra Raiders vs Penrith Panthers – Saturday afternoon – GIO Stadium

The Raiders can't even find a spot for Blake Austin in their starting thirteen, and the rest of their interchange bench isn't loaded up with park footballers either. Sisa Waqa is pulling on a jersey for the Mounties this weekend - who would have thought the Raiders would have such depth? Meanwhile the Panthers brightest prospect in Matt Moylan is unavailable. That said, the visitors should not be underestimated, and in recent years the Raiders record at home has been worse than ordinary. Note the daytime kick-off, which almost always means points aplenty in the capital. Panthers coach Anthony Griffin had some trouble with scoring points when he was holding the clipboard at the Broncos, so I have some doubt over the Panthers capacity to match the Raiders for points on Saturday.

Verdict – Raiders by 10

Result - Raiders 30 defeated Panthers 22

Wests Tigers vs New Zealand Warriors – Saturday afternoon – Campbelltown Stadium

The rugby league world awaits for the Warriors grub to morph into a beautiful butterfly. This year surely. A spine of Luke, Johnson, Robson and Tuivasa-Sheck simply has to work...doesn't it? The Tigers have a new look spine too, but it doesn't look quite so beautiful. Cherrington steps into the all important number nine for Robbie Farah, and the young halves combination of Littlejohn and Moses is quite the mystery. A daytime slot for the Warriors only helps their cause - more points here than a triangle factory.

Verdict – Warriors by 20

Result - Tigers 34 defeated Warriors 26

North Queensland Cowboys vs Cronulla Sharks – Saturday night – 1300SMILES Stadium

It's not easy to keep a great team together, but the Cowboys have named the exact same seventeen that brought them their first premiership last season. And if the Cowboys don't beat you the weather will. I was up in Townsville not so long ago - I was driving out of Townsville airport after 10pm and it was still 31 degrees outside. It won't be 31 degrees on Saturday night, but it will feel like it. Those big Fifita brothers will feel like they're running through soup, and we all saw how fit the Cowboys looked at the Nines and at the Club Challenge. Probably the game of the round and a contest early, but I'd be backing the Cowboys to run away with this late in the second half.

Verdict – Cowboys by 14

Result - Cowboys 20 defeated Sharks 14

Sydney Roosters vs South Sydney Rabbitohs – Sunday afternoon – Allianz Stadium

I happen to think the Roosters could be a better side without Mitchell Pearce - let's see how wrong I can be. The Roosters halves of Hastings and Nikorima are younger than Masterchef but brimming with potential. We also get to see Latrell Mitchell in his first grade debut - a player I spruiked last year as the next Greg Inglis. You'll be hearing that comparision a lot this season...I hope. The Bunnies are a warm favourite for this all-important clash between the last two original clubs in the competition...and deservedly so. Sam Burgess returns with a point to prove, and Inglis looked fit enough in early outings this year. Any side with those two on board is hard to toss, but the rest of the side has a few question marks hanging over them. A decent chunk of the Roosters engine room is missing, Mitchell Pearce is in the doghouse and SKD has just escaped the bighouse, but I think the tricolours can spring a minor upset on Sunday. All but essential viewing when these sides face each other. Get there.

Verdict – Roosters by 4

Result - Rabbitohs 42 defeated Roosters 10

Gold Coast Titans vs Newcastle Knights – Sunday night – CBus Super Stadium

If you only miss one NRL game this weekend, it should probably be this one. As much as I'm excited about the return of the NRL, it's hard to get excited about a game that, on paper, looks uglier than The Thinker in a pie-eating contest. I've picked these two sides out as the teams most likely to compete for the wooden spoon and I'm not alone. The injury cloud over Titans captain and custodian William Zillman has me leaning ever so slightly to the Knights - a team with an impressive record on the Gold Coast. Plenty of new faces for both sides but I'm banking on the experienced heads of Mullen in the backs and Smith in the forwards to steer their side around and do enough. Here's hoping Titans halfback Ashley Taylor shows some good signs - he's promising.

Verdict – Knights by 2

Result - Titans 30 defeated Knights 12

Melbourne Storm vs St George Illawarra Dragons – Monday night – AAMI Park

The Storm rarely win these early season games by much, but they rarely lose them either. Perhaps I am a deluded soul but I think the Storm could win the premiership with this side. A tremendous pack of forwards backed up by an experienced spine. The purple machine are the team with the smarts on the field (and in the coaches box) to adjust to rule changes quicker and more effectively than anyone else. I raised at least one eyebrow when I saw Josh Dugan named in the centres on Monday night. Kurt Mann gets his chance at fullback and Russell Packer gets a second at everything with his NRL return after a period of time away from family and friends. Apparently he put that period of his life to good use, and has come out the other side a better (and definitely bigger) person. A chance to atone. I have doubts about the Dragons pack in season 2016 so I couldn't possibly back them here. The Storm by 1-12 looks likely.

Verdict – Storm by 4

Result - Storm 18 defeated Dragons 16

Wally Lewis - round one selections (in bold)

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

• Eels vs BRONCOS
• SEA EAGLES vs Bulldogs
• RAIDERS vs Panthers
• Tigers vs WARRIORS
• COWBOYS vs Sharks
• Roosters vs RABBITOHS
• Titans vs KNIGHTS
• STORM vs Dragons