Round twenty two selections

Manly Sea Eagles vs Wests Tigers – Thursday night – Lottoland

An unusually sub-par performance from the Sea Eagles last start across the ditch. A return to what we have come to expect from them this season seems likely, although it's worth keeping an eye on the team list just in case Cherry-Evans is a late withdrawal. The Tigers finals campaign took quite the blow with their loss to the Bulldogs, and the official will have to give the team a standing eight count given the injuries to Robbie Farah and Moses Mbye. Luke Garner has been suspended too, so that Tigers forward pack has quite a challenge on its hand standing up to those Manly forwards at Brookvale. Tigers...on the ropes and looking wobbly.

Verdict – Sea Eagles by 8

Result – Sea Eagles by 20

Gold Coast Titans vs Parramatta Eels – Friday night – CBus Super Stadium

I could create quite a list of the things that aren't working for the Titans this season, but at the top of the list is their issues in defence. In their last five games they've conceded 190 points, which is a whopping average of 38 points per game. The Eels, still very much in contention for a top four finish, have scored more points this season than every other team outside the top four. If the Dragons can rack up 40 points against the Titans I suspect the Eels can too.

Verdict – Eels by 20

Result – Eels by 24

Brisbane Broncos vs Penrith Panthers – Friday night – Suncorp Stadium

The Broncos won last round but it was hardly impressive. If nothing else I'll give them a wrap for playing until the final whistle, although much of the playing was pretty underwhelming. It seemed clear to me that the quality of football in the Panthers vs Sharks game the following night was of a higher standard. With that in mind I'm tipping the visitors here – James Maloney returns and he has a knack for winning football games, while two of the more experienced Broncos (Glenn and Gillett) are still in doubt. With those two missing, those young inexperienced Panthers aren't much more inexperienced than the Broncos.

Verdict – Panthers by 1

Result – Broncos by 12

Newcastle Knights vs North Queensland Cowboys – Saturday afternoon – McDonald Jones Stadium

The Knights are a very short priced favourite here – a little unusual given they've lost six in a row. They're playing at home, but they've lost their last three at home too, and all those losses were to teams outside the top eight. I mentioned earlier that the quality of the Cowboys last game was quite poor, but I'm willing to entertain them in this. Kahu returns, and you wouldn't think a winger could make that much difference but the Cowboys have been crying out for experience and quality in the backline. He can also, potentially, take over the goal-kicking, which is one less thing for Clifford to worry about. They've lost McGuire from their forward pack, but it's still a very good pack.

Verdict – Cowboys by 2

Result – Knights by 36

Melbourne Storm vs Canberra Raiders – Saturday night – AAMI Park

I've noticed a few people pointing out the way the Storm forwards cart the ball up the paddock (with a raised elbow) – I'm sure Jarrod Croker will mention it to the referees at the earliest opporunity. While I'm tempted to tip the Raiders here it's very hard to tip against the Storm when they win almost every time (and only just lose when they don't). Jahrome Hughes returns after Nicho Hynes impressed on debut. Some thought this team may struggle in a post-Slater universe, but they've got so many good fullbacks coming through they are sending some of them off to other clubs. The Raiders are in the middle of a very difficult part of their draw (Roosters, Storm, Sea Eagles). They were good without winning against the Chooks, and I expect something similar here. Game of the round...clearly.

Verdict – Storm by 2

Result – Raiders by 4

South Sydney Rabbitohs vs Canterbury Bulldogs – Saturday night – ANZ Stadium

I feel like I'm saying the same thing about the Bulldogs every week, but I can afford to because they are spectacularly consistent (if a little predictable). When they do win it's not by much, and they get there with sheer tenacity and good defence. This season their highest score against a top eight team is 16 points. That was enough to win twice (against the Sharks and the Panthers). They played the Rabbitohs earlier in the season and scored just six points. It wasn't enough on that occasion and I doubt they'll score enough on this occasion. The Rabbits want a top four finish and a big win here can only help.

Verdict – Rabbitohs by 10

Result – Bulldogs by 8

Sydney Roosters vs New Zealand Warriors – Sunday afternoon – Sydney Cricket Ground

It's becoming a part of rugby league folklore – as soon as I write a team off for the season they pull out a win that no-one expects. The Warriors did exactly that last start with an impressive win over the Sea Eagles, but those sort of performances are just a reminder of how frustrating this side is. If only they could perform at that level they'd be in the top four every year and one of the powerhouses of the competition. I wish they were. Could they repeat a performance like that two weeks in a row? I suppose it's possible, but they usually don't. What's much more likely is they piddle around for 80 minutes and lose by 40. I wish that weren't true.

Verdict – Roosters by 40

Result – Roosters by 36

Cronulla Sharks vs St George Illawarra Dragons – Sunday afternoon – PointsBet Stadium

In a rare boost for the Sharks they have Moylan and Dugan on the field for the first time in what feels like forever. I'll believe it when I see it – one of them might break down in the warm-up. The Sharks were outplayed by an enthusiastic Panthers last weekend but they did come home strong. The Dragons had a rare win last round but they still conceded 28 points to the Titans. Defence like that won't beat the Sharks at home.

Verdict – Sharks by 8

Result – Sharks by 6

Wally Lewis - round twenty two selections (in bold)

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

  • SEA EAGLES vs Tigers
  • Titans vs EELS
  • BRONCOS vs Panthers
  • KNIGHTS vs Cowboys
  • STORM vs Raiders
  • RABBITOHS vs Bulldogs
  • ROOSTERS vs Warriors
  • SHARKS vs Dragons

Comments

The Thinker's picture

Greetings football fans,

I have updated the NRL ladder and our tipping comp after round 21. In a difficult round top marks go to Esra Star, Dragons Fanboy, Teraflare and Scott M with 6 from 8. Outstanding work tipsters.

The top three in the comp look to have put a gap on the rest at this stage, but with four rounds to go (plus the finals) there is still enough time for someone in that pack to make a run for a podium finish.

I'll have my previews and tips published later tonight.

All the best

JKBubble's picture

Hello All,
If the NRL brings in another team, it puts the number of teams to 17 which is an odd number. Does that mean 1 team gets a bye each week, or do they have the team playing on a thursday playing again on a monday night or what?
Hopefully someone can shed some light on it for me!
cheers,
JKBubble

mark ashford's picture

Hi JKBubble
I've not heard of another team being introduced at this time.
Only talk of relocating a Sydney team which is a long shot.
One new team would create an unbalance as you have said.
It has to be 2 new or a relocation, at this time can't see either happening.
Keep posting, nice to see some new blood.

mark ashford's picture

Big Pete
The meat from slice&dice was perfect. Only complaint was the rump.
First night was bbq rump & veg. Most of us found it a bit tough and I ended up stewing the second lot which was perfect.
I'll talk to Greg next time I'm in..but hey we were happy.
Mate it's cool here but I hear you are copping blizzard conditions in BX
Keep warm and keep those eyes well.

BigPeteBx's picture

Morning Mark -
Greg may have given you some of that Darwin Water Buffalo..hehehe.
The way things are about the nation, dry lands might produce tougher meats. Not sure, but lamb has certainly sky-rocketed in price, over the past 10 months and more.

Has been very icy here Bro. Plenty of minus', icy air and the winds that came after the snow, were very cutting. The I's are in for another session on the laser next month. Bugger me, it never ends champ.

Fleetwood Mac in Sydney Town this week and will be nice to see them, for the second time and much better seats, this time around. Will be interesting to see Neil Finn, as he is also another very accomplished songwriter/muso. I was "resting up" in Townsville, many years ago, when Split Enz did their Enz of an Era Concert at Townsville Amp-theatre, as it was known to be in those days. Stayed with friends out at Kirwan.

Pity Pabdul isn't still on here, with us good peoples. Will be a crowd at Olympic Park, as Dogs play The Wabbits in NRL, at ANZ. Sure will test the Sydney Transport system and ferrying of passengers.

My best regards to Greg and Wendy, when u r speaking with them.

Cheers mate - the grind calls, must head off.
Big Pete

newbie from perth's picture

Hey everyone,

Before the footy tips come rolling in, can I be “political” for just a bit? I’m hoping the following comments are not out of line and that it’s OK with the Boss insofar as it being a suitable platform for me to speak what’s on my mind at the minute. If not, just let me know and I'll desist in future. OK, here goes…

Just wanna say I wasn’t impressed one little bit with that vile crap that was targeted at Latrell Mitchell the other day and the subsequent stuff that surfaced since concerning other players as well. Seriously, tell me how this s**t still goes on in this day and age. Had no idea what the fuss was about until I saw the actual wording involved highlighted on the “Over The Black Dot” footy show on NITV Tuesday night.

Just hope they identify these morons somehow and throw the book at them. There’s absolutely no place for that sort of thing in footy (or in real life for that matter). Treat people as you find them and leave the race thing (and your own underlying insecurities) out of it. Life’s short enough as it is without wasting precious time on stuff like this.

Anyway, that’s my rant for the year over. Sorry to inflict it on y’all 🤝 Have a good one people…

JKBubble's picture

Thanks for the comment mark_ashford
Yes that makes more sense.

newbie from perth's picture

Sa-wat-dee krup,

I was thinking about the length of my comments each week and realised that some of you may find them a chore to read through seeing as they’re so damn long 😄 So what I might do as an “experiment” is to post comments in 3 parts and see how it goes. May as well start the ball rolling now…

Just be warned. I’ve gone on a stats quoting spree this week. I’m starting to find them very interesting indeed. You never know, some of you may find them interesting as well. OK, let’s get into it…

Newbie’s Round 22 Prognostications – Part 1

Manly vs Tigers 65-35 @ Brookvale
Ladder Position = Manly
Bookies Favourite = Manly

Manly certainly got ambushed last week by the Warriors. They dominated for most of the first 20 minutes or so but came up empty-handed. Losing Parker after 20 minutes didn’t help either. Improved effort in the second 40 but the damage had already been done. Blair getting sin-binned gave them a sniff and they came home with a wet sail but it took them 67 minutes before they scored their first points! Another 2 tries in the next 7 minutes and you thought it was game on. Unfortunately for the Sea Eagles, that got snuffed out when the Warriors scored again with 4 minutes to go. Not sure if they were unable to handle the conditions or whether they were simply out-muscled. Puzzled how they lost that one really. Missed Tackles 16 (Warriors 44), Penalties Conceded 5 (Warriors 13) and Sin Bins 0 (Warriors 1).

The Tigers were looking good at half-time last week and led 8-0. It all seemed to unravel in the second 40 though and they ended up losing it 18-16. That final conversion attempt from Momirovski was an absolute shocker! Yeah, you gotta feel sorry for the bloke but footy players who do this for a living should “nail” these kicks. He’s either not practising enough or he needs to work on dealing with pressure. I know it’s easy for me to sit back here and say that but still. I could be wrong here but they seemed to be going through the motions at times and looked like they had no plans in place. It’s not impossible for them to get in the 8 but gee, they’re making it hard for themselves. Interesting to note they had 59% possession (Bulldogs 41%), Post Contact Metres 627 (Bulldogs 464), Tackle Breaks 45 (Bulldogs 30), Forced Drop Outs 5 (Bulldogs 0), Missed Tackles 30 (Bulldogs 45) and yet they still lost.

Manly to “bounce back” at home.

Titans vs Eels 25-75 @ CBus
Ladder Position = Eels
Bookies Favourite = Eels

Simple. Eels for me. Boom!

Broncos vs Panthers 50-50 @ Suncorp
Ladder Position = Panthers
Bookies Favourite = Broncos

The Broncos were lucky last week in my mind. If not for some brilliant stuff from Jake Turpin on the last play of the match, Brisbane would’ve lost that one against the Cowboys. Yeah, they got out of jail in that one. Mind you, they did manage 47 tackle breaks, 4 line breaks and only had 10 missed tackles. Overall, I wasn’t that impressed with their effort. I thought they would’ve done much better but hey, footy’s a funny ol’ game as I always say. Just like the Cowboys, the Broncos were pretty average in the first 20 last week. Far too many errors and while the win does keep their hopes alive, play like that in the finals and they’ll be out the door in no time. At times it seemed that there was no-one taking charge and managing their game plan. They looked like they were out of ideas and were just going through the motions. I did think that Milford had a serviceable game though.

The Panthers won’t have to worry too much about finding a replacement for Maloney. That young fella Burton seems like he has a good head on his shoulders and had a pretty good debut last week. The Panthers first 40 was brilliant. I read somewhere online that the Panthers were giving away 1356 games of NRL experience with the side they had last week. Really? Is that true? If so, what an effort! They really took it to the Sharks and reminded us all of the potential that’s there. Maybe losing to the Bulldogs in R20 was the wake-up call they needed. Cleary had an absolute blinder and it was quite possibly the best I’ve seen him play. Their defence was brilliant given the inexperienced side they had. A really well fought out win and full of merit. They just need to repeat that this week. One thing they don’t want to repeat though is the 65 missed tackles. They’ll want Cleary and Edwards to play like they did last week and they’re in with a chance, even though they haven’t won at Suncorp in a long time. Shame (sorta) that the return of Maloney forces young Burton out but that’s footy and he’ll be there next year anyway.

This could go either way but I think I might tip the Panthers here.

Cheers y'all...

Baggy_Gee's picture

True, no body deserves anything like that, Mitchell, McGuire, Fergerson, but the part that also worries me is that it has been lliked to certain fan bases. Unless your know it was a Parramatta supporter giving Mitchell a hard time, say nothing, likewise if it is "alleged" that the guy having a go at Blake is a knights supporter, be quiet until you know who the culprit is, and then ban that person, and don't link it back to the game, none of the clubs would ever support such nonsense, and more likely than not throw the perpetrator out on their ear.

mark ashford's picture

Hey Newbie
Latrelle has picked up a few people who don't like his style of play and it's their right to criticize him for it. BUT racial taunts etc are just not on. It's 2019, you'd think these keyboard idiots would have learned by now.
Like him or not no one can deny his talent. I saw him on Over the black dot a little way back and he's a quiet spoken almost shy young man. He can be a bit aggressive on field but that's football. I believe the NRL are tracking down the trolls and will deal with them harshly. Bet these fools have never run on a football field.

a's picture

Here’s my tips

Sea Eagles by 10 I think Sea Eagles will bounce back here

Eels by 12 I think the Eels will continue their march to the top 4 here

Broncos by 2 I think the Broncos will edge out Panthers here

Knights by 4 I think the Knights will get back to winning ways here

Storm by 6 Storm will edge out Raiders here

Rabbitohs by 10 Rabbitohs will get back into form here

Roosters by 40 I except a floggging here

Sharks by 2 If sims were playing I would be tipping a upset but since he’s not I will tip Sharks

mark ashford's picture

Big Pete
Had a good laugh about the NT Buffalo. If that's what it was then it must have been a tough old dude.
Enjoy that Fleetwood Mack concert mate, wish I was with you, they are still an amazing band.

mark ashford's picture

Just on Fleetwood Mack I know the Fleetwood bit comes from the founder Mick Fleetwood but can you help with the Mack bit?
just curious.

mark ashford's picture

Newbie
Thank you for the link and the explanation. You are a true WA gentleman and I thank you for it. Something I always wondered about has now been solved.

newbie from perth's picture

@ Mr Ashford,

No worries my friend. Always willing to help when and where. Cheers.

newbie from perth's picture

Sa-wat-dee krup,

Newbie’s Round 22 Prognostications – Part 2

Knights vs Cowboys 55-45 @ McDonald Jones
Ladder Position = Knights
Bookies Favourite = Knights

Not a great effort from the Knights last week to be honest. Now they’ve lost their last six matches. Ouch! Those song lyrics from Paul Simon come to mind … “Slip slidin’ away, slip slidin’ away. You know the nearer your destination, the more you're slip slidin' away”. They do have some winnable games coming up though so they really need to start getting their act together or else. Newcastle made some errors and seemed to lack some discipline last week. Line Breaks 0 (Eels 3), Forced Drop Outs 1 (Eels 4), Missed Tackles 28 (Eels 20) and Ineffective Tackles 23 (Eels 8). They will need to address that or the Cowboys, as down as they are, might just roll them.

The Cowboys lost a thriller last week 18-14. Poor completion rate of 68% and a whopping 47 missed tackles. They only managed 10 tackle breaks and no line breaks at all. Not good. The Cowboys were pretty average in the first 20 last week but they did improve though and should have held on but they let the Broncos snatch the win away on the last play of the match. Their habit of falling away in the last 15 or so unfortunately raised its ugly head once again. Liked the try that Clifford scored in the second half that put the Cowboys in front. Vision and simplicity are most times rewarded. Had a bit of a chuckle with the kerfuffle that Josh McGuire inspired just before the break. Wasn’t impressed with his hands over Fifita’s face though. Some blokes never learn do they. The Cowboys will want to atone for last week’s heartbreak and they’ve won the last 3 against the Knights. They’re a chance here believe it or not.

Seriously, this one’s hard for me. Weighing all the pros and cons I think the Knights might just sneak in here.

Storm vs Raiders 60-40 @ AAMI
Ladder Position = Storm
Bookies Favourite = Storm

The Storm met the Bunnies head on last week and it took them until the second half to exert their dominance and prevail 26-16. The two Camerons (Munster and Smith) both had blinders. Don’t care who you play for, I just love watching professionals ply their trade to the highest of standards. They were a joy to watch. Croft wasn’t too bad either. The Storm gave away more penalties (12-7), had less possession (77-87) and had a bloke in the bin but still managed to get up. This week’s game against the Raiders should give them a good test. If they can keep racking up nice numbers in their tackle breaks (30 last week) and line breaks (8 last week) they’ll give them Raiders a few problems.

The Raiders lost a close one last week against the Roosters (thank god) and should be a good match up for the Storm this week. The Raiders played very well last week and for large portions of the game looked the better side. They had enough opportunities to win it but couldn’t crack the ever reliable Roosters defence 😄. Once again, Bateman had a cracker and was a constant headache for the Roosters. They need to turn their dominant possession into points if they’re any chance to get up over the Storm this week. I notice the Raiders haven’t won at AAMI since 2013 but as we saw from the Roosters, records can be broken, especially considering the attack the Raiders possess (46 tackle breaks last week). Their defence struggled to contain my BBB so they’ll need to improve on that aspect against the Storm.

Hmm, can I see an upset here maybe? I’m very tempted but no, I’ll stick with the Storm.

Rabbitohs vs Bulldogs 65-35 @ ANZ
Ladder Position = Rabbitohs
Bookies Favourite = Rabbitohs

The Rabbitohs lost by 10 last week and need to find some flair in their attack. Their first 40 wasn’t too bad really. Mind you they had some help with the penalty count and were right in it at half-time and were only 6 down. Things were looking good when Kaufusi was sent to the bin and Souths drew level. Unfortunately the Storm stepped up and the Bunnies got done. Not that the Bunnies were bad, far from it. Their completion rate was 87% (Storm 77%), they made 3 line breaks and 22 tackle breaks. Only negative was that they had 30 missed tackles. D’oh! That game will hopefully give them the encouragement they need and a full 80 minute effort will go a long way. If Campbell Graham can fire again then watch out Doggies. Looks like Big Sam will return so that should help the Bunnies.

Who are these Bulldogs? Yet again they jump up and surprise. Well they did surprise me at any rate 😄 and good on ‘em for getting the job done. Down by 8 at the break but came back to win it 18-16. Noice! Mind you, Momirovski’s missed conversion right at the end definitely helped. A gutsy win nevertheless. That first 15 minutes in the second half was what won it for them for sure. Even more impressive was that the stats were against them and they still got the win. Possession 41% (Tigers 59%), Post Contact Metres 464 (Tigers 627), Tackle Breaks 30 (Tigers 45), Forced Drop Outs 0 (Tigers 5) and Missed Tackles 45 (Tigers 30). How do you win with numbers like that? One concern is that the Doggies haven’t won 3 in a row since 2017. Pretty confident they’ll give it their all against their more fancied opponents this weekend. I wonder if Foran will play this week. He’d certainly be a handy addition for the Dogs if he is available.

I’m hoping the Dogs make it a contest but I reckon the Bunnies will get the job done.

Let’s finish off with another “Song of the Week”…

This is what I hope you all have…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEeaS6fuUoA

OK kids, good luck with your tipping and may your team win by 40 points! Until tomorrow morning 🤪 Cheers.

newbie from perth's picture

Sa-wat-dee krup,

Finally! The third (and last) thrilling episode of the Round 22 trilogy…

Newbie’s Round 22 Prognostications – Part 3

Roosters vs Warriors 75-25 @ SCG
Ladder Position = Roosters
Bookies Favourite = Roosters

I know I’m possibly a little biased but what a great win last week to my BBB. Did it tough and had to withstand the final 15 minutes of pressure put on us from the Raiders. Plus we broke the “hoodoo” of not winning down there for the past god-knows how many years. 💪 Teddy once again had a brilliant game and surely must’ve been best on ground? Luke Keary had a good one too, not to mention Daniel’s double. The Raiders made us work for that win I must admit. With the form the Raiders are in I was just happy we got home. We did surprisingly well since we had less possession, a lower completion rate, less tackle breaks, less offloads, more missed tackles and more ineffective tackles! One thing we did do better in was kick defusals. 100% versus the Raiders’ 60%. Go figure. Now we’re up against a Warriors side that shocked Manly last week so it’ll be an interesting encounter for sure. But we’ve been ticking along nicely (sorta) and sometimes without key players. I think one of them should be returning this week (Cordner) so that gives me more confidence.

Can someone please tell me what happened to the Warriors players? Were they kidnapped by aliens and replaced with new and improved clones? No way were these the same blokes who got smashed by the Raiders the week before. The game against Manly wasn’t the best of conditions to play in but the Warriors managed to score after 6 minutes or so and then scored a second after 22 minutes and followed up with another one 3 minutes later. They completely took the Sea Eagles by surprise for sure. Blair got sent to the bin and Manly took full advantage and scored 3 tries of their own but even so, the Warriors defensive game was simply superb. They held on long enough, scored another try themselves and finally got up 24-16. A super effort to be honest. I’m just wondering (hoping really) if that has taken something out of them. Not sure where the change in mindset came from but it worked a treat. Top effort from Chanel Harris-Tavita and if the Warriors are going to be a chance he’ll need to have another blinder. Can’t believe the Warriors had 44 missed tackles (Manly 16) and conceded 13 penalties (Manly 5) and still won. They really should’ve been punished with numbers like that but somehow they weren’t. Interesting.

Goes without saying that I’m tipping the Roosters. Begurk! 🐔 Begurk! 🐔

Sharks vs Dragons 65-35 @ Shark Park
Ladder Position = Sharks
Bookies Favourite = Sharks

The Sharks had their chances last week against the Panthers but couldn’t quite get the job done against the Panthers inexperienced opposition and ended up losing it 26-20. And this was taking into account they had 8 line breaks (to the Panthers 3) and 65 tackle breaks (to the Panthers 32). They had half as many missed tackles as the Panthers had (32-65) but couldn’t take advantage of it. They got “slapped” by the Panthers for most of the first half and were lacking as far as I could see. A little lazy defensively at times but they managed to claw their way back and make it interesting. Not sure how much that was from their efforts or the inexperience of the Panther cubs. Loved Liam Martin’s great hit on Matt Prior. Felt sorry for Matt though. I’m off topic here but one thing I noticed was … if Morris’ try is disallowed for a double movement, why didn’t the Panthers get the ball back? “Mesa not understanding”. Morris did get one later on though and the Sharks were full of momentum and surging as they usually do in the second half. Unfortunately they couldn’t surge enough and ran out of time. They did however make the Panthers work hard for the win. They’re now sitting in ninth position and after this game they have the Warriors, Raiders and Tigers so they need to continue winning to keep their finals hopes alive. That “winning run” has to start this weekend or they might be “gawn”. The Sharks usually play well at home so you reckon they’d be a good chance here. Moylan in and Fifita out.

The Dragons finally got a win last week against the Titans and got home 40-28. Looking at that score line you’d have to assume that a defensive mindset wasn’t either side’s main concern last week wouldn’t you. Yeah, they scored 7 tries but the Titans scored 5. The Titans scored 5? 😱 Dragons really need to tighten up defensively if they’re any hope this week. Impressed with Widdop’s game yet again. He seems to be getting better each week. The Dragons will need him at his best against the Sharkies on Sunday. Interesting thing I noticed with last week’s stats was that the Dragons and Titans were pretty close in some areas. For example, Missed Tackles 27 vs Titans 30, Ineffective Tackles 19 vs Titans 19, Errors 11 vs Titans 10 and Penalties Conceded 3 vs Titans 5. What that tells me is that based on those numbers, the Dragons and Titans were on par last week and given the fact that the Titans are awful, that’s not a comforting comparison if you’re a Dragons fan. Hey, I still think they’re much better than the Titans but it’s just something I noticed that’s all.

I rate the Dragons better than my “official ratings” shown above but still reckon the Sharks will just get up on Sunday.

Let’s finish off with another “Song of the Week”…

Heard this on the radio driving to work this morning …. Ah, sweet memories

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1njBdAyNGI

OK kids, good luck with your tipping and may your team win by 40 points! Until next week people. Cheers.

a's picture

JT ruled out for Cowboys you might as well change to Knights Thinker

Baggy_Gee's picture

Well the girls got another 4/8 getting them up to 89/160, Not to bad for 8 and 7 who watch at best half a game a week. Here are their tips this weekend.
Manly - Because they are purple birds
Eels - Because we mostly go for them
Panthers - Because they are black and look scary
Knights - Because they fight dragons
Storm - Because they cause blackouts
Rabbits - Because my toy might be happy
Warriors - Because we now like the logo.
Sharks - Because they see a surf board and then they want to eat the surf board.

I'm done thank you! (I think they wanted to get it over and done with fast today)

mark ashford's picture

Baggy
I love your girls tips. Just had a look and they're equal with me on Thinkers ladder. I'm supposed to know what I'm doing so well done to the girls. Keep it up you two possums.

Dragons-fanboy's picture

Hello everyone, my tips for this week are:

Manly by 10 - Manly lost last week. Yes, Manly did lose last week. No, it wasn't to the Storm, Raiders, Rabbitohs, or Roosters. No, Manly lost to the Warriors. Yes you heard that right, Manly lost to the Warriors. They were away from home but the Warriors had previously lost six straight at home. But they finally broke it last week and caused Manly to lose. Manly should bounce back this week coming up against the Tigers who've been hit by some injuries, Farah and Mbye plus the suspension of Garner. Manly have their fair share of injuries too though with Joel Thompson and Parker being casualties. But, I still think that the cover for those two will do a good job anyways considering they are coached by Des and we all know that how good of a coach Des has been this season.

Eels by 22 - The Titans conceded 40 points against the boys last week. Another tough day in the office defensive wise for the Titans. But, they managed to score 28 points last week which would have to give them some sort of life. Hopefully they can bring that and then some on Friday night. But, it's not all about attack, it's about defence too. Being a great defensive team is a key ingredient in the success of a team, just ask the Storm, Roosters, Rabbitohs and Raiders this season. The Titans are as far away from a great defensive team as possible. If the Dragons can put 40 on the Titans, than the Eels can put 60 on the Titans, not saying that will happen. Keep in note, this is coming from a Dragons fan as well. 60-38 anyone? All jokes aside, the Eels should smash the Titans here and you just never know, top 4 may be on the cards for the Eels or top 5 at least. We'll see.

Panthers by 2 - My upset of the round for this week. Although I do get why the Broncos are favourites in a way that they are at home and they have been stringing wins together and are in the top 8, they don't believe they really deserve to be favourites, they have been playing some underwhelming footy in the past couple of weeks. They did merely escape victory last week, but for the most part, they were disappointing against the Cowboys. The Panthers on the other hand, came away with a much-needed victory over the Sharks, with the young side that they had, I didn't think that it could be done but it was so cudos to them. I can see them getting back-to-back this week against an even younger side in the Broncos. Two baby sides going at it, expect some exciting footy but maybe expect plenty of errors and penalties conceded as well. This will be a cracker but as I love to pick some upsets usually, this is mine for this week, the Panthers to remain in the 8 with a tight win over the Broncos away from home.

Knights by 8 - One of these teams are going to get a win this week which is the good news in regards to whoever wins this one (do not rule out a draw you know, there has been one this year). But yeah, two out of form sides going at it with nothing to lose whatsoever. I mean the Knights are still technically a chance of making it into the 8 but that does look like a long shot, even with a victory here over the Cowboys as my tip presumes. Don't count the Cowboys out though, although the Knights are a very short price in terms of betting, the Cowboys do welcome back a couple of key players in Kahu and Mclean but also will be without McGuire and possibly Taumololo who will be an absolute massive out if he does find himself not playing this week. But seriously, the Knights need to step up whether their finals hopes are over or not whatever you think, the Knights still need to step up because with six losses in a row, things are grim for the Knights and a win here is what they need to release that pressure. And I'm backing them to get it done here at home. Ponga and Pearce are key and also their forwards need to step up, espcecially coming up against that cracker of a forward pack (if JT is playing) or that just above decent forward pack (without JT).

Storm by 4 - I wouldn't be surprised of the Raiders get the job done over the Storm. The Raiders welcome back Joey Leilua this week who is a massive in for the Raiders, absolutely massive in. That Raiders lineup looks so great. Put in Haivili on the bench for Simonsson which sticky may do on game day, then that Raiders side is a perfect side. That they need coming up against the Storm but that Storm side is a really good-looking side as well. Most definitely the game of the round this one is. Much like the various battles we had last week between the Raiders and Roosters which didn't disappoint mind you, we have plenty of mouth-watering battles here; Hughes v Nicoll-Kolkstad, Chambers v Leilua, Vunivalu v Rapana, Addo-Carr v Cotric battle of the halves, in which the Raiders desperately need to stand up in if they are going to beat the Storm, and the battle of the forwards, in particularly the stand-out battle of all of the battles, Cameron Smith v Josh Hodgson. Now, this is probably the battle of the season between these two number 9s. People love to compare Hodgson to Cameron Smith. Now he has the opportunity to prove himself up against Cameron Smith. Don't worry about the Ashes, because we got an Ashes like battle on show here. Although the Raiders will be tough yet again and will get close again, the Storm are a tough team to crack and are a tough team to tip against, plus, they're at home, so it's the Storm for me.

Rabbitohs by 6 - If there's going to be at least one upset on cards, this may be it. I do fancy the Bulldogs' chances in this one. Defend like they have in the past month and a half, than they can beat the Bunnies on Sunday night. But, I haven't gone past the Bunnies in this one. The Rabbitohs desperately need a win to maintain a top 4 finish and in such a game that is winnable even though the Bulldogs are making that harder and harder every week, this is still a game that the Rabbitohs are expected to win. So Wayne better lift his boys up for this one and make sure they are ready otherwise they may suffer another loss and a loss here will surely hurt the Bunnies. Bulldogs will be tough yet again but the Rabbitohs will just prove too good in the end in what will be a quality game of football.

Roosters by 30 - Besides the Storm, the Roosters are by far the best team in the comp at the moment. You can perhaps say they are going better than the Storm are at the moment even though the Storm win and barely lose and when they do lose, it's only just. This makes it look like the Roosters aren't as good as the Storm at the moment but enough with that. The Roosters are on par to going back-to-back this season. They had a good few players out last week, coming back against the Raiders who coming into the game were on fire, the Roosters came out to Canberra last Sunday and put on a magnificent performance in against a tough Raiders side who had many opportunities in the end of that game to take the game away from the Roosters, but the Roosters held on in the end. This is why they are the defending premiers and this is why they're on track for a possible back-to-back premierships. Coming up against the Warriors, who did manage a win last week which does make it sound good for the Warriors doesn't it, no it doesn't because the Warriors don't go back to back all that often and now they have to contend with the Roosters. Roosters to come out and absolutely roll the Warriors here in Sydney.

And finally... Sharks by 12 - It really does hurt going the against the Dragons. But I had to. I'm really sorry Dragons but that win was only against the Titans and although we did manage to put on 40, we conceded 28 against the worst team in the competition. What does that tell you about our defence. We've only got a week (well now a few days but you know what I mean) to focus on defence and a week is a long time in rugby league. We need to come in and get ready for an absolute dogfight because that's what the Sharks are going to provide us. We have to match it with the Sharks for the full 80, not 40, not 30, not 20, for the full 80. That does sound very hard for the Dragons at the moment considering what we've seen from them, put it can be done. Will it be done? Maybe, but I don't think that it will. T. Sims is a huge out for us as he is our toughest player in the team. Vaughan, Graham and Frizell really have to step up this week along with our young second rowers in Kaufasi and Leilua. Leilua can play though, he is no slouch but will he be able to maintain a complete 80 minute performance defensively, I'm not so sure. The Sharks on the other hand, do welcome back Moylan but Fifita is out, I still think they'll be okay though. Hoping for a good quality local derby here but I'm not sure if we'll get that. Win or lose on Sunday night, a tough 80 minute is required for the Dragons. I'll at least be happy if we can manage to do this even if it doesn't end up being enough. Sharks for me unfortunately.

Awesome. Good luck with everyone's teams for this week. And with everyone's tips for this week. Cheers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

BigPeteBx's picture

@Mark
@Newbie

Thanks Newbie for replying to Mark.
Can't forget also the other half of The McVie's, in Christine, who also does vocals and of course the gorgeous Stevie Nicks.

As mentioned before, Lindsay Buckingham not making this tour and Neil Finn was recruited.

Keep well lads, will speak down the track.
Big Pete

Mary S's picture

Hi NuLiF3 & MGM,
You better be quick with your tipping or add them through the comments section.
Cheers,
Mary

christine 's picture

put my tips in as taking the same as the thinker except for knights over cowboys manly , eels, panthers ,knights,storm, souths, roosters, sharks .
may the nrl gods be kind to us all this week ...

NuL1F3's picture

Arrhh I'm late again!! And I had tipped Sea Eagles for the win too!! Oh well, adds to my miserable run of late (all year?)

The rest of my tips are:
Eels
Broncos
Cowboys
Storm
Rabbithohs
Roosters
Dragons

Have a great weekend all :)

mark ashford's picture

Tigerholic
That was one hell of a tough game last night between your boys and Manly. There had to be a winner but you weren't disgraced by any means.

a's picture

Wow Cowboys are frickin terrible looks like I will be supporting Brisbane Lions in the AFL

christine 's picture

"a'' I told you , you have to throw loyalty out the window & did any one think raiders would beat storm ???

Baggy_Gee's picture

Yeah I did in my other comp. Tried to be cute here and play the odds and lost like a chump at Jupiter's.

The Thinker's picture

Greetings tipsters

I have updated the NRL ladder and the tipping comp after round 22. Quite a lot of you got 6 from 8 so I won't list you all, but well done all. If anyone notices any discrepancies just let me know and I will check it out.

BigPete and JackStarky are keeping Footy Chick honest at the top of our comp...with a pack of tipsters close enough to jag some prizemoney with a bit of luck.

I have publised the round 23 tipping page for those that need to tip early. I will have my previews and selections published on Wednesday.

All the best

The latest in NRL news