The business end of the 2018 NRL season is only weeks away and the top eight remains wide open leading into Round 19.
The action is underway on Thursday night when the Eels and Bulldogs square off in Sydney’s west, before two exciting Friday night fixtures between the Sharks and Raiders, and Broncos and Panthers respectively.
The Rabbitohs are faced with an excellent opportunity to consolidate their position at the top of the table when they face Wests Tigers on Saturday, while the Storm will have their hands full with the Warriors in New Zealand on Sunday.
The Eels and Bulldogs both boast decent sides on paper but neither has been able to put it together this season and there isn’t a lot on the line when they square off on Thursday night.
Parramatta squandered another good opportunity after opening a good lead over the Knights last week and a win simply seems out of reach. In short, that result means that they are still anchored to the bottom of the table and they have managed only three wins from seventeen games.
Things haven’t been a lot better for the Dogs and they were unable to keep up with the league-leading Rabbitohs last weekend. They are staring down the barrel of three-consecutive losses and will need to find something if they are to remain above sixteenth.
The Dogs have been reasonably competitive for a depleted side and the Eels have been finding ways to lose. Canterbury can post a rare win, in what won’t be a great game of rugby league.
Friday night’s meeting between the Sharks and Raiders in the Shire looms as one of the better contests in Round 19 and there is plenty of value to be found in betting.
The Sharks continued a competitive season by overcoming a tired Panthers outfit in Penrith last weekend and they have subsequently consolidated their position in the top eight. They remain one of four clubs tied on twenty-four competition points but a decent for-and-against means they have an even greater buffer over the eighth-placed Broncos.
The Raiders have shot back into contention since the return of hooker Josh Hodgson and a big win over the Cowboys last weekend certainly has not hindered their chances of fighting into the top eight.
I am confident that Cronulla can get the job done, but the Raiders are good enough to cover a line currently set at 4.5 points.
The Broncos will host the Panthers in Friday night’s second game and there is a case to be made for both clubs.
By their lofty standards, the Broncos are amidst a season to forget but ultimately owing to their class, they remain eighth and a shot at finals football. They delivered the Titans an absolute flogging on the Gold Coast two weeks ago but returned home to be flogged by the Warriors last week. They are extremely difficult to trust from a betting perspective and could find themselves only one win above the chasing pack, should they lose this.
The Panthers have lost three of their last four matches and have slipped to fifth; having led the competition only three weeks ago. The return of their Origin stars to full time duty is sure to have some effect and they can reassert themselves with a big performance in Brisbane.
The Broncos aren’t great and the Panthers can regather a bit of confidence heading towards the finals.
The Knights and Titans will square off in Newcastle on Saturday afternoon, in what is shaping as a great contest between two similarly-formed clubs.
The Knights produced a decent eighty-minute performance to fight back into their game with the Eels and win last weekend, and they will take plenty of confidence into this as a result. The return of Mitchell Pearce from a long-term layoff clearly sparked something in the Knights and they continued to look better as the clock wound down.
The Titans have produced a number of strong performances between typically lacklustre showings but they remain in the hunt for a finals berth, albeit a bit of a long shot. They showed some resistance in their meeting with the Roosters last weekend but were still unable to take competition points.
The Knights can make it two in a row and keep the pressure on the Raiders in the race to a top eight spot.
Souths will look to consolidate their position at the top of the table by beating Wests Tigers at ANZ Stadium on Saturday evening.
Its been a great resurgence for the foundation club in 2018 and they really do look like a side that can win the competition. The emergence of players like Damien Cook and Angus Crichton in the last few seasons has complimented the likes of Greg Inglis and a big, mobile forward pack. They boast several exciting and capable outside backs and they are a tough assignment for every other team in the league, home or away.
The Tigers have already exceeded expectations this season and will take wholesale confidence into this game after knocking off the Dragons in Round 18. That was their eighth win of the season and they are tied on eighteen competition points with the Raiders, at the edge of the eight.
The Tigers certainly are not easy beats, but Souths are on a short track towards the minor premiership and can cover a line set at 9.5 points.
The Dragons are offered the perfect opportunity to return to winning form when they travel to Townsville to face an out-of-sorts Cowboys side on Saturday night.
St George looked a tired team when they failed to fire against Wests last weekend and in hindsight, it was probably a good opportunity to rest their Origin contingent. They were leapfrogged by Melbourne in overall standings but remain only one win off top spot, and can reassert themselves as favourites by notching a big win over JT and the Cowboys.
This is not the way that the Cowboys wanted to send off their future immortal and they have failed to make anything of an impression this season. Another heavy loss to the Raiders in Week 18 has left them in fifteenth overall, with only four wins all season.
The Dragons will be winning games like this one with ease if they are to claim this season’s premiership and can cover the line again on Saturday.
Sunday afternoon’s game between the Warriors and Storm across the ditch is an intriguing one from a spectator’s and betting perspective. Both teams carry winning form into the match and there is a case to be made for both, once more.
The Warriors are another club that has well and truly exceeded all expectations in 2018 and they fired a warning shot at the rest of the league by absolutely towelling the Broncos in Brisbane last weekend. That win consolidated their position in the eight and they will take plenty of confidence into a match with a team whom they typically play well against.
It’s all systems go for the Storm now that the Origin period is over and they have climbed to second on the ladder in recent weeks. They did enough to pip old rivals the Sea Eagles on the line last week but take nothing away from the performance – the Storm are a club who find a way to win when the chips are down.
I give the Warriors a real shout in this game and they are good enough to win. They are certainly good enough to cover a 3.5-point line.
Manly are unlucky not to carry winning form into Round 19, but things do not get easier when they host the Roosters on Sunday afternoon.
In what has become a bit of a trend for the Northern Beaches club in 2018, the Sea Eagles led the Melbourne Storm for most of their 80 minute tussle, but conceded late to lose the game. They’ve simply lacked a final touch this season but at their best, are still clearly capable of competing with anyone.
For a side currently sitting fourth overall, the Roosters have seemingly flown under the radar this season but remain a real threat to this year’s premiership. They did enough to beat the Titans on the GC most-recently and prior to that, were unlucky not to beat the Storm.
It’s tough to predict how this match will play out but the Roosters are probably under the odds at their current price and I am happy to stay out from a betting perspective.