History will be made on Friday night when the Dolphins and Broncos lock horns in the inaugural Brisbane Derby!
Not since the South Queensland Crushers graced the ARL in the 90s have we witnessed a battle of Brisbane, and with more than just bragging rights on the line, it is sure to be a spectacle to remember.
The Sea Eagles are the only other club that remains undefeated, but they’ll have their hands full with a South Sydney side reeling from consecutive losses.
The action kicks off with what is sure to be a fiery clash between the winless Eels take and a refreshed Panthers: their first meeting since the 2022 Grand Final!
The Eels are absolutely battling and things obviously won’t get any easier for them when they take on the Panthers, returning from a bye on Thursday night.
Like it or hate it Eels fans, your boy Mitchell Moses and his drawn out contract talks are having an enormously adverse effect on the team, and it has been telling in their inability to win a game.
To be fair, the Panthers haven’t been quite as good as they were last season, but they are still 1-1, and I think returning from the freshen up will also prove the difference this week.
Stephen Crichton has scored the first try in each of the Panthers’ last three matches, and I’m factoring that into this week’s tip.
Speaking of teams that are battling… the Melbourne Storm!
Their Round 1 win over the Eels was decent on face value, but considering how poor that team has been since, combined with the fact that the Storm themselves have since lost to both the Bulldogs AND the Titans…. battling.
In what should prove the ideal scenario for a return to winning form, however, they take on the last placed and winless Wests Tigers in Round 4.
Wests have signed well, but they still clearly need time to gel, find combinations and ultimately, turn themselves into a winning side.
Just can’t wait for this one.
We’ve been hanging out for a Brisbane Derby for decades up here in Queensland and finally, we get one!
An enormous shame that Felise Kaufusi has been ruled out for the Dolphins. He looks to be in career-best form this year, and his ability to fold blokes simply cannot be understated.
The Dolphins remain undefeated, but there is no doubt that this is their sternest test to date.
The Broncos are also undefeated, and they’ve looked a vastly improved side on the one that somehow fell out of finals contention at the end of 2022.
Reece Walsh has slotted into the Broncos seamlessly, and I think he’s going to have another enormous game against the Phins.
Same Game Multi selections:
- Broncos (-10.5)
- Reece Walsh Anytime Try
The Cowboys aren’t going particularly well in 2023, and that was underlined by a hefty loss to the Warriors in Townsville last weekend.
They’re now starring down the barrel of a third-consecutive loss, and they take on a Titans side that is two from three, and travelling north off the back of a win over the Melbourne Storm.
In my opinion, the bookies are still treating the Cows like a team that made a Prelim in 2022, rather than a team that’s hardly fired a shot in 2023.
For that reason, they are under the odds, and I think that the value lies in backing the Titans to cover the line as outsiders.
One of the better contests of the Round looks like materialising between the Rabbitohs and the Sea Eagles in Sydney on Saturday night.
At the beginning of the season, I would have predicted these two sides to have the opposite records to what they actually have.
The Bunnies are reeling following consecutive losses to the Panthers and the Roosters, and to add insult to injury, they’ve lost a few more key forwards for this clash.
Not great reading, given the form of Manly’s pack.
For a side that many expected to hover around the bottom of the table all season, Manly have enjoyed an excellent start to their campaign and have beaten both the Bulldogs and the Eels.
While I understand the whole ‘Souths won’t want to lose three in a row’ perspective, I don’t think it actually counts for anything: Manly are the form team of these two.
The Warriors are an improved side, and they are offered another great opportunity at winning when they host the Bulldogs in New Zealand on Sunday afternoon.
At the beginning of each season, the Warriors look to have a good team ‘on paper’, but finally, they appear to be capitalising on it a little.
They were a class above the Cowboys away last week, and I don’t think there’s any doubt that they improve for the hit-out, and getting back to their home crowd.
I still can’t put my fingers on the Bulldogs.
Two wins and a loss, but both wins coming against clubs that are clearly struggling, and I hardly think that a 4-point triumph over the Tigers is anything to get excited about.
Open and shut in my opinion, this one, and I’ll be sticking with the Warriors.
We’re off to the Hunter for the penultimate game of Round 4, and it really could be bloody anything.
The Knights clearly one of the worst teams in the league, Adam O’Brien’s days are certainly numbered, and I think they’ll be lucky to win a handful this season.
I don’t rate the Raiders either, but I do now rate them more than the Knights, and they have certainly exceeded my expectations.
This is another open and shit one from my perspective, and I thought that there was a bit of value in a Same Game Multi.
Same Game Multi selections:
- Raiders (-6.5)
- Jack Wighton Anytime Try
- Over 42.5 Points
- Total: $7.36
The Dragons and Sharks reignite their local rivalry on Sunday afternoon, and I’m really looking forward to it.
I thought the Dragons were quite good in their first performance and win of the season in Round 2, but they reverted back to ‘Classic Dragons’ in Round 3, and were delivered a hefty loss in Brisbane.
I thought that game made clear the holes in their attack and their defence, and that’s surely what has been the focus at training this week.
The Sharks have been great when considering they’ve been without a couple of key players this season, and they welcome back star half Nicho Hynes in Round 4!
I’m confident that the Dragons return an improved performance this week, but improved enough to knock off the Sharks? Probably not.