Easter weekend has arrived, and Round 6 of the NRL will be contested over FIVE days!
The action kicks off in Melbourne on Thursday night when the Storm and Roosters do battle, before the first ever Queensland clash between the Cowboys and Dolphins headlines Friday’s double-header.
Almost every match in Round 6 shapes as a terrific contest, and you can find my complete NRL tips below.
These Thursday games are really delivering in 2023, and we’re set for another belter when the Storm takes on the Roosters in Melbourne.
I can’t remember them being so slow from the blocks, but the wheels appear to be back on at Melbourne, and they franked a Round 4 win over Wests by upsetting South Sydney in Round 5.
That result saw them climb into sixth, and given they still have a long way to go to find their best, and several key players to welcome back, signs are once again promising.
The Roosters have won three of four games and were too good for the Eels in Round 5, despite a few forgettable passages of play.
They too are still ironing out their flaws, and I think that this one will go right down to the wire as a result.
The Storm have failed to cover the line in each of their last five matches after a win, so I am taking the Roosters to cover.
Betting will have you believe that this will be an entirely one-sided affair, but I am not so sure.
While slowly, and it is slowly, the Bulldogs continue to hint that the rebuild is working, and I thought they were very good in last week’s tight win over the Cowboys. Are they a finals club this year? I don’t think so. But the pieces are clearly there, and I think they will be competitive more often than not.
The Bunnies clearly are a finals side, but this early in the season, they are also clearly still vulnerable.
That was underlined last week when they failed to put away a previously misfiring Storm outfit and ultimately, played them back into form.
Most of the Bunnies’ games have gone right down to the wire this season, and I think that the value in this one lies with backing the Bulldogs to cover as outsiders.
For the first time in the NRL, Queensland rivals the Cowboys and Dolphins meet in Friday night primetime, and with neither in particularly good form, I think it will be another intriguing contest.
What has happened to North Queensland?
We didn’t expect anything of them last season and they were unlucky not to make a Grand Final. Now, we expect them to be winning almost every week, and they’ve hardly fired a shot. Has Todd Payten lost the dressing room? Has Chad Townsend’s honeymoon concluded? Whatever it is, they’re not good.
The Phins’ positive start to the season now feels like a distant memory, meanwhile, and they have lost their last two matches; compounded by a rather convincing one to the lowly Dragons in Round 5.
To their defence, they’re missing key personnel, but that is something that every club is forced to deal with at one time or another.
I don’t have as much between these two clubs as the bookies seem to, and it’s another opportunity to back the outsider to cover the line, in my opinion.
The match of the round could materialise between the Panthers and the Sea Eagles at the foot of the mountains on Saturday evening.
On face value, this doesn’t look a great match up for the Sea Eagles, and that is echoed in the market, but Manly have been very competitive this season, and they are a club that tends to play to the ability of their rivals.
Turbo has been typically excellent, taking on something of a different role for this side this year, and if the young guns in Manly’s backline continue to improve with experience, I think the future is quite bright.
The Panthers don’t look to be as scary as they have in recent seasons, but their bottom line is still better than the top line of most other clubs, and I have absolutely no doubt that they will finish the regular season in the top four.
I’m a little wary of head to head and line markets in this one, and with a few key try scorers engaged, I am instead going to box a few of them together in a Same Game Multi.
Same Game Multi selections:
- Tom Trbojevic Anytime Try
- Reuben Garrick Anytime Try
- Brian To’o Anytime Try
The undefeated Broncos play at home in Round 6 and unsurprisingly, they’ve got another primetime game!
The Canberra Raiders are the side charged with halting their momentum this week, and following a 53-12 drubbing in Round 5, it’s hard imagining them turning it around enough to win.
The Broncos have slowly returned to credibility since the appointment of Kevin Walters, and the addition of Reece Walsh this season really has been the difference.
The Raiders decline meanwhile hit rock bottom against the Panthers last week, and they are typically worse on the road than they are at home.
Obviously the market is skewed towards the Broncos for good reason, and it does appear to be the most open and shut case of the week!
Same Game Multi selections:
- Broncos 13+
- Reece Walsh Anytime Try
Battle of the Titans! Ironically.
To be fair, both the Titans and Dragons have been better than awful through the first five rounds of the NRL season, and both sit on the edge of the eight; a position I’m expecting them to maintain for most of the campaign.
The Titans took the prized Storm scalp three weeks ago, made to look even better by the fact that opponent is since undefeated.
They return refreshed from the bye this season, and a great chance of justifying rare favouritism in betting.
The Dragons have been typically hit or miss, recording a couple of lovely wins, including a thrashing of the Dolphins in Round 5, but also suffering some hefty defeats.
I think the Titans win, but I think it’ll go right down to the line.
The Knights and Warriors will do battle in the second Sunday fixture of the week, and the market has flipped and flopped a couple of times!
The Knights are largely awful, but their last two performances have hinted at improvement, and they were probably unlucky not to take more from the game against Manly in Mudgee last week.
Dom Young is their best player, and you’d be doing everything possible to keep him.
The Warriors, meanwhile, appear to be FINALLY realising their potential!
Almost always, they have a great team on paper, but always fail to capitalise.
Last week’s win over the Sharks was their best for a very long time, and this is a great opportunity for them to build on the momentum.
The Easter long weekend delivers with footy extending to Monday afternoon, and the Eels will surely be confident in reversing their fortunes at the expense of the winless Tigers.
The offseason signing drive has so far failed to deliver, and it’s hard imagining when and where the Tigers will get a win this season.
Coach Tim Sheens joked that he hoped his side would beat the bye when they have it later in the season, and I would be extremely worried by that remark, if I was a Tigers fan.
The Eels are yet to perform anywhere close to their potential this season, but they won’t be offered a better opportunity to record a big win and start building, than this.
Same Game Multi selections:
- Eels 13+
- Maika Sivo 2+ Tries