| NRL Forecast: Round Eight | | Print | |
| Friday, 01 May 2009 07:26 | |||
The Sports Desk
The Storm are in the top eight - but only just - with an uncharacteristic three wins from seven starts. Reigning champ Manly has fared even worse and lies 12th with a premiership hangover worse than Hawthorn's. Skipper Matt Orford has put off contract talks to concentrate on digging his struggling side out of its hole, but can it do so without Brett Stewart? Friday: The Storm will be desperate to atone for last year's 40-0 grand final shellacking but unbelievably they are one of just three teams yet to post triple figures in the "points for" column this season. The Sea Eagles might have crossed the chalk a tad more but their ladder position suggests they have been faring worse and they've had to face criticism that they cannot win without custodian Stewart. His absence might just be enough to tip the scales in Melbourne's favour, although you can never write off the Sea Eagles at Brooky. TAB Sportsbet can't separate the two sides and it might just come down to a piece of individual brilliance from Greg Inglis or even new signing Brett Finch. The other Friday night fixture sees the Cowboys visiting the struggling Eels and looking for three straight wins. Johnathan Thurston and Matt Bowen tore Manly apart last weekend and it doesn't augur well for a Parramatta side down on confidence after four straight losses. The Eels had some heady moments against the Broncos last Friday but still went down heavily. Saturday: Four bumper clashes headline Super Saturday with Gold Coast v South Sydney first cab off the rank. The Titans slipped from first to fourth last round after going down to the Panthers on Monday night. The short turnaround could cost the home team with the Rabbitohs receiving a few more days rest after playing last Friday. The Gold Coast will at least welcome back five-eighth Mat Rogers and prop Luke Bailey, who missed the Penrith match. Mal Meninga admitted mid-week that Scott Prince was no chance of displacing Thurston as Queensland half-back, but Prince is used to it and won't let it deter him from business as usual against the Rabbitohs. The 5:30pm fixture matches two teams which have fallen from last year's top four to 14th and last on the NRL ladder. The Sharks have the second-worst offence in the NRL and under-fire coach Ricky Stuart has been embroiled in on-going off-field turmoil with former mentor-turned enemy Phil Gould. Off-season acquisition Trent Barrett has also had to contend with criticism that he cost more than the dispensed-with Brett Kimmorley, who's been turning it on for the Bulldogs. The Roosters were well and truly outplayed by the Dragons in last Saturday's Anzac Day clash but incumbent Blues half-back Mitch Pearce will be desperate to keep his name in lights with Broncos number seven Peter Wallace pushing him all the way. The front-running Broncos visit Newcastle at 7:30pm eyeing another win before the representative season does its traditional bite. Darren Lockyer well and truly rubbished the ridiculous questioning of his representative future last Friday and unfortunately for the Knights he plays his 300th match on Saturday. The milestone is sure to further gee up his team-mates, led by Wallace who is desperate to reclaim his Blues jumper. The Knights are light on without injured trio Jarrod Mullen, Ben Cross and Wes Naiqama, but do welcome back Steve Simpson and Adam MacDougall. The Knights had chalked up three straight wins before going down narrowly to a Benji Marshall-inspired Tigers last weekend. The remaining Saturday clash sees old foes Canberra and Penrith clash at Canberra Stadium. The ground is traditionally somewhat of a graveyard for visiting teams but that has not been the case so far this campaign, with the Raiders managing just one win from three. But sides are capable of piling on the points so expect a high-scoring affair. The in-form Terry Campese can further increase his chances of claiming the Blues' five-eighth jumper with another standout performance. Penrith is backing up from Monday night footy but could easily pull off an upset. Sunday: Wayne Bennett has St George Illawarra playing with a lot of confidence and they haven't had their colours lowered by the Warriors in Wollongong for 13 years. The New Zealand outfit has played two straight extra time encounters and their fuel tanks will be tested by the in-form Dragons. Winger Wendell Sailor sat out the Anzac Day cakewalk against the Roosters with a hamstring strain but returns to take on hulking New Zealand international Manu Vatuvei. Potential Blues props Michael Weyman and Justin Poore will see the match as a key encounter to push their cases against the Warriors' renowned forward pack. The Bulldogs v Wests Tigers encounter looms as the match-up of the round with New South Wales hooking aspirants Michael Ennis and Robbie Farah going head to head. This match should be round one with the City-Country Origin clash to provide another stage. The second-placed Bulldogs are flying high with just one loss this season but were flogged 56-4 the last time the two teams met. The Bulldogs are a whole different side with a different coach now though. The Tigers have had two really impressive wins against Newcastle and Melbourne in recent weeks and will give a good account of themselves. There is no Monday night fixture this round with Test and City-Country Origin matches to be played next Friday.
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