Round 5 of the NRL season throws up plenty of storylines around the league and the team at Before You Bet are back to preview all the action with their NRL tips for Round 5.
Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles vs Brisbane Broncos
Thursday June 11 | Central Coast Stadium, Central Coast | 7:50pm
It’s Groundhog Day for the NRL as the poor old Brisbane Broncos are back on Thursday night footy.
Brisbane were absolutely dreadful against the Roosters last week in the 59-0 defeat. So we can only hope for some heart from this team soon! After conceding 34 and 59 points in the last 2 weeks while scoring just 1 try, something needs to change in Round 5 otherwise this has blowout written all over it!
Manly can definitely count themselves as unlucky after last week’s “forward” pass call cost them a likely win over the Eels. So the Sea Eagles are going to be eager for revenge this Thursday and they have the attacking weapons to run riot over this Brisbane team.
It’s good news at selection for the Broncos as Kotoni Staggs returns and Ben Te’o has been added to the bench. Lodge comes into the starting team along with Ofahengaue. But Corey Oates in the forward pack seems like a strange move. Meanwhile, the Sea Eagles have no injury problems at the moment and will be unchanged.
Considering the Broncos defensive issues at the moment, the Over is a great bet against them. Manly should be able to easily score 5 or more tries here.
Prediction: Over 40.5 points @ $1.90
New Zealand Warriors vs North Queensland Cowboys
Friday June 12 | Central Coast Stadium, Central Coast | 6:00pm
Friday night starts with a clash between two sides that struggled in Round 4.
We thought the Warriors had turned the corner from inconsistent performances but they tricked us all in their 26-0 defeat against the Panthers last week. So we’re not really sure which Warriors team will turn up on Friday.
It’s a similar story for the Cowboys after smashing the Titans, they were disappointing against the Sharks on their home turf. Holmes had a tough night against his former side and the rest of the team just couldn’t hold onto the footy.
The Warriors will likely make a few late team changes but for now, they welcome back Lachlan Burr into the forward pack. Paasi, Hiku, Papali’i and Harris-Tavita are all chances to be in those late changes. For the Cowboys, Hampton’s poor performance last week has cost him and Reece Robson will start at hooker in place of Granville. There’s a slight chance that Taumalolo will be a late in.
Both teams were terrible in Round 4 so we like the chances of the Under in what could a dour clash.
Prediction: Under 38.5 points @ $1.90
Parramatta Eels vs Penrith Panthers
Friday June 12 | Bankwest Stadium, Sydney | 7:55pm
The NRL has hit the jackpot with the game of the round featuring on Friday night footy.
The Eels are 4-0 for the first time since the late 80s and that has them sitting at #1 on the NRL ladder. They were pretty lucky to beat the Sea Eagles last week 19-16 as they were run down in the second half. So that should be the focus of the Eels game plan this week.
Penrith simply outplayed the Warriors last week in an impressive 26-0 display. A shutout in the NRL isn’t easy so credit goes to their defence. Burton and Laui also looked good in the halves as they combined for the Panthers first 3 tries.
The Eels get Nathan Brown back at lock this week and that will see Niukore move to the bench. Meanwhile, Penrith welcome back Nathan Cleary at halfback. Burton can count himself as unlucky as he moves to the bench as a result.
Penrith are one of the only teams in the NRL to beat the Eels at Bankwest and the return of Cleary is a massive boost. In what should be a tough derby battle, we like their chances of covering the underdog line.
Prediction: Panthers +5.5 @ $1.95
South Sydney Rabbitohs vs Gold Coast Titans
Saturday June 13 | Bankwest Stadium, Sydney | 3:00pm
Can the Titans claim back-to-back victories?
The Titans are finally on the winners’ list after a winless 12 months following their comeback victory over the Tigers. So it’ll be interesting to see if they can back it up on Saturday with another solid performance.
Souths have lost 3 on the trot and while Wayne Bennett isn’t panicking just yet, we’re sure Souths fans will be concerned. They were outmatched by the Storm in Melbourne on Friday night in what was their 16th straight loss in Victoria!
But there’s excellent news at the team selection table for the Rabbitohs with Cody Walker and James Roberts back in the starting lineup. Meanwhile, the Titans are unchanged at the moment but they’re known for making last-minute changes.
The Titans deserve a bit more respect in the betting markets after their upset win and Souths have not looked impressive thus far.
Prediction: Titans +11.5 @ $1.98
Newcastle Knights vs Melbourne Storm
Saturday June 13 | Central Coast Stadium, Central Coast | 5:30pm
The highlight of Super Saturday on the Central Coast is the Knights against the Storm.
What a performance by the Knights on Sunday night as they crushed the Raiders 34-18. As expected, Ponga was everywhere for the Knights as he dominated the Raiders defence. So we’ll see if they can produce a similar performance against one of their bogey sides in the Storm.
Melbourne rebounded from a poor performance against the Raiders with a gritty win over Souths at AAMI Park. Munster was excellent for the home side and the ageless Cam Smith was impressive in defence as usual. Josh Addo-Carr also played through a rib injury, something Souths didn’t really expose.
The Knights will sweat on the fitness of Kurt Mann before game-time and they could also add Lachlan Fitzgibbon. Meanwhile, the Storm are without Jahrome Hughes and that will give an opportunity to Ryley Jacks at halfback. Nelson Asofa-Solomona is back from suspension in a big boost for the Storm.
The Knights have historically struggled against the Storm but with Ponga on the field and Newcastle’s confidence sky-high coming off a great win over Canberra, we love their chances of an upset.
Prediction: Knights +3.5 @ $1.95
Wests Tigers vs Canberra Raiders
Saturday June 13 | Campbelltown Stadium, Sydney | 7:35pm
No Benji Marshall for the Tigers is the major storyline on Saturday night.
A poor second half by the Tigers in their loss to the Titans has cost a few of their stars as Michael Maguire is not a happy coach. The Tigers will look to bounce back this Saturday against the Raiders but they’ll need a much improved 80-minute effort.
Canberra won’t be happy with their 34-18 loss to the Knights last week either and Ricky Stuart will have them fired up. The good news is they have a good record against Wests and should be tough to beat.
Benji Marshall, Robert Jennings, Luke Garner, Oliver Clark and Billy Walters have all been dropped from the Tigers 17. Josh Reynolds takes over at five-eighth and Chris Lawrence/Zane Musgrove move into the starting forward pack.
The Raiders should be much better defensively on Saturday night and that will be helped by the Tigers making plenty of team changes. So we like the chances of the Under as night conditions have generally proved to be tough for attacking footy.
Prediction: Under 37.5 @ $1.90
Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs vs Sydney Roosters
Sunday June 14 | Bankwest Stadium, Sydney | 4:05pm
Old foes meet at Bankwest Stadium with the Bulldogs taking on the Roosters.
The Bulldogs are on the board in season 2020 after a fairly comfortable win over the Dragons last Monday. It was great to see Kieran Foran on the park and we’ll see if the Bulldogs can stop the Roosters classy lineup.
Sydney absolutely crushed the Broncos 59-0 with ease last Thursday and that was despite losing James Tedesco just before kick-off. So with a long break between games, they’ll be hard to beat on Sunday.
The Dogs will add Christian Crichton to the bench in place of Holland. Tedesco is back at fullback and Brett Morris will move to the wing for the Roosters.
A massive line on offer in this clash in what should be a tough outing for the Bulldogs. Ultimately, the Roosters can potentially score most of this points total themselves so we like the Over total here.
Prediction: Over 44 points @ $1.95
St. George Illawarra Dragons vs Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks
Sunday June 14 | Campbelltown Stadium, Sydney | 6:30pm
Another rivalry matchup to conclude Round 5 of the NRL with the Dragons looking to bounce back against the Sharks.
Well, the Dragons reshuffled lineup didn’t change a thing on Monday as they continued to struggle. They’ve scored just 2 points in their last 2 games so it’s hard to write about any positives with this team right now.
The Sharkies earned their first win of the season on Saturday night with a decent display against the Cowboys. Honestly, they should have put up 40+ points but with plenty of pre-game distractions, it was a good win.
Brayden Wiliame and Tariq Sims are both out for the Dragons. The Sharks welcome back Chad Townsend at halfback and Moylan is back at fullback in place of Kennedy.
Games involving the Dragons are an easy Unders bet as they continue to struggle in the points scoring department.
Prediction: Under 38.5 @ $1.90
