Over 500,000 people tuned to watch the South Sydney versus Sydney Roosters blockbuster last Sunday with almost 30,000 at ANZ Stadium to see an early contender for match of the year.
The National Rugby League is now in full flight and rocking along at a raucous speed which continues in Round 3 with a showdown between the Roosters and the mighty Penrith Panthers on Monday night from Allianz Stadium.
Jamie Soward is missing for Ivan Cleary’s team which makes it easier for everyone to tip the Roosters, while the brave Tim Gore is the only expert to tip against the big bad Bulldogs, who are off course missing five-eighth Josh Reynolds.
On Saturday night one game will stop the nation in its tracks. Heart surgeries will be postponed, christenings forgotten and anniversary dinners suspended.
It is Canberra and St George Illawarra from GIO Stadium, and such is the sheer excitement and closeness in the contest, none of our experts have used their powerplay. This match could go either way (unless they go to golden point and neither side wins – which is also a possibility).
A number of Gold Coast players will cross the white line for the first time this year including ‘The Birdman’ Greg Bird and Dave ‘The Coal Train’ Taylor, but will it be enough to sniff out their first win of the season?
This is Round 3 of the 2015 NRL premiership, and here are our expert tips!
Tim Gore
Tips: Sea Eagles, Cowboys, Warriors, Raiders, Storm, Rabbitohs (powerplay), Titans, Roosters.
“No Josh Reynolds is bad for Canterbury-Bankstown so I’m going to go with Manly. Johnathan Thurston is angry from last weekend and wants a win. I’m going to go Warriors at home, Dragons can’t score so I’ll go with the Raiders, Storm don’t lose two in a row too often, they’ll beat Cronulla.
“Who’s going to stop the Rabbitohs?
“Bird is back which means a win for the Gold Coast and I’m deadest guessing the last one.”
Dane Eldridge
Tips: Bulldogs, Cowboys, Warriors, Raiders, Storm, Rabbitohs (powerplay), Titans, Roosters.
“After bouncing back with a suss second round following a lacklustre opening, I’ve received a show cause notice in the mail. My explanation? I’m now proficient because I’ve stopped wearing pink, and for this I must thank the guidance of the referees unit and the end of Mardi Gras weekend.
“Now back to business, stuffing up my resurgence. The pick of the bunch this week are as follows: Manly’s newfound spirit to be trampled by a pack of Dogs, the Roosters to wrest back the Gus Cup from Penrith, Canberra to add another taxidermy Dragon to their already-bulging pool room of stuffed Dragons, and Souths to do God-awful things to the Tigers. Just make sure you put the kids to bed for that one.
“And yes, the Gold Coast will win, and yes, I make my living as a tester of alcohol.
Mary Konstanopoulos
Tips: Bulldogs, Cowboys, Warriors, Dragons, Storm, Rabbitohs (powerplay), Knights, Roosters.
“After my Round 2 tips I certainly am not feeling like an expert and my apologies to anyone following my tips, but on to Round 3!
“Brookvale to Manly is like spinach to Popeye but I expect the Bulldog forwards to come out like Bluto and edge out the Eagles. Cowboys to win even though they have failed me two weeks in a row. The Warriors should be too strong at home for my much loved but seriously depleted Parramatta Eels (I won’t be disappointed if I get this one wrong).
“The Dragons who looked awful in the first weeks are specials to cause an upset over the Raiders. The Storm and Rabbitohs will both win at home and the rugged Knights to beat the Titans. Which gets us to the match of the round – Roosters vs Panthers.
“There are three standout teams this season: the Rabbitohs, Panthers and Roosters. Two of the three will be fighting out the grand final. The Rabbits beat the Roosters last week but imagine how much stronger the Chooks will be with Jake Friend in the line-up and Blake Ferguson in tune with their style of play. They are my early premiership prediction, and I am tipping them to edge out a very impressive Panthers outfit.”
Ryan O’Connell
Tips: Bulldogs, Cowboys, Warriors, Raiders, Storm (powerplay), Rabbitohs, Knights, Roosters.
“I’ll go with my heart and pick the Doggies over Manly, in what should be great game. The Cowboys should finally get a notch in the win column after a disappointing start to the season, as they’ll have too much talent for the Broncos. Meanwhile, Warriors versus Eels should be another great game, but I’ll go with the home team. Just.
“In the blockbuster – ahem – that is the Raiders versus the Dragons I’ll go for Canberra, because at least they look like scoring tries. The Sharks have been dreadful thus far, earning the Storm my powerplay prediction this week when they square off against each other.
“Bunnies will bring the Tigers back to earth with the thud, as will the Knights belt the Titans, and lastly, in the game of the round, I can’t go past the Bunnies, as great as Penrith have looked so far this year.”
Curtis Woodward
Tips: Bulldogs, Cowboys, Warriors, Raiders, Storm (powerplay), Tigers, Knights, Roosters.
Call me crazy but something special could happen on Sunday. The Rabbitohs have had a huge couple of months, started the year with a blockbuster season opener at Suncorp and then had a draining slugfest with the Sydney Roosters last weekend. The Tigers have a forward pack and enough attacking options to worry, or at least compete with Michael Maguire’s men. Then again, Souths could win by 30.
I considered tipping Manly for their meeting with Canterbury but when you match the two packs up, it’s hard to argue with the Bulldogs. I’m also expecting the Warriors to impress at home, Canberra to grind out the Dragons and Newcastle to do enough to beat an improved Gold Coast.
The match of the round sees the Roosters and Penrith head-to-head from Allianz Stadium on Monday night. Expect a classic but at the end of the day, the Roosters should sneak home.
Expert tipping scoreboard:
| Round 3 | Curtis | Tim | Mary | Dane | Ryan |
| SEA v BUL | Bulldogs | Sea Eagles | Bulldogs | Bulldogs | Bulldogs |
| BRO v COW | Cowboys | Cowboys | Cowboys | Cowboys | Cowboys |
| WAR v EEL | Warriors | Warriors | Warriors | Warriors | Warriors |
| RAI v DRA | Raiders | Raiders | Dragons | Raiders | Raiders |
| STO v SHA | Storm | Storm | Storm | Storm | Storm |
| RAB v TIG | Tigers | Rabbitohs | Rabbitohs | Rabbitohs | Rabbitohs |
| TIT v KNI | Knights | Titans | Knights | Titans | Knights |
| ROO v PAN | Roosters | Roosters | Roosters | Roosters | Roosters |
| POWERPLAY | Storm | Rabbitohs | Rabbitohs | Rabbitohs | Storm |
| LAST ROUND | 6 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 6 |
| OVERALL | 12 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 8 |
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