Throughout the year I have been ranking NRL teams not according to their ladder placings, but according to their power, form and momentum.
And this week was by far the hardest set of rankings to do this season.
1. St. George Illawarra Dragons (6-2) (LW: 2)
Positive: It was only six weeks ago that the Dragons were dead last in these rankings, but six straight wins against tough opposition have them firmly in first spot. They fully deserve it as well.
Negative: I have no idea what to put here at the moment. No injuries or reports to speak of, a sixth straight win, the NRL’s best defence. Life’s pretty good for a Dragons’ fan at the moment.
2. Brisbane Broncos (6-2) (LW: 3)
Positive: Anthony Milford. A second half double for the Broncos five-eighth fairly much won them the game. On a night where some of the forwards struggled, Milford played one of his better games in a Broncos jersey.
Negative: Josh McGuire. I’m not saying he played badly, but he could be in some trouble for an early swinging arm on Brad Takarangi.
3. North Queensland Cowboys (5-3) (LW: 4)
Positive: They find a way to win. Five straight now for the Cowboys, but their last two have been very close affairs. After a big come behind win in Round 7, the Cowboys did enough to hold off a fast-finishing Newcastle side to claim the two points.
Negative: Jason Taumalolo’s injury. Taumalolo has been in red-hot form to start the year, but he’ll now miss up to eight weeks with a medial ligament.
4. Melbourne Storm (5-3) (LW: 1)
Positive: The defence was good again for the Storm. It took the Sea Eagles 49 minutes to crack the Storm’s defensive line, and it was only the brilliance of Daly Cherry-Evans that caused it.
Negative: Two of their three losses have come against the bottom side. That’s not ideal for a team wanting to push for Top 4.
5. Wests Tigers (4-4) (LW: 11)
Positive: Kevin Naiqama’s try assist. We can just about shut the door on the Try of the Year competition. Naiqama and James Tedesco fairly much locked that down in the fifth minute of Friday’s game.
Negative: Not too many negatives from Friday Night for the Tigers, but losing the penalty count is never a good thing.
6. Gold Coast Titans (4-4) (LW: 9)
Positive: Kane Elgey. The young Titans half had his best game in first grade with two tries and two try assists. The Titans have found the perfect half to pair with Cherry-Evans in 2016.
Negative: They almost let the Warriors back in. Two tries in the last 10 minutes made things a little nervy for the Titans, and made what should have been a comfortable win seem difficult.
7. South Sydney Rabbitohs (4-4) (LW: 5)
Positive: Chris McQueen played his 100th game on Sunday, and he was arguably the Rabbitohs’ best in his milestone game with two line breaks and a try.
Negative: They’re complacent. They’ve got a lot of injuries at the moment, but the talent that is still in the side shouldn’t be letting losses like this happen. You get the feeling the Rabbitohs just expect success at the moment.
8. Canberra Raiders (4-4) (LW: 12)
Positive: A week after they put together the biggest comeback in team history, the Raiders knocked off the reigning premiers to mark the first time since 2012 that they’ve won three straight on the road.
Negative: They can’t rely on big comebacks forever, so the starts will need to be fixed in the near future.
9. Sydney Roosters (3-5) (LW: 7)
Positive: Shaun Kenny-Dowall became the third Rooster to score 100 tries for the club on the weekend, a great achievement for a great serviceman of the club.
Negative: Don’t look now, but the Roosters have lost their last four and find themselves outside the eight. They’re also only a game ahead of last place Manly, and if they don’t break out of their slump soon, they could be in very real danger of missing the finals.
10. Canterbury Bulldogs (4-4) (LW: 6)
Positive: Frank Pritchard made a nice two-try cameo off the bench. With the Bulldogs missing so many players through both injury and suspension at the moment, efforts like that from the veterans are much needed.
Negative: They weren’t competitive on Friday. For a club that made the grand final in 2014, their recent form suggests that they’re nowhere near that mark in 2015.
11. Newcastle Knights (4-4) (LW: 8)
Positive: They’ve lost four-in-a-row now, but they were so much better against the Cowboys, and went close to snatching the game in the final 10 minutes. If they get back to the form they were in at season’s start, the wins shouldn’t be too far away.
Negative: Kurt Gidley. The Knights custodian was the weakest link on Saturday, and maybe it’s time to hand over the number one jersey to Sione Mata’utia. It’s been a great career for Gidley, but it might be coming to end sooner rather than later.
12. Penrith Panthers (4-4) (LW: 15)
Positive: They found a way to win. The Panthers have been very good at home this season, and once again they found a way to get it done in front of their home fans despite missing eight regular first-graders.
Negative: Dallin Watene-Zelezniak copped a week for a late dangerous throw on Wade Graham, which will see him miss the Trans-Tasman Test this weekend. It’s a blow for the young Panthers’ winger, who has been a standout so far in a tough season.
13. New Zealand Warriors (3-5) (LW: 10)
Positive: Ben Matulino continues to show why he’s considered one of the best props in the game. He had 150 metres and a try against the Titans to be the Warriors’ standout performer.
Negative: They won most of the stats on Saturday, yet still managed to lose. The Warriors have too much talent to be dropping games at home like this.
14. Cronulla Sharks (3-5) (LW: 13)
Positive: Wade Graham. Graham was the pick of the forward for Cronulla on Sunday, with 157 metres and a try assist. Graham is arguably the key guy for this Sharks side, and he’s putting together a nice season so far.
Negative: They were held scoreless in the second half. The Sharks’ were playing a side missing eight first graders, so this probably should have been a win for them. In reality, they let the game slip away with a poor second half, and head back to the Shire wondering what might have been.
15. Parramatta Eels (3-5) (LW: 14)
Positive: Bureta Faraimo. The Eels winger scored a hat-trick against the Broncos, and he’ll be hard to drop when Semi Radradra returns from injury.
Negative: They were right in the game on Saturday Night, and were probably the better side for long periods, but they gave away 8 points from penalties. Ill discipline like that will cost you every time.
16. Manly Sea Eagles (2-6) (LW: 16)
Positive: You ask any Manly fan which team they enjoy beating the most, and 9 out of 10 will say Melbourne. Well they’ve done that twice this season, and have been impressive in both victories.
Negative: Steve Matai suspension. The Sea Eagles have been so much better with Steve Matai in the line-up this season, but he’s set to miss their Round 9 match against Newcastle after making contact with a referee. It could be costly against a dangerous Knights’ backline.
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