The highly-anticipated draw for the 2017 NRL season has been released and there will be some matches and occasions that are well worth looking forward to as 15 clubs look to dethrone the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks as reigning NRL premiers.

Each club has now received their schedule for what is expected to be another blockbuster season, each varying in difficulty depending on how your team fared last year.

There will be big winners and losers from the 2017 fixture, which will see a brand new Friday night match, to kick off at 6:00pm and be televised exclusively on Foxtel, replace Monday Night Football, as well as a blockbuster triple-header on Good Friday.

Let’s look at some of the matches or occasions that you must not miss in 2017.

1. The opening round
As is the case at the beginning of every season, the opening round is one that must not be missed.

Reigning premiers the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks will kick off their premiership defence at home against the Brisbane Broncos, who are again expected to be up there among the premiership contenders in 2017.

The loss of captain Corey Parker to retirement is offset by the arrival of Benji Marshall, for whom this could be his final chance to prove himself in the NRL, having admitted to being a scapegoat for the Dragons’ dismal 2016 season.

The Sharks, on the other hand, will be without at least two of their premiership winning stars, with Ben Barba having been sacked after testing positive to cocaine during the off-season, and veteran hooker Michael Ennis having retired following their drought-breaking win last October.

Still, Paul Gallen’s men will also look to remain in premiership contention, but will have it tough if they are to successfully defend their title. Not since the Broncos in 1992-3 has any club won back-to-back titles in a single, unified competition.

Some of the other opening round matches will see some grudge matches take place, none other than that between the Rabbitohs and Wests Tigers the following night.

Having been pushed out of Concord Oval following a well-documented feud with coach Jason Taylor, new Rabbitoh Robbie Farah will make his debut for the red-and-green against his old club, with whom he was a part of their 2005 premiership side, potentially setting the scene for fireworks at ANZ Stadium.

Another match set to generate fireworks is the one between the Dragons and Panthers at Kogarah Oval on the Saturday afternoon.

Like Farah the day before, Mitch Rein will make his Panthers debut against his old club, whom he famously labelled “boring” in a recent interview, at his old ground. At the Panthers, he has been reunited with former teammate Trent Merrin, who also returns to Kogarah for the first time since leaving the Dragons at the end of 2015.

The new Friday early evening match will see the Bulldogs host the Melbourne Storm in Belmore, while the two Saturday night matches see the Cowboys host the Raiders in Townsville and Jarryd Hayne’s Titans face the Roosters at home.

Sunday will see the Warriors, who have a new coach in former Test boss Stephen Kearney, host back-to-back wooden spooners the Knights at home, while the Sea Eagles and Eels will renew hostilities on the northern beaches to finish it off.

2. The Broncos-Cowboys rivalry resumes
In recent years matches between the Broncos and Cowboys has become a must-watch in the NRL and fans won’t have to wait long to see the two Queensland heavyweights in action, with the first of the two showdowns set for Friday night at Suncorp Stadium in Round 2.

The past five meetings between the two clubs have gone all the way down to the wire – this includes the 2015 grand final, which the Cowboys took out in extra time to win their first premiership thanks to the heroics of Johnathan Thurston, as well as both regular season matches last year, each decided by one point.

In addition, their most recent meeting, a semi-final in Townsville, saw the Cowboys claim a 26-20 victory after they scored a try in the ten-minute period of extra time established by the NRL as the method of deciding finals matches.

Once again, both the Broncos and Cowboys will be expected to be up there among the premiership contenders, and so don’t be surprised if the match is again decided in either the final minutes or even extra time, as was the case in both the 2015 grand final and Round 4 last season.

With the Broncos’ turn to host the Cowboys coming in their first home game of the season, the Cowboys’ turn will come in their final home game of the season – in Round 26 – which might as well serve as a prelude to potentially another blockbuster finals series in which both clubs are expected to be part of.

The Cowboys’ home leg comes at a particularly good time in the season, given the Broncos’ traditional poor run-ins to September, their late-season slump being attributed to the extra workload their Origin representatives are made to endure.

Also in Round 2, the Sharks will travel to Canberra for the first time since last year’s finals series, when now-retired Sharks hooker Michael Ennis caused controversy by mocking the Raiders’ “Viking clap” in front of their fans after his team’s 14-12 victory, which eventually put them on the path to glory.

Raiders fans certainly won’t have forgotten it, but they won’t get the chance to make their feelings for Ennis felt given he has, of course, retired from the game on the highest note possible.

3. Rabbitohs versus Roosters, Round 4
Nearly twelve months since they last met, the Rabbitohs and Roosters will renew hostilities on the Thursday night to kick off Round 4, and there will be some added feeling to the first of the two matches between the pair.

That’s because, barring injury or disaster, Luke Keary is set to face off against some of his premiership-winning teammates for the first time, the 24-year-old having signed with the Roosters for the 2017 season after falling out with the Rabbitohs in the wake of an infamous pre-season clash with Russell Crowe.

Both teams will also be eager to redeem themselves after suffering contrastingly disappointing 2016 seasons, the Roosters crashing from three-time minor premiers to 15th, and the Rabbitohs missing out on September for the first time since 2011.

In addition to Keary, the Roosters have also enlisted the services of another Rabbitoh in Paul Carter, as well as veteran back Michael Gordon, a one-time New South Wales State of Origin representative.

It is expected that both clubs will climb back up the ladder next year. In particular, the pressure will be on Rabbitohs coach Michael Maguire to ensure his team does just that; anything less and he could be the first coach to be sacked in 2017.

The return fixture is in Round 18 at Allianz Stadium; if the season unfolds for both clubs as desired, they could well and truly be in the eight by then. However, both clubs will be without their Origin stars, as the match will take place five nights before the third (and potentially deciding) Origin match in Brisbane.

4. The grand final rematch, Round 6
The Storm and Sharks won’t have to wait long to renew hostilities, with the grand final rematch pencilled in for Sunday, April 9 at AAMI Park.

Last year’s grand final was one for the ages, as the Sharks held off one last desperate raid from the Storm to hold on for a 14-12 win and thus claimed their first ever premiership after half a century in the league.

It was the crowning moment in the career of Paul Gallen, for whom this is likely to be his final season in the NRL before he retires, and also served as redemption for the club following the ASADA scandal which threatened to bring the club down.

As for the Storm, they’ll be keen to avenge that result and the fixture at AAMI Park will help them on that respect, but not even a win will ease the pain caused by their third grand final defeat (after those in 2006 and 2008).

The Sharks’ turn to host the Storm then comes in a Thursday night blockbuster at Southern Cross Group Stadium in Round 14.

Coincidentally, it will fall on the same night the second AFL grand final rematch between the Sydney Swans and Western Bulldogs takes place up the road at the SCG, potentially creating a major logistical nightmare for Sydney sporting fans, with both fixtures expected to draw high crowds.

5. Good Friday triple header, Round 7
For the first time, there will be a Friday triple-header as part of the NRL’s Easter round.

It kicks off in the afternoon with the Bulldogs hosting the Rabbitohs at ANZ Stadium, right next door to the Sydney Royal Easter Show, meaning a bumper crowd is expected for the match between the two traditional rivals.

Then, at 6pm, two of the worst-performed clubs of the 2016 season, the Knights and Roosters, face off in another match that, despite the fortunes both clubs endured last season, is also likely to draw a large crowd in the Hunter.

The triple-header concludes with the south-east Queensland derby between the Broncos and Titans at Suncorp Stadium, in what will be their first meeting since last year’s controversial elimination final, which was won by Wayne Bennett’s men.

That’s only the beginning of what shapes as a massive Easter round.

The Sea Eagles and Storm will renew hostilities at Brookvale Oval on the Saturday, while the Eels and Tigers will do likewise in the annual Easter Monday match at ANZ Stadium, which, like the Good Friday match between the Bulldogs and Rabbitohs, also runs concurrently with the Easter Show.

6. Anzac Round
As always, the Anzac Round gives league fans the chance to pause and remember those who lost their lives while fighting for their country in World War I.

The removal of Monday Night Football for the 2017 season and the fact Anzac Day falls on a Tuesday means that there will be no match on the Monday, but it will only build up to what is considered to be the biggest day on the NRL calendar outside of the grand final.

As has been the case since 2002, the Roosters and Dragons will face off in the main match at Allianz Stadium, before the Storm and Warriors lock horns at AAMI Park in Melbourne later that evening.

But that won’t be the only feature matches of the Anzac Round, with the Rabbitohs to host the Broncos at ANZ Stadium on the Friday night and Jarryd Hayne to travel to Sydney with his Titans for a date with reigning premiers the Sharks at Southern Cross Group Stadium on the Saturday night.

7. Suncorp Stadium double-header, Round 10
Once again, the Suncorp Stadium double header returns for the 2017 season, with the Storm and Sea Eagles again giving up home games in Melbourne and Brookvale to be part of it for the second consecutive year.

The Storm, who defeated the Cowboys 15-14 in the corresponding round last year, will this time host the Titans in the first match starting at 5:30pm, while the Sea Eagles will again host the Broncos on their home turf in the second match starting some two hours later.

Though the Sea Eagles will be the home team, the Broncos will still be expected to enjoy the lion’s share of support and the bonus game at Suncorp Stadium afforded to them will aid their bid to finish as high as possible on the ladder.

Also in Round 10, Round 2 of the Taylor versus Farah bout will take place when the Tigers face the Rabbitohs for the second time in the year, while the Dragons host the Sharks at Kogarah Oval hoping to repeat last season’s upset Round 23 victory.

Both those matches will be on Friday night, with the Tigers-Rabbitohs match being on Channel Nine.

8. The NRL hits the road
For the first time since 2011, top-level rugby league will return to Adelaide when the Sydney Roosters take a home game against the Melbourne Storm to the picturesque Adelaide Oval in Round 16.

The last time an NRL match was played in the City of Churches, just 9,963 fans turned up to see the Storm beat the Bulldogs 28-18. Since then, however, the Oval has undergone a massive redevelopment and now has a capacity of over 50,000.

It will be the first time ever the Roosters have played in Adelaide, while for the Storm this will be somewhat familiar territory, having previously played the Bulldogs there twice for one win (2011) and one loss (2010).

While South Australian rugby league fans will pack the Oval for this match, those in Western Australia will get two chances to see some action, with the Storm to be involved in one of those when they play the Rabbitohs in Perth five rounds earlier.

The other match to be played in Perth will see the Sea Eagles host the Warriors in Round 17, with that match to kick off at 3:30pm, meaning it will air into New Zealand at 7:30pm their time.

Once again, the Rabbitohs will host the Cowboys in Cairns in Round 19, effectively making this a home game for Johnathan Thurston’s men given they will be playing a premiership match north of Townsville for just the second time ever.

9. The run into September
As has been the case since 2013, the final six rounds are left floated, with the times and dates of the matches in those rounds to be determined once the ladder takes shape, so as to give the potential finalists a smooth run into September.

Round 23 will see the Sharks return to Suncorp Stadium for the first time since 2014, when they came from 22-0 down to register a miraculous 24-22 victory in what proved to be Todd Carney’s final NRL game before his sacking a week later.

Shane Flanagan’s men have won their last three matches in the Queensland capital, but by the time they hit the Cauldron their three previous meetings against the Broncos would have taken place at Southern Cross Group Stadium, including the season opener in Round 1.

This match is sure to test the premiership credentials of both clubs, a month out from the finals starting.

It only gets tougher for the reigning premiers when they travel to Townsville a week later to face the Cowboys at the venue of their 2015 finals humiliation, which was seen as many as the first seed planted in the Sharks’ path to premiership glory.

Round 24 also sees the Hayne Plane touch down at ANZ Stadium when the Eels face the Titans at the Olympic venue, which will serve as a temporary home ground for the blue and gold as Parramatta Stadium undergoes redevelopment.

It won’t be the first time he would have faced his old club, with the Titans and Eels scheduled to meet on the Gold Coast in a Friday night blockbuster in Round 3.

Other than those already mentioned above, the other grudge match to look forward to in 2017 is that between the Cowboys and Panthers, which will see James Tamou return to Townsville for the first time since leaving the 2015 premiers at the end of the 2016 season. That will take place just three days after Origin II in Sydney.

Those are some of the matches and grudge showdowns that you will not want to miss in 2017. Of course, there are also the local derbies which will divide the fans of the clubs involved, particularly those between the Roosters and Rabbitohs, Panthers and Eels, Dragons and Sharks, and Broncos and Cowboys.

For many NRL fans, the countdown has already begun to Thursday, March 2, 2017, when the season will open between the reigning premiers, the Sharks, and the Broncos, at Southern Cross Group Stadium.