The 2017 National Rugby League (NRL) season is just upon us now, and in a tight competition like this one, there are a myriad of storylines that will be followed with great interest.

Can the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks overcome the loss of Ben Barba and Michael Ennis to become the first team in an unified competition since the Brisbane Broncos in 1992-93 to win back-to-back premierships?

Will the return of Billy Slater from a long-term shoulder injury catapult the Melbourne Storm to a third premiership in what could be his last year of his career?

What about the North Queensland Cowboys? Can they redeem themselves after their exhausted performance in last year’s preliminary final against the eventual premiers to bounce-back to premiership glory?

Can the Brisbane Broncos complete their own redemption story after their grand final heartbreak in 2015?

Can the Sydney Roosters, and the South Sydney Rabbitohs rebound to being prominent premiership contenders after both having years blighted by injuries, off-field controversy and poor form?

Can the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs rediscover their mojo, and the type of form that saw them make the grand final in 2012 and 2014?

Can Kieran Foran complete a redemption story of his own by taking the New Zealand Warriors to their first premiership after missing the finals for the last five years?

What about the Canberra Raiders and the Penrith Panthers? Can these two teams, burgeoning with young talent, win their side’s first premiership since 1994 and 2003 respectively?

Can the combination of Jarryd Hayne, Kane Elgey, Ashley Taylor and Nathan Peats spark the Gold Coast Titans to a second-straight finals appearance, and a shot at premiership glory?

Can Mitchell Moses and Luke Brooks, along with James Tedesco, spark the Wests Tigers towards their first finals appearance since 2011?

Can the Parramatta Eels recover from a tumultuous 2016 in so many ways to make a meaningful impact in 2017?

Can Trent Barrett prove to everyone his strong coaching credentials by taking the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles back to the finals after a two year absence?

And, can the Newcastle Knights, with a rising stock of young talent, and the St George Illawarra Dragons avoid the dreaded wooden spoon?

There are just so many questions to be answered, so here are my team-by-team predictions for the 2017 NRL Telstra Premiership.

Brisbane Broncos (Prediction: first)
With an embarrassment of riches all across the park, plenty of experienced representative stars, combined with a sprinkling of youngsters, the Brisbane Broncos are my premiership favourites.

Wayne Bennett has signed Benji Marshall during the off-season from the Dragons, and when someone like Bennett buys a player like Marshall, you know that he is going to be used in a meaningful way.

However, competition for spots throughout this team is going to be intense, and there will be a few players that will be left feeling disappointed. However, the spine of the Broncos remains rock-solid, with new captain Darius Boyd, Anthony Milford, Ben Hunt, and Anthony McCullough all searching for ultimate redemption two years after the 2015 NRL grand final.

It has been seven years since Bennett won his last premiership, 11 years since the Broncos won their last one, and 17 years since the club won its last minor premiership. For a club that has won the most premierships since 1988 (six including Super League/five not including Super League), this is completely unacceptable, and in my opinion, the Brisbane Broncos are due to end their drought.

Canberra Raiders (Prediction: second)
Like the Broncos, the Canberra Raiders have an embarrassment of riches all across the park, probably not quite as experienced as the Broncos, but certainly just as talented. Ricky Stuart has done an amazing job in managing his squad, putting all the pieces of puzzle together in the best positions possible.

The only query I have is whether Aidan Sezer has the ability as a halfback to lead a side with this amount of quality talent to premiership glory? However, after making the preliminary finals last year, only losing by two points to the Melbourne Storm, the Raiders certainly have the ability to end their 23-year premiership drought.

Sydney Roosters (Prediction: third)
After winning the premiership in 2013, and three consecutive minor premierships, 2016 for the Sydney Roosters was a horrendous year, blighted by injuries, off-field controversy, and poor form, finishing in 15th position.

However, I sense that last year was just an aberration, and I believe the Roosters will return to being one of best teams in the NRL. They have quality and experience all across the park, and although I query their depth, Trent Robinson’s side should return to the finals and be a genuine premiership contender, should they remain largely injury-free.

North Queensland Cowboys (Prediction: fourth)
After failing to go back-to-back in 2016, the North Queensland Cowboys head into the 2017 season with renewed motivation to claim their second premiership in three years. The team may have lost James Tamou to the Penrith Panthers, but they have claimed a solid replacement in Shaun Fensom from the Canberra Raiders for a squad that remains largely unchanged.

The key for the Cowboys will be for Johnathan Thurston to remain fit and healthy, and if he is, you cannot rule them out.

New Zealand Warriors (Prediction: fifth)
After five-consecutive years of missing the finals, I am predicting the New Zealand Warriors under Stephen Kearney to return to finals in 2017. They have untapped natural talent all across the park, and the recruitment of the tactically-brilliant Kieran Foran to compliment the natural abilities of new captain Roger Tuivasa-Sheck, the potentially mercurial Shaun Johnson, and the brilliant, but inconsistent Issac Luke should be enough to unlock the unrealised potential in this team, and from there, anything is possible.

Penrith Panthers (Prediction: sixth)
After making Week Two of the finals in 2016, the Penrith Panthers see 2017 as the year to really become a serious premiership contender, if they remain injury-free. Under Anthony Griffin, they are a side that are burgeoning with young talent, with a sprinkling of much-needed experience, boosted by the signing of James Tamou from the North Queensland Cowboys.

However, I don’t quite see them having enough to become a genuine contender, but I see the Panthers consolidating their position as a team on the rise, and being regarded as a non-serious premiership chance in 2017.

Melbourne Storm (Prediction: seventh)
After losing narrowly to the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks in last year’s grand final, I sense 2017 will be a character-building year for the Melbourne Storm. I predict injuries will happen to key players, with Tohu Harris already out for at least eight weeks with a stress fracture in his foot, and the return of Billy Slater from a long-term shoulder injury will be short-lived, ending the career of one of the greats.

However, I see enough depth, and young talent in key positions to lift the Storm to another top eight finish.

Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks (Prediction: eighth)
After winning their first-ever premiership in 2016, I don’t see the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks winning back-to-back premierships this year.

A lack of motivation from many of the experienced players, a struggle for a couple of players to deal with the pressure of expectation, particularly Jack Bird and Valentine Holmes, and the failure to fill the hole left by the retired Michael Ennis at hooker adequately enough will end all hopes of a second-successive premiership.

However, I see enough in this squad for the Sharks to just squeeze inside the top eight.

South Sydney Rabbitohs (Prediction: ninth)
After finishing 12th in 2016, the South Sydney Rabbitohs are in the process of a rebuild as they aim to return to the glorious heights of 2014. They have a team that still has members of their last premiership-winning side, as well as a number of good young players, a key new recruit in Robbie Farah, a very good coach in Michael Maguire, and an organisation that is very motivated to return to the top.

However, I am not sure if this team has the consistency to make the top eight, and the Rabbitohs would need to be largely injury-free to achieve this goal, something that hasn’t started well with Adam Reynolds set to miss the first month of the season with appendicitis.

Gold Coast Titans (Prediction: 10th)
After making the finals for just the third time in the club’s history in 2016, and for the first time since 2010, the Gold Coast Titans are looking to build upon this new found momentum in 2017.

They have a strong backline, a great spine, and a solid forward pack. However, I am not sure if the Titans forward pack has enough firepower to give Nathan Peats, Ashley Taylor, Kane Elgey, Jarryd Hayne, and the outside backs the ammunition that they need to create and score the points required to win a large number of games.

Adding to this, I feel there is a lack of depth in the forwards, and they need to remain healthy throughout the majority of the season to challenge for a top eight birth.

Wests Tigers (Prediction: 11th)
The Wests Tigers under coach Jason Taylor will be looking to return his side to the finals after missing the finals for the past five seasons. Looking at their squad, the spine is their strongest asset with the exciting trio of James Tedesco, Mitchell Moses and Luke Brooks looking primed to go to a new level in combination with the experience of Matt Ballin.

However, despite having a good backline, their forward pack is lacking the necessary firepower to compete with the best teams, and give Tedesco, Moses and Brooks the opportunity to stamp their mark on the game, with the exception of captain Aaron Woods, and the Tigers appear to lack depth if injuries strike.

Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs (Prediction: 12th)
The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, despite making the finals for the past five years, and reaching two grand finals within that time, are under massive pressure to make the finals for a sixth-straight season.

Their attack lacks genuine direction, and there are severe doubts as to whether Moses Mbye has the ability to manage a game successfully on a consistent basis. There are also doubts as to whether their massive forward pack can reinvent themselves from being a dour pack into a pack that is more dynamic to give their spine and backline the ball they need to be successful.

And with the playing depth of the Bulldogs in my mind being questionable, I see a Des Hasler-coached club missing the finals for the first time since 2004.

Newcastle Knights (Prediction: 13th)
After producing one of the worst seasons in professional rugby league history in Australia in 2016, winning only one game, and still being on an 18-game losing streak in official competition matches, the Newcastle Knights, under coach Nathan Brown, will be looking to avoid the wooden spoon in 2017.

The wooden spoon is something which they have claimed for the last two seasons. While it would be easy for most of the so-called experts to tip the Knights for a third-successive wooden spoon, it is possible to dig deeper and see the massive upside in this squad.

Led by captain Trent Hodkinson, the Knights have signed the experience of Jamie Buhrer, Rory Kostjasyn, Anthony Tupou, Josh Starling, Ken Sio, and Joe Wardle. Combine this with the mid-season signings in 2016, and a huge pool of up-and-coming young talent, and all of a sudden, you can see the bones of a team that could be successful in two or three years’ time.

While the Newcastle Knights won’t make the top eight in 2017, they certainly won’t win the wooden spoon again, mark my words.

Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles (Prediction: 14th)
After missing the finals for the past two seasons, the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles will be looking to return to the finals in 2017. Looking at their squad, it is solid, but not spectacular.

I also have concerns about Daly Cherry-Evans ability as a game manager, likewise Blake Green, who joins the club from the Melbourne Storm, and we know that former Melbourne players tend to struggle to reproduce the form that they had at the Storm with their new clubs.

I also have doubts in the coaching ability of Trent Barrett, and of the team’s ability to produce consistent performances on a week-by-week basis. I predict the Sea Eagles to struggle, and for Barrett to be very much on the hot seat by season’s end.

St George Illawarra Dragons (Prediction: 15th)
After missing the finals for four of the past five seasons, the St George Illawarra Dragons will be looking to defy the critics by making a push for the finals.

However, they won’t. Paul McGregor will be the first coach sacked in 2017 for his sheer lack of imagination, inspiration, and having absolutely no idea how to get the best from his players.

Once the new coach comes in, the Dragons will show much better cohesion and a greater understanding of how to win games of rugby league. It will be just enough for them to avoid the wooden spoon.

Parramatta Eels (Prediction: 16th)
After a traumatic and tumultuous year in 2016 in so many ways, the Parramatta Eels will be looking to end their 31-year premiership drought in 2017. However, I don’t think the Eels will get anywhere close.

Their side is full of bits and pieces players, old and worn out players, and there has been little effort made to rejuvenate the roster as they continue to sort out their books. The team does not look threatening in any way, and with the added blow of not being able to play at their spiritual home as it gets rebuilt, the Parramatta Eels have all the ingredients of a wooden spoon side.

They will struggle, and Brad Arthur may not survive the wrath of the new and ruthless club board.