Tonight heralds the start of the 2017 NRL season, and the second half of the round one draw should feature a mix of close games and major blow-outs.
North Queensland Cowboys versus Canberra Raiders
Saturday, 4 March
Kick-off: 7:00pm at 1300SMILES Stadium
North Queensland have sprung no selection surprises with the familiar names of the Cowboys, who we have become accustomed to lacing up the boots for another premiership tilt. The same can’t be said for the Raiders, who will be without captain Jarrod Crocker, who has been replaced in the centre by Elliott Whitehead. 18-year-old Nick Cotric will make his club debut on the wing in the position vacated by Edrick Lee.
It’s a tough ask for the Raiders to make an early season trek to Townsville and topple the experienced and machine-like outfit of the Cowboys. Fatigue will play a part late in the game and I think that is when the Cowboys will break this game open.
Prediction: Cowboys by 10.
Gold Coast Titans versus Sydney Roosters
Saturday, 4 March
Kick-off: 9:00pm at Cbus Super Stadium
Neil Henry will be delighted to be able to name young halves duo Kane Elgey and Ash Taylor for the first time in over a year as the Titans host the Roosters in the final game on Saturday evening. Nathan Peats’s shoulder injury is a blow for the Titans, and they have named former five eighth Tyrone Roberts at hooker for this match. New co-captain Kevin Proctor will be hoping for a strong showing in his hometown.
2017 will be a big year for the Roosters, and I have them in my top four Michael Gordon will start at full-back and Luke Keary at five-eighth in an otherwise unchanged but healthy Roosters squad.
A sultry Saturday night on the Gold Coast could be just the tonic for the Titans to start their season off in a positioned manner. The Roosters are healthy and will be hungry to atone for their dismal 2016 season. The loss of Peats swung the pendulum further in the direction of the Roosters for this clash, but even with their starting hooker I would have tipped the Roosters. Cock-a-doodle-do the Chooks will start 1-0.
Prediction: Roosters by 13.
New Zealand Warriors versus Newcastle Knights
Sunday, 5 March
Kick-off: 2:00pm at Mt Smart Stadium
New Warriors captain Roger Tuivasa-Sheck will be hoping for a smooth return after injury cruelled his 2016 season. The new captain will be marshalling the troops under the guidance of Stephen Kearney, a former New Zealand head coach. The interplay between Tuivasa-Sheck, Johnson and Luke has the potential to be mesmerising, spellbinding and magical. Consistency will decide which direction the Warriors season will go. The Newcastle Knights continue their youth movement with Brock Lamb and Dylan Phythian named, as well as new recruits Jamie Buhrer and Josh Starling.
This is a horror fixture to commence Newcastle’s season, away in New Zealand against a determined Warriors side. This match could be lost for the Knights in the first 20 minutes, and it could get ugly if they fail to curtail the flair and power of the Warriors. I see little hope for Newcastle in this fixture. The Warriors will run wild.
Prediction: Warriors by 24.
Manly Sea Eagles versus Parramatta Eels
Sunday, 5 March
Kick-off: 4:00pm at Lottoland
Two evenly matched sides do battle on Sunday afternoon in the final game of round one of the 2017 season. Manly boast more fresh faces than the Eels, with club debuts for Akuila Uate, Blake Green, Curtis Sironen and Lloyd Perrett. Brad Arthur’s Eels would have made the 2016 finals had they not had 12 points deducted for salary cap breaches, and he will be looking to carry over the teams 13-win 2016 campaign into the new season.
On balance this looks like an incredibly even contest. I don’t expect either side to have a strong defensive record in 2017, and in an open, free-flowing game I’m tipping the offensive prowess of the Eels to get the better of Manly. I figure this match will be an eye-opening insight into both of these teams fortunes in 2017.
Prediction: Parramatta by two
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