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The Wiz is going out on limb and naming the top eight before the season has even started. Gulp! It’s never an easy task, but here goes …
Melbourne, Bulldogs, Cowboys, Manly, Souths, Newcastle, Penrith, Canberra.
That’s my eight, and for mine, the Storm are specials to repeat the success of 2012, regardless of whether Bellamy decides to stay or leave at the end of the year.
In fact, while I still like the look of Manly this season, something tells me it could be a Melbourne vs Bulldogs grand final again. They just seem like the best prepared, resourced and coached teams, and these days, that can make all the difference.
They also have quality players in the vital 9, 7, 6, and 1 positions and have depth and talent right across their respective squads.
Everyone’s been hearing about how hard the Bulldogs have been training in the off-season. They can go to another level this year. Meanwhile, Bellamy’s teams are always so well structured and drilled, they are very difficult to crack.
My only real worry with the Storm is their short trip to England to play in the Club Challenge. We’ve learned from past years that this match can really knock teams off their equilibrium for the first few rounds of the season proper.
It will be a draining experience for the players, especially given that Craig Bellamy really wants to win it.
All that said, the toughest part of picking a top 8 at this time of the year is that everyone is fresh. All the teams are primed for big seasons and we’ve all heard the reports that this player is training the house down and that team is being punished on the training field and responding well, and so on.
Who knows what to believe. At this stage, you can really only go on gut instinct.
And my instinct is telling me that – despite some big name off-season signings – the Roosters will struggle again; as will an improved Parramatta; St George are still rebuilding; and the Warriors, while working hard in the offseason, are too hit and miss to be backed with any great confidence. They’ll miss Maloney.
You can forget about the rest as being serious contenders.
It’s shaping up as another close fought competition. And it’s great to see that referees’ boss Daniel Anderson has finally made all these changes that I suggested three years ago.
I hope someone out there is listening to the Wizard.
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