After Round 2 of the NRL the form guide from Round 1 can safely be burned, and some highly rated teams are yet to get off the mark (yes, Cowboys, I am looking at you).

Of the others, Souths and Roosters can be justifiably happy with their form, and Manly fans can breathe again, even if more waves are coming to dump them.

Before I start on anything else, for God’s sake, can the referees start picking up all the forward passes? Nearly every team is throwing a ‘flat’ ball from dummy half, and a lot of them are forward.

Match fitness was no longer an issue (certainly not an excuse) this week, and the combinations appear to be coming together. It’s a long season, so most coaches will be comfortable with where they are at fitness wise.

Let’s have a look at the teams in order of matches.

Bulldogs
The Bulldogs were a different team this week. Given good possession early, they rolled well and were dominant over the Eels. Pleasingly for Des Hasler, they fought back once Parramatta got back in front, then pulled away comfortably.

Brett Morris was outstanding and the ‘twins’ up front (Aiden Tolman and James Graham) worked hard as usual. Sam Perrett and Curtis Rona looked good out wide and were rewarded with a brace each. Trent Hodkinson is still off his game, maybe the haircut needs to change.

Moses Mbye (or Moses Mumbai as Rabs calls him) was slick at five-eighth, which is good for Des but bad for Josh Reynolds. Michael Lichaa had a vastly improved game from the previous week.

In honour of Dessy’s ‘Voldemort’ line, click here for a magical match report.

Eels
The Eels could fall into a trap and say injuries cost them the game. They certainly didn’t help, but rugby league is a tough game and injuries can happen to anyone. Having said that, they missed Semi Radradra when he went off, mainly because only wingers know how to play on the wing.

Still, they played well, with Manu Ma’u hard to control down the left and Corey Norman having a very strong game while Chris Sandow was off. Will Hopoate had a great game at the back and Danny Wicks ran really well – I guess he hasn’t been on the run for a while.

The Eels bench is very effective, and Brad Arthur may have a problem with his captain barely playing half a match these days.

Sharks
So the Sharks have had two home games, their coach is back, ASADA is over and all is well in the shire. Oops, I just woke up.

If Brisbane were ordinary, then what about the Sharks. They have got Paul Gallen, the workhorse, Andrew Fifita, the tackle buster, the mercurial Ben Barba, and Valentine Holmes, the porn star winger, yet they cannot score a try.

Unfortunately Barba just doesn’t get involved, and that is a no-no from a playmaker. Fifita is too irresponsible with the ball and Gallen gets too much ball. Cronulla’s stats sheet looks great, but it doesn’t achieve anything on the field.

They need to change something and quickly, as coach-sacking season opens on Round 4.

Broncos
Well, hasn’t Wayne Bennett polished this mob? They won away from home which is not to be sneezed at, but gee it’s hard to watch. Maybe the late-night time slot didn’t help, but that game was ordinary. The backs all made big metres but the team only scored two tries.

Anthony Milford (and his nickname is ‘Milf’, with no sense of irony) was better in attack but made too many errors. I don’t think Sam Thaiday off the bench worked particularly well, and because the new kids only had limited time, the starting forwards had huge workloads.

Maybe Bennett has a master plan, but it is too clever for me at the moment.

Panthers
The Panthers continued their early season form with an easy victory. They were very scrappy for a lot of this game, and only powered away at the end. Mind you, when a chance was on, they took it, which is a good sign for the season ahead.

Matt Moylan was great again, his glide past the defence in the first half was sublime. Lewis Brown was strong on the left, and Jamal Idris fell over the line three times. One of the best things about Penrith is the speed on the flanks – these wingers really have ‘it’.

James Segerayo, as usual, busted a lot of defence to keep the Panthers rolling.

Titans
I felt a bit for the Titans. They went over three times in the first half, only to be disallowed. Then, once Penrith settled in, the Titans were leather chasing all game. With the squad they have, and the problems off the field, I am sure they are going to have a long winter.

Aidan Sezer played well, but he lacks support – not just back-up but players knowing where to be off a last tackle play.

The forwards just don’t have enough impact to get the backs rolling, and to be honest until Greg ‘Jail’ Bird and Dave ‘Squizzy’ Taylor are back they probably won’t have it.

Sea Eagles
Hats off to Geoff Toovey. After a horrible first round, and finding out that Kieran Foran was leaving live on NRL 360, he pulled his troops together and beat Melbourne.

For a while Manly were the team of old, with Brett Stewart flashing outside Daly Cherry-Evans. The two blokes who I thought were ordinary last week, Willie Mason and Feleti Mateo, did a great job, with Mateo pulling off one of his classic one-handed passes to set up a try and Big Willie working very hard to make good rolling metres. Steve Matai’s contribution can’t be ignored either, just being on the field lifts his teammates.

The trick is to see if this is a one-off effort, or the start of a Manly fightback.

Storm
Melbourne always lift for a Manly game. They will cry foul about the refs, with some justification, but they were always behind the eight ball – the end scored flattered them.

Young Tonumaipea had a great match, and Jesse Bromwich worked his guts out. The over-reliance on the Big Three will hurt them in the end, but at the moment they have a very willing back row, some good pace out wide, and they still have the Big Three. Kurt Mann (is he Spider, Super or Bat?) held himself well against Jamie Lyon.

Cowboys
The Cowboys are off to a flyer, with two home losses in two weeks. They have no excuses this game, as they led 14-nil and fell asleep in the second half.

If Melbourne rely on the Big Three, then the Cowboys rely on the Big One. If Johnathan Thurston keeps getting clobbered each week (and it seems the judiciary don’t mind), then he will be missing more often than not. Michael Morgan played well, and the back row worked hard.

Sometimes Jason Taumalolo needs to run past blokes rather than just through them, but it is a minor criticism. I still don’t get what value James Tamou is bringing off the bench, compared to starting.

The Cowboys need someone, besides Thurston, to stand up and be counted. Right now they are followers.

Knights
The Knights probably surprised themselves by getting up on Saturday night. They played their normal game, hard yakka from the forwards and lots of ball out to the big, speedy backs. If their’s isn’t the best three quarter line around, I’ll bet Rick Stone still wouldn’t swap it for another.

The experience of Beau Scott and Jeremy Smith helps the young brigade. Those two know just how far to go with the heavy stuff, and can turn back to football without blinking.

I know Sione Mata’utia had a fumbly time at fullback, but I still like him there and Gidley at dummy half. This team is one to beware of.

Rabbitohs
We expected the game of the season and they delivered. A rollicking match showed that Souths can handle pressure. Just imagine leading by 12 and cruising, then losing your halfback and giving up 16 points in an inkling. Most teams would cave in, but not this lot.

Michael Maguire must be very happy on the inside. Sam Burgess never left Souths, George Burgess just swallowed him, and Tom was just as good. Greg Inglis even produced a goose-step to set up a 110-metre try. Glenn Stewart was much improved. He knows where to be, when he is needed, and plugged a lot of gaps.

Luke Keary continues to shine, but it’s a long season. No State of Origin yet, son.

Roosters
The Roosters played really well, yet lost relatively comfortably. Aiden Guerra was destructive in attack and Roger Tuivasa-Sheck was hard to handle. Shaun Kenny-Dowall probably cost them a chance to put Souths away with his ‘Max Mannix’ touch down.

The Roosters bench players don’t quite have the impact of other top sides. Also, Jim Maloney was a bit inconspicuous when the forwards weren’t making half breaks.

Their next game against Penrith will help solve more pieces of the NRL puzzle.

Raiders
The Raiders went back to being the Raiders. They tried hard, competed well, but don’t have the class to win. Jack Wighton did some good stuff from the back, and Iosia Soliola was great in the back row. I think he is the ex-Roosters three quarter, but he has taken a shine to the forwards.

The halves still lack the class required at this level. Blake Austin is just $5.9 million short of what they need.

The biggest problem I see ahead is whether Ricky Stuart can be patient with the youngsters. If he can, they will improve, but if not, it will be a very cold winter for the Raiders.

Warriors
The Warriors improved on week one, and they needed to. Ben Matulino led the way with his barnstorming runs and the outside backs caused a lot of damage. Having Sam Tomkins back also made a huge difference to their metres. Shaun Johnson was better, but he might carrying some injury – not a ‘can’t play’ injury, just something seems to be niggling.

A plus for New Zealand is Ryan Hoffman. He has brought with him the calm of the Melbourne senior group, and that is just what the Warriors need. They are close to being ready to tear someone apart – when is another matter.

Tigers
The Tigers started on fire, playing really well in the first half. Their work down the left netted two tries and nearly a third to Pat Richards. It looked like the combinations were starting to settle in.

Luke Brooks and James Tedesco were sharp and Aaron Woods barnstorming. Martin Taupau ran without fear and even big Keith Galloway was tearing shreds.

Then some idiot blew halftime.

They returned to the field and set the bar really low – playing just about as bad as the Dragons. This might be due to the youth in the squad; they thought they could score from anywhere, but the structure fell way badly. It was a bit embarrassing to see them go for goal at the end when they were 16 points in front. Still, they are a developing team and leading the comp, so good luck to them.

Just a note for Tim Simona – the flick pass to Richards needs a lot more practice. One was forward but the try was given, and the other was crazy. A smart team will intercept on that move.

Dragons
Oh dear, the Dragons. This team actually got worse after Round 1 and the sad part is I think they are playing as well as they can. At least they are consistent in attack.

I don’t want to continue to be critical of Gareth Widdop and Benji Marshall, but whoever thought that was a match-winning pair needs to be committed. It is sad to watch Benji dancing in a dinner suit.

About the only plus for the Dragons is that the bench is better than the run-on forwards. Unfortunately, when you are down 16-nil, it is a moot point.

Next week will be even more interesting, especially for the Titans, Dragons, Cowboys and Sharks. The match of the round, though, has to be on Monday night when the Panthers play the Roosters.