NRL mid-season review and revised predictions (Part 2)

With the 2017 NRL season hitting its halfway mark, I’m reviewing my pre-season predictions. Yesterday I unveiled my revised top eight, today let’s talk the teams that won’t play finals footy – and just who will ‘win’ the dreaded wooden spoon.

St George Illawarra Dragons
Original prediction: 15th
Revised prediction: ninth

Before the start of 2017, I said that the Dragons would struggle, and that Paul McGregor would be the first coach sacked this year “for his sheer lack of imagination, inspiration, and having absolutely no idea how to get the best from his players.” I also said that when the new coach came in, the team would have “much better cohesion and a greater understanding of how to win”.

I and many others have been proven wrong by McGregor, as the Dragons have finally worked out how to win games of rugby league in this era. They sit third on the ladder after 13 rounds on 18 points, scoring 285 points, which is 56 points shy of what they scored throughout the entire 2016 season, and conceding just 195 points.

However, despite their strong form, the test for the Dragons will be the ability to withstand the challenges from improving teams. They will start to struggle during the second half of the season, and miss the finals on points differential, by the narrowest of margins.

Parramatta Eels
Original prediction: 16th
Revised prediction: 10th

Parramatta have largely proven me wrong. Their experienced players, who I thought were on the outer, have had an Indian summer, and the blow of not playing at their spiritual home hasn’t affected them as much as I thought it would.

The Eels have also signed Mitchell Moses mid-season from the Wests Tigers, and he has the ability to take the club to the next level, particularly in 2018.

However, in 2017, they will still miss the finals, and the club’s 31-year premiership drought will continue.

Gold Coast Titans
Original prediction: 10th
Revised prediction: 11th

The Titans have been courageous in 2017, given their amount of injuries.

Ashley Taylor is possibly rugby league’s next great halfback, and despite an injury-riddled first half of the season, Jarryd Hayne is getting back to some of his best form.

However, they are currently 11th, with ten points, and by the end of the season that position won’t have changed.

Manly Sea Eagles
Original prediction: 14th
Revised prediction: 12th

Manly also had a good start to the season, and sit in sixth position on 16 points.

Daly Cherry-Evans has performed well, Jake Trbojevic has been superb, likewise his younger brother Tom before an injury setback.

However, despite this good start, the Sea Eagles might fall away during the second half of the season, losing a number of close games to miss out on the top eight.

Canterbury Bulldogs
Original prediction: 12th
Revised prediction: 13th

Before the start of 2017, the Bulldogs were under pressure to make the finals for the sixth consecutive season, and that pressure has taken its toll on the club.

Raelene Castle resigned prematurely as CEO, and the coach and chairman are already looking towards 2018, focusing on signing players, and sorting out a strong roster for next season.

Club morale is low, especially after five-eighth Josh Reynolds announced he would be departing for the Wests Tigers in 2018, and the team seems to lack spark and the ability to be dynamic with the ball.

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South Sydney Rabbitohs
Original prediction: ninth
Revised prediction: 14th

South Sydney, as I said before the season, are in the process of a rebuild, but it is proving far tougher than they expected.

They have won zero home games from six, and have been severely affected by injuries, including Greg Inglis going down with an anterior cruciate ligament issue in Round 1 against the Wests Tigers – although he stayed on the field, and even scored a try.

They lack consistency with their play, so it will be no surprise if they finish well outside the top eight.

Newcastle Knights
Original prediction: 13th
Revised prediction: 15th

The Knights are looking to avoid the wooden spoon for the third-successive year. While they ended their 19-match losing streak at home in Round 2, against the injury-riddled Gold Coast Titans, and defeated the Canberra Raiders in Round 10, they are currently in last position after some close losses, and some inconsistent performances.

New signings Jamie Buhrer, Josh Starling, Ken Sio, Joe Wardle, and to a lesser extent Anthony Tupou have performed well so far in 2017, although the absence of Rory Kostjasyn due to a throat injury, plus other untimely injuries, have really hurt their season.

Adding to this, their inability to sign new players for 2018 has seen their morale take a significant hit.

However, I still believe the club can avoid winning the wooden spoon in 2017.

Wests Tigers
Original prediction: 11th
Revised prediction: 16th

In Round 1, the Tigers defeated the Rabbitohs 34-18.

In Rounds 2 and 3, the Tigers were beaten by the Penrith Panthers and the Canberra Raiders by a combined score of 82-8, and Jason Taylor became the first head coach to be sacked in 2017 in an extraordinary move by the club.

Assistant coach Andrew Webster filled in as caretaker for two matches, before the club signed Ivan Cleary until the end of the 2020 season.

However, form hasn’t really improved significantly, the team currently sitting second-last, and Mitchell Moses left mid-season for the Parramatta Eels. Plus, Aaron Woods and James Tedesco announced they will be leaving at the end of the season, which was another blow for morale.

Despite the mid-season signing of Tuimoala Lolohea from the New Zealand Warriors, the Wests Tigers are a wooden spoon candidate – a wooden spoon that the club’s front office truly deserve.