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How good was that! I knew I’d be happy to have rugby league back regardless of what transpired in Round 1, but that was a truly sensational round of football.
It had everything: big hits, breathtaking wingers tries, 40/20s, sin bins, field goals and come-from-behind victories, including two just minutes from full-time and one in golden-point extra time.
There was controversy and there was drama. There were extraordinary feats of athleticism, skill and toughness. It was all the things we love about this game.
Quite pleasingly one thing lacking from this round is a reason to bag the referees. I’m not saying they were perfect – they never are and never will be – but I thought there were no clangers, howlers or shockers from the whistleblowers, and that’s all we can ever ask for.
Here are my five takeaways from Round 1.
Ben Hunt leaves Brisbane without a kicking game
I know we’re only one game into the season, but I reckon Brisbane letting Ben Hunt go was a mistake. Their current halves, Anthony Milford and Kodi Nikorima, are both natural ball-runners and are both relatively inexperienced but neither is a proven organiser.
Yes, they took Brisbane deep into last year’s finals series and played well together in the second half of the season, but they had a three-way rotation going with Benji Marshall. He was always the one who would come on to close out a game. I would argue that he played much more of a part in getting the Broncos to the preliminary final than either Milford or Nikorima.
Now that Marshall is gone, the problems of a Milford/Nikorima halves pairing have been fully exposed, and the result is not pretty. Poor fifth-tackle options were at a premium on Thursday night for the Broncos.
I’m definitely not saying the Broncos are done for the year – old Wayne will have expected this and will have some tricks up his sleeve to help sneak his side into the eight – but I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Broncos being fairly active in the player market this year, particularly when it comes to experienced halves.
(AAP Image/Dave Hunt)
Cowboys and Storm justify their favouritism
I thought that last year’s grand finalists put in easily the two most impressive performances of the round, but given the calibre of players possessed by each side, that should come as no surprise.
The Cowboys were always going to be hard to beat at home. Add in the Johnathan Thurston factor and it’s really no surprise that they won. But the Sharks didn’t make it easy for them – they came to play and North Queensland had to fight hard to get the win.
The Cowboys are a very experienced side and have played a lot of football together. The signing of Jordan McLean is a very astute one, and they still have Lachlan Coote to return from injury. At this stage they are deserved favourites.
Like North Queensland, Melbourne had to fight hard to get the win. The Bulldogs jumped out of the blocks with a Kieran Foran short-ball to Raymond Faitala-Mariner opening the scoring in just the fourth minute.
The same thing happened to Melbourne in the World Club Challenge against Leeds when Ryan Hall scored early, and just like in that game there was not a hint of panic in the Storm.
This is because they know that being in front at the four-minute mark is meaningless, and they know better than any other team how to be in front after 80 minutes. This is why, along with North Queensland, Melbourne are competition favourites at this early stage.
(Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images)
The Roosters will take time to gel
I said this from the moment Cronk signed for the tri-colours, but I really think the Roosters jumped the gun by signing him. I know Trent Robinson wanted to have both Pearce and Cronk, but he had to have known that there was no way that at this stage of his career Pearce would be happy playing second fiddle to anyone.
Pearce and Keary put a lot of work into their combination last year. They were able to gel quite quickly, largely due to Pearce having been a Rooster for so long and having a great understanding with many of his teammates. Keary doesn’t have that understanding with his Roosters teammates yet. Obviously neither does Cronk.
By signing Cronk they decided to throw away all the hard work that had been put into a halves combination that saw the Roosters finish second in the regular season, bowing out one game short of the grand final. It wasn’t a bad effort for a first-year combination. James Tedesco’s arrival was imminent, and with it would come improvement. All they had to do was wait.
But, as usual, Uncle Nick got greedy. He had to have Cronk even though he didn’t need him. He’s doing the same thing with the back row as we speak. It’s not enough for him to have NSW captain Boyd Cordner and club legend Mitch Aubusson, plus future Origin star Angus Crichton coming next year. He needs his golden boy Sonny Bill Williams as well.
I think Cronk will bring the Roosters success, though next year more likely than this year. Will they make the top eight this year? Probably. Will they make the top four? Will they challenge for the title? Will they improve on last year? I’m sceptical, to say the least.
(Ashley Feder/Getty Images)
Viliame Kikau is a game changer
I love this guy and I can’t talk him up enough. He was instrumental for Fiji in the World Cup last year and showed glimpses of what he can do in his nine NRL games in 2017. Provided he doesn’t get injured, this will be his breakout year for sure.
When he came on the field Penrith were down 14-6. He came on, scored a try and earned his side the penalty that allowed them to level the scores at 14-all.
In his short stint on the field he also made five tackle busts from just seven runs and an offload, which led to a line break. Simply put, the guy’s the definition of a beast. You can’t stop him first time and you certainly can’t stop him close to the line.
I’m sure he’ll be eyeing a starting spot, but I think for now his high-impact style has him best suited to coming off the bench. Here’s hoping Fiji can get their World Cup payment issues sorted so that we can have the pleasure of watching him line up for them as well.
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Benji Marshall could be a regular starter this season
I think Benji was the Tigers’ best player against the Roosters. He’s not his flashy brilliant self anymore, and the fact that he’s clearly come to terms with that makes him arguably better than ever.
He comes up with the right play at the right time so often – not Cronk/Thurston/Smith often, but when it comes to game management, he’s only on the next level down. As I said before, he was a big part of why Brisbane got as far as they did last year.
He was originally returning to Wests in a mentoring capacity with the possibility of playing off the bench if it suited the team chemistry. Given that Josh Reynolds is now out until at least Round 5, that starting five-eighth spot is Benji’s for the taking.
If the Tigers continue their winning ways under the leadership of co-captain Marshall, Josh Reynolds might have to settle for the number 14 jersey that he was trying so hard to escape by leaving the Bulldogs. The Tigers may not continue winning, but if they do, I don’t expect Ivan Cleary will want to change things.
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