Six weeks out from the start of the finals, the Sydney Roosters and St George Illawarra Dragons face off in what could be a possible entree to September at Allianz Stadium this Sunday.
Both teams enter the clash in red hot form, with the Dragons in a three-way tie for first place on the ladder while the Roosters posted the highest score of any side this season, scoring 56 points against the Sea Eagles.
The Red V ended a two-match losing streak by defeating the Cowboys in Townsville by 24-10, making it three from three against the Queensland sides and two from two in the Sunshine State for season 2018.
Coach Paul McGregor suggested that the trip to Townsville, where their previous win came all the way back in 2005, could have rejuvenated his side after they felt the effects of another brutal State of Origin series.
Ben Hunt of the Dragons (AAP Image/Craig Golding)
Tariq Sims, Tyson Frizell (who was rested from the match against the Cowboys), Paul Vaughan, Jack de Belin and Ben Hunt all turned out for the Blues and Maroons (in the case of Hunt) for the series, which was won by the Blues for just the second time since 2005.
Their extra workload, having to play four days after the series decider in Brisbane, was a factor in their 20-16 loss to the Wests Tigers at home in Round 18.
The match before that saw 52 points conceded against a Melbourne Storm side whose captain Cameron Smith stepped down from all representative duties ahead of his likely retirement at the end of this decade.
That aside, the Dragons’ consistency throughout the season has seen them spend the whole season inside the top three, thus putting them in a strong position to claim the double chance for the first time since the NRL finals system was overhauled in 2012.
On the other hand, the Roosters are only just starting to gain some steam after a rather sluggish start to the season, in which they returned a record of 6-5 after eleven rounds.
Key recruits James Tedesco and Cooper Cronk both struggled to adjust to their new surroundings after crossing from the Wests Tigers and Melbourne Storm respectively prior to the start of the season, but both have since regained form as the club steamrolls its way towards September.
James Tedesco of the Roosters (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)
In Cronk’s case, moving to Sydney to be closer to his wife, Tara Rushton (who, by the way, has given birth to the couple’s first child), proved to be a massive challenge, having played the majority of his football, both at club and representative level, with Billy Slater and Cameron Smith around him.
Four of the six losses, however, have been by twelve points or less, including single-figure margin losses to the Wests Tigers, Brisbane Broncos and Melbourne Storm, which could so easily have been wins for the Tricolours.
If you reversed those results, the Roosters would be the ones sitting on top of the ladder instead of the Melbourne Storm, which has won seven consecutive matches to claim pole position for the first time in the season.
Last week, Trent Robinson’s men produced easily their best performance of the season, posting the most points of any side in a match this season as they thrashed the Sea Eagles 56-24 at Lottoland last Sunday.
Instrumental to the victory was Latrell Mitchell, who scored two tries and kicked eight out of ten conversions for a personal haul of 24 points, matching the entire Sea Eagles side’s tally, while Parramatta Eels-bound winger Blake Ferguson also bagged a double.
The win catapulted them into fourth place on the ladder ahead of their showdown against the Dragons, where they’ll be been to redeem themselves after a disappointing Anzac Day defeat earlier in the year.
On that occasion, the Red V took home the chocolates in convincing style with Nene Macdonald scoring two tries, the second of them in questionable fashion, and Ben Hunt winning his individual battle against Cooper Cronk.
The Dragons’ dominance was also highlighted by a crunching tackle on Cronk by Tariq Sims early in the second half, at which point the hosts were leading by 12-2 and eventually got on with the job, winning 24-8.
The Dragons are set to take on the Roosters (AAP Image/Darren Pateman)
More than three months on since that match, and more than a month out from the commencement of the finals series, the two sides face off again in what shapes as a genuine finals preview.
With the Storm and Rabbitohs expected to easily account for the Raiders and Eels respectively earlier in the round, the race for the minor premiership couldn’t be as hotter as it is right now.
For the Dragons, it will be about keeping alive their chances of a top two finish, with which comes two finals at home and thus an easy passage to the grand final, while for the Roosters, they will have the chance to join their rivals on 28 competition points with a win on Sunday.
In fact, should the Storm and Rabbitohs both drop their Round 20 matches, the Roosters, whose points differential of +135 is second only to Craig Bellamy’s side (+140), would have the chance to leapfrog both sides, and the Dragons (+125), to the top of the ladder on percentage.
Trent Robinson’s men would also almost certainly book a finals berth, with the Storm, Dragons and Rabbitohs all having accrued enough competition points to feature in September this year.
Therefore, Sunday afternoon’s match not only shapes as a finals preview, but also an important match in the context of the season, with the shape of the ladder set to be determined by this match, as well as several others, in the final six rounds of the season.
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