The Wests Tigers will be out to continue their hot run of form and keep finals hopes alive when they play the struggling Canterbury Bulldogs in Round 20 at Homebush. Join The Roar for live scores and coverage from 7:55pm (AEST).
Sitting just four points out of the top eight in ninth spot, the Tigers will still be hoping against hope they might be able to fight their way into the finals over the final six rounds of the season.
They have shown plenty of positive signs to be well above expectations this season, but the best of those may well be the last fortnight.
After four straight losses, their top eight hopes appeared dashed, but they have since beaten two top four sides in the St George Illawarra Dragons and South Sydney Rabbitohs, breaking a nine-game winning streak of the latter last week.
In no small part have the victories had to do with the return of Robbie Farah and form of Benji Marshall, with the two veterans guiding the team around the park on the back of a forward pack who have been at the top of their game.
The victory over South Sydney, where they dominated and let in just a single tries proves exactly where they are at, with the club having a relatively easy run home from here on out.
If they can win five or even six of their remaining games to the end of the season, there is every chance they will slide past the Warriors into the finals.
This game is a somewhat dangerous one though. They go in as heavy favourites, but after being right up for the last fortnight against the best the competition have to offer, they could be well ever so slightly off the boil this time around.
The Bulldogs are there for the taking though. They have been nothing short of woeful in 2018. Through no fault of the players, the club is in turmoil and form has dropped off the cliff.
It reached a new low last week when they lost to the also struggling Parramatta Eels, slumping the blue and whites to their seventh loss in the last eight games.
It’s been a rough season for the men from Belmore, although debutant Lachlan Lewis has produced some good signs. If he can combine with Jeremy Marshall-King and the forward pack hold their own then there is a chance they could finish the season with a few wins.
Based on what has been dished up though, it’ll be a stretch.
Prediction
The Tigers are in form, desperate and should win. Even if there is a slight drop off in intensity from the last fortnight, they will cruise over the top during the second half.
Tigers by 14.
Be sure to join The Roar for live coverage of this Round 20 clash from 7:55pm (AEST) and don’t forget to add a comment in the section below.
Deano70
Guest
Robbie Farah gets in the way again. Needs to stay at dummy half, he was constantly standing at half back in the attacking 20 and effectively took Brooks out of the game. I can see that they tried to play Brooks wider at time but that kid needs the ball early and he needs it first. It was his worst game this season, Farah needs to play dummy half and dummy half only, he isn’t Josh Hodgson
Cousin Claudio
Roar Guru
Benji and Robbie have a little wager on the Bulldogs did they? Easy money at good odds.
Big daddy
Guest
Tigers playing at dog's level. As uncle Wayne said you have highs and lows. It happens to every team. Maybe effort from last 2 weeks had peaked.
JimboJones
Guest
Ten minutes to go and it was all still one out stuff....Very frustrating to watch , I was hoping desperation might set in and the ball would be a hot potato , but instead they played the last ten like the first. Cant blame Cleary , he didn't play.
The Barry
Roar Guru
Good summary mate and good sportsmanship. Good luck for the rest of the season.
StuMac
Guest
Tigers love a big crowd and being underdogs against the top sides. Small crowd and a Dogs team playing for pride and avoiding the wooden spoon. Tigers a chance of squeaking into the final 8 if they can keep the form of the last 2 weeks going, but they go missing. Tigers defence was poor, Dogs easily bent the Tigers line, making easy metres and Tigers often with only 1 tackler instead of 3 or 4 like in the last 2 weeks and gaps opened up. Opposite from the Dogs defence, keen, aggressive in numbers & no gaps and blunted a lacklustre Tigers attack. Attitude and mental toughness wins games, Tigers not switched-on and mentally tough enough tonight. Note to Ivan Cleary - you don’t motivate your halfback who is a confidence player by threatening his job security talking about bringing your son in to replace him. Ridiculous distraction when you need your playmaker focussed on the job at hand, (kicking well, which he didn’t tonight) providing a spark, directing the wins and getting the team into the final 8. Ughh Tigers, your long suffering fans had to endure that half-baked performance when the finals were a hopeful chance. Dogs too good tonight.
Danno1
Guest
I was going to say stormed,,,,,
Magic Lyrebird
Guest
I only saw the first half, but it was great!
The Barry
Roar Guru
Not the dogs fault the Tigers didn’t show up to play...
The Barry
Roar Guru
We’ve surged up into 13th ahead of Manly on f/a
Danno1
Guest
best game without a doubt!!! Quality 80 mins Surprised we're not in top 8 contention after that.....
Scott Pryde
Expert
Worst? Close to it.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Very...
The Barry
Roar Guru
He was killing it in the first few weeks but hasn’t been the same since he had that bad head clash against Souths...
Zedman
Roar Rookie
Thanks Scotty, tough night.
The Barry
Roar Guru
He can’t help himself taking hitups on the 4th in the attacking 20 !!! Old habits die hard.
Zedman
Roar Rookie
Agree with that Baz, i did have a shot about his fifth tackle fetish but he ran a lot of meters and cleaned up some plays with good footy sense.
The Barry
Roar Guru
Best game of the year!
Drew
Roar Rookie
Plenty of energy. A much needed leader.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Thanks for joining me this evening for The Roar's live coverage of Friday Night Football as the Bulldogs beat the Tigers and earlier, the Cowboys came back against the Knights. Hopefully you enjoyed the coverage (even if not the spectacle). I'll be back on Sunday at 2pm (AEST) for the Titans and Warriors, but of course, we have three games on tomorrow, so be sure to stick with The Roar for all the best NRL coverage. Bye for now.