2020 NRL season: Round 7 preview

We are over a quarter into the shortened 2020 NRL season and the Sydney Roosters remain the team to beat.

After losing their first two games, the Chooks have fired on all cylinders since the resumption, winning their past four games and taking care of the previously undefeated Parramatta Eels last Saturday night.

Trent Robinson’s men will start hot favourites to make it five straight when they face the Dragons this Friday night; in contrast to the Roosters’ unbeaten record at Bankwest Stadium, the venue for this clash, the Dragons are none from two at the new venue.

Two other matches have had to be relocated – the Panthers vs Rabbitohs and Storm vs Warriors clashes are now to be played at Kogarah Oval due to concerns involving the playing surface at Campbelltown Stadium, and a recent spike in coronavirus cases in Victoria.

Starting this weekend, all stadiums in Queensland can hold up to 10,000 people, which means the Cowboys and Broncos will be the major beneficiaries as they welcome back crowds.

Anyway, let’s get to the Round 7 preview.

Panthers vs Rabbitohs
Kogarah Oval swings open its doors for the first time since Round 2 (though the public will largely remain locked out) and the Rabbitohs will benefit most as their trip to the ground will be a quarter shorter than the trip the Panthers will have to make from their headquarters.

The mountain men rebounded from their narrow Round 5 loss to the Eels by beating the Melbourne Storm 21-14 – marking only their third win against the men from the AFL capital since 2005.

It is a true indication that after a disappointing 2019, the Panthers are back to their best and will be expected to feature at the pointy end of the season for the fifth time in seven seasons.

Meantime, the Bunnies made it two straight wins for the first time this season, thrashing the Warriors 40-12, with Latrell Mitchell continuing to impress in the fullback position.

Storm legend Billy Slater had advised the ex-Rooster to learn from how Tom Trbojevic has excelled in the role for Manly, and it seems Mitchell has heeded the Maroon’s advice.

A major boost for Souths will be the return of centre James Roberts, following his stint in rehab during the season’s shutdown.

In what is expected to be a close match, the Panthers will take the chocolates.

Prediction: Panthers by eight points.

(Photo by Matt King/Getty Images)

Storm vs Warriors
Only a few weeks ago the Storm was being offered as a test case for the return of crowds to sporting events, but we now know this will not happen in Victoria for the foreseeable future as the dreaded second wave of COVID-19 hits Australia.

It’s the last thing Craig Bellamy’s side would want after they fell to a 21-14 loss to the Penrith Panthers at Campbelltown Stadium last Friday night.

Their plight is nothing compared to the New Zealand Warriors, who have copped criticism from all corners for their ruthless decision to dismiss Stephen Kearney less than 24 hours after their 40-12 loss to the Rabbitohs.

There was no indication of the coach ever being in the firing line, especially after they had beaten the Dragons and Cowboys upon resumption of the season last month. However, it seems the club’s constantly inconsistent results proved the tipping point.

Former Wests Tigers premiership player Todd Payten will assume duties on an interim basis, and he will have it tough trying to lift the shattered side in a match played on neutral territory.

The Storm to show no mercy.

Prediction: Storm by 16 points.

Roosters vs Dragons
Paul McGregor was expected to be the first coach to be sacked after the Dragons lost their first four matches of the season, but the pressure appears to be alleviated, with the side having won their past two games, against the Sharks and Titans.

As for the Roosters, they have swept all before them since the season resumption to surge into the NRL’s top four.

Last week they faced serious opposition from the previously undefeated Eels, and despite losing fullback James Tedesco to concussion midway through the second half – while trailing 8-10 – still showed their class to win 24-10.

That followed on from huge victories over the Rabbitohs, Broncos and Bulldogs, and now Trent Robinson’s men are in prime position to continue their hot form against a side to whom they haven’t lost on a day other than Anzac Day since the 2010 grand final.

The Chooks won both encounters last year, including in Round 23 when they led 28-0 at halftime and were seemingly on track for an embarrassingly easy victory before they settled for a 34-12 victory.

At Bankwest for another week, the Roosters should take the points easily.

Prediction: Roosters by 20 points.

Cowboys vs Knights
The first match on Saturday sees the Knights make the hit-and-run trip to Townsville to face an out-of-form Cowboys side in what will be the new stadium’s first match in front of crowds since Round 1.

Newcastle’s impressive start to the season continued last Thursday when they led from lights to flag to defeat the Broncos 27-6. However, they will be without rookie centre Bradman Best after he inadvertently breached COVID-19 protocols, meaning he will have to spend a week outside of the club bubble and be tested upon returning to training next week.

Meantime, North Queensland’s woes continued last Saturday night, humiliated 36-20 by the Wests Tigers at Campbelltown Stadium after they had trailed 34-0 at halftime.

Coach Paul Green, who could be shown the door if results do not improve, would’ve been pulling his hair out furiously after seeing his charges, premiers only five years ago, cough up six first-half tries.

While they won the second half 20-2, it was still an embarrassing performance and with matches against Parramatta and the Roosters to come after this one, things could get worse before they get better.

In their favour is that they haven’t lost to the Knights at home since 2015 – the year they won their first premiership, while the red and blue won the first of a hat-trick of wooden spoons.

However, on current form, the Knights should take the points.

Prediction: Knights by 18 points.

Those were the days, huh Cowboys fans? (AAP Image/Dave Hunt)

Broncos vs Titans
The first south-east Queensland derby of the season is between two sides that have won three games between them this season and sit 14th and 16th place on the ladder.

The Broncos are the only side to have not yet won a match since the season resumption, losing their past four games – three of them by at least 21 points.

Poor discipline proved to be their downfall in their 27-6 loss to Newcastle on the Central Coast, with two players copping suspensions from that match, further testing coach Anthony Seibold’s patience.

Meantime, after beating the Wests Tigers in Round 4, the Titans have lost their past two, but were far from disgraced in defeats to the Rabbitohs in Sydney and the Dragons at home. They looked headed for a tryless defeat against the Dragons at Suncorp Stadium but were able to peg back a try in junk time through Tanah Boyd just to make the scoreline a bit more respectable.

Still, they will fancy themselves here and a win would see them join their neighbours on two wins for the season.

However Brisbane are overdue for a win and should take the points.

Prediction: Broncos by ten points.

Eels vs Raiders
Parra gave a good account of themselves against the Roosters, with Maika Sivo bumping James Tedesco out of the way en route to scoring a try that gave the local side a 10-8 lead halfway through the second half.

But that was as good as it got for the blue and gold, as they eventually crashed to their first loss of the season.

Next up for Brad Arthur’s men are the Canberra Raiders, another one of their recent bogey sides.

The Green Machine were outplayed in a 14-6 loss to an injury-ravaged Manly last Sunday after trailing 12-0 at halftime.

They pegged back a try but otherwise couldn’t eat into the Sea Eagles’ eight-point lead, which surely would’ve frustrated coach Ricky Stuart, who suffered an unwanted milestone in the match as it marked his 200th loss as an NRL coach.

The 2002 premiership-winning coach had been on 199 wins and 199 losses going into last week’s game, and will want to bring up his 200th win against the club he coached for one unsuccessful season in 2013.

Recent history favours the Raiders, who have won 11 of their past 14 against Parramatta – however, the blue and gold side triumphed in their most recent meeting, 22-16 in Darwin in Round 15 last season.

Though the Eels may be at home, Canberra will take the points.

Prediction: Raiders by six points.

Sea Eagles vs Sharks
Despite losing two players inside the first five minutes last Sunday and being reduced to one fit man on the bench in the second half, Des Hasler’s side pulled off one of their most courageous victories.

Among the injuries were those to fullback Tom Trbojevic and centre Dylan Walker, with the pair set to miss up to two months as a result of their respective hamstring and foot injuries.

They led 12-0 at halftime, and while challenged by the Raiders in the second half, hung on to win 14-6.

On the other hand, the Sharks registered their second win of the season at the expense of the Bulldogs, with Sione Katoa scoring three tries in their 20-18 victory, which has eased the pressure on second-year coach John Morris.

They had also beaten the Cowboys in Townsville on either side of being the first team to be beaten by arch-rivals St George Illawarra at Campbelltown Stadium in Round 5.

At least Cronulla will not have to face Manly at Brookvale Oval, where the Shire-based club has only won five times in over half a century. Instead, they’ll play at Central Coast Stadium, where their last visit resulted in a huge 44-12 win over the Roosters in front of a sell-out crowd in Round 17, 2017.

Regardless of the venue, the Sea Eagles will start favourites to continue their impressive start to the season.

Prediction: Sea Eagles by ten points.

Cade Cust of the Sea Eagles (AAP Image/Craig Golding)

Bulldogs vs Wests Tigers
There continues to be doubt over whether Dean Pay will continue to lead the Berries after they crashed to a fifth loss in six games, though they only went down 20-18 to the Sharks after they had been level 6-all at halftime.

That followed on from a horrific 42-6 loss to the Roosters in which they were without Aiden Tolman, who has had to self-quarantine for a fortnight after it was revealed that one of his children attends a school where a teacher has tested positive to COVID-19.

Things will not get any easier, as the Bulldogs face a Wests Tigers side which rebounded from two straight losses to thrash the North Queensland Cowboys 36-20.

It was a case of no Benji, no worries for the Tigers who had the match won by halftime, leading 34-0 before cooling their heels in the second half and allowing North Queensland to compete in the second half.

Despite the scoreline, coach Michael Maguire still wouldn’t have been happy with how the second 40 unfolded, as he continues to demand consistency from a side which has not played finals football since 2011 – currently the longest drought of any club.

Marshall has again been overlooked, named 18th man in the event that a late injury forces a change. The Tigers will also be keen to reverse both losses to the Bulldogs from last year, one of which came after Paul Momirovski missed a conversion at the death that would’ve sent the match into golden point.

That said, the Tigers should take the points and sentence the Bulldogs to a sixth loss from seven games to start the season.

It could as well be Dean Pay’s final game in charge of the Dogs if he hasn’t yet been sacked this week.

Prediction: Wests Tigers by 14 points.