Rooty Hill RSL NRL Blog

Round 3 Results

Monday morning the first thing I do is check my tips result against so called experts out of rugby league week, big league etc and ok ok it seems I went ordinary on the weekend.. financially things weren’t great but hey a week is a long time in sport..

 

The only thing we got right on the punt was the low score Sunday afternoon with the Dragons winning and Souths beating Newcastle by plenty (lucky on that one)

 

The Tigers win was outstanding but the Roosters ran out of puff and thats something my mate Freddie will need to address pretty quickly..ie they play this Friday night!

 

Benji’s show on Friday night was fantastic wasn’t it..and justifies Tim Sheens persistence in playing him at half back.. as he said after the match.. anyone who thinks he’s a better 5/8^th than halfback has no idea what they are talking about.

 

The Titans showed again why they are going to be pain for sides on the Gold Coast this year.. no Scott Prince..but this kid William Zillman I’m telling you is a future star..

 

The Dogs had the big win against Manly, won but lost against the Panthers and now lost to the Titans..this weeks game against a wounded Sharks is a must win or all the hype will be just that.

 

I wish I could go back in time 3 weeks and find out what the Broncos were paying to win the minor premiership??? They are such a good side ..no hodges and they destroy the Warriors who hadn’t been beaten at home for 7 games.. Ivan Henjak may have been the assistant to Wayne Bennett but the apprentice meets the master this week and the apprentice will win.

 

Parramatta won their match and promptly went out and bought lotto tickets instead of celebrating with a few beers, and so they should. The Eels got out of jail and Canberra’s David Furner while not winning a game gets the award for the best move of the weekend..that scrum based trick didn’t get the result because the hooker got too pushy and now it gets sent back to the dungeon for a few months but it means Furner is prepared to have a crack and you can’t ask for more than that.

 

And the late game was worth staying up for wasn’t it?.. Melbourne still a magnificent side have now won 2 and lost 1 albeit by a point..so they will also be there and those including me who thought they might not be as dominant are starting to peel a little egg off the face but its still a long way to go before September.

 

Craig Wing scored a double which gave the crowd at Gosford something to cheer about in the 2^nd half ..lucky it did because they had nothing to cheer in the first..

 

And the curse of Monday night football struck again.. the loss by the Sharks means that every team that’s played Monday night footy has failed to win the following week.. only 2 rounds in but 4 out of 4 is a telling stat. Especially if the team has to play in the heat the following week its nearly impossible to win.  Canberra in week 2 and the Sharks and Newcastle yesterday.

 

I feel for the Sharks.. they bought well but injuries are killing them and the sooner Ricky gets everyone back on the field the better they will be.. I just hope they are not too far off the pace.

 

Tonight is gonna be a story either way.. Manly wins, Manly loses. This time last year they were in the same place 0 and 2 and bounced back and flogged the Warriors and as I predicted on Friday I think they will do the same again.

Tips for the Weekend

Cowboys v Storm..DAIRY FARMERS

Like the Warriors v Broncos this is a do not miss game.

Cowboys brilliant last week against  bruised Tigers lineup.. Storm very very good against the Broncos.. I don’t like the fact Melbourne have to fly north 2 weeks in a row and I hate the fact this game is a late start courtesy of daylight saving. The Tigers players told me, on the firday night at 9.30 they were going to sleep..yet realised they were playing at the same time the following night.

A tough ask and with Bowen and Thurston back and in form its hard not to tip the Cowboys

Tip Cowboys to run away with and win 10 plus

 

SUNDAY GAMES

Souths v Newcastle..BLUE TONGUE

The Monday night football curse struck again last week with both teams involved losing and iuts hard not see it happening again. The Knights were brave against Cronulla but how much did that take out of them. Backing up against a Souths outfit in Gosford will be tought but I would not be taking the short odds Souths given their effort last week.

I expect this will be a bit of touch footy..hot sunny day ..look what happenend last time both teams played at this hour.Souths scored 50 and the Knights let in 34.

TIP Souths to win and go the overs

Dragons v Sharks..KOGARAH

 

Gimme a break on the WIN Jubilee Kogarah crap.. its Kogarah and The Sharks cannot possibly win. End of story. They were awful Monday night and I’m reliably told they are bbrusied and battered. Plenty has been said about the return of Barrett to Kogarah but hey Im prepared to say Wayne Bennett and his Dragons don’t give a flying fat rats about that. They will win but they are short.

Tip Dragons but not by a lot given the Sharks defence

Monday night

 

Manly v Penrith..BROOKVALE

 

Manly Manly Manly.. this time last year Manly had lost their first 2 games and then beat the Warriors 52 to 6. They went onto win the comp. I’m tipping it might happen again.

Tip Manly to win by 46

 

 

THE WEEKEND CERTS FROM THE SPORTSGUY.... THE BRIDE TO BLOW-UP ABOUT SOMETHING, ME TO LOSE AT THE RACES, THE WARRIORS TO WIN AGAIN AND THE COWBOYS TO BEAT THE STORM ...

Round 2 NRL Wrap Up

OK footy fans hope you followed me into the weekend..the best bet saluted although we are a bit lucky courtesy of the Doggies 14^th man..but hey Dogs into the Cowboys, double your money in 4 hours. GET IN THE QUEUE.....

The tips not so good...I got 4 out of 8 with Souths, Manly, Canberra, and Cronulla letting me down.

 

Ouch....did you see the ankle of Cameron Ciraldo last night in the footy..made me ill watching it. Now we find out it wasn't just a dislocation but a broken ankle. Geez it looked awful.

And awful is the word to describe the Sharks who were at home and let their supporters down. Newcastle on the other hand were fabulous and with only 1 fit replacement no wonder Brian Smith called it the best win he's coached there.

So tell me footy fans, do you think the Dogs should lose the points??

Of course they should. No argument they had 14 players on the field when they scored a try and Ryan was part of the attacking line.

Its a harsh penalty but the harsher one is the fact that Penrith don't get the 2 points!

They by all rights would have won the game as Ryan should not have been on the park but they get zero and so should the Dogs. By paying a fine it just means money can buy a comp.

The good thing already about 09 is that by the end of week 3 just 1 team will be unbeaten (bulldogs drama included)

Brisbane play the Warriors and whatever team wins leads the comp come next Tuesday.

IT WILL BE INTERESTING TO SEE HOW THE Monday night teams back up last night.. in week 1 the 2 sides Canberra and the Tigers got beaten the following week so the curse of Monday night lives on..

Cronulla play Saints and the Knights are at home to South’s.

 

Now the other thing that got up my kilt over the weekend is the reluctance of some refs to go for the video.. I have been saying for years and will continue to do so.. EVERY TRY NEEDS TO BE LOOKED AT BY VIDEO REF…. its simple. People whinge at me saying it will take too long but that’s crap. If there were 10 tries scored normally only 2 or 3 need more than 1 look so that would add 3 minutes to the length of a game.

 

The thing you will achieve if a try is allowed and the video is ignored is what we saw on the weekend. 2 tries awarded when they should not have been. Broncos one was disgraceful and so was the Knights one last night. The are game turning decisions and if you have the technology then use it. Those dinosaurs who say it would add 10 minutes to a game are fools.. so what if it does. Would you rather have the right result and have to wait a few minutes or the wrong result and save a few????

 

Having said that they looked at the Reddy try on Friday and still didn’t award a penalty to Parra for the Merritt boots in the tackle. Dumb, dumb, dumb…

 

Teams are out tomorrow and expect plenty of changes and if you need another NRL fix, catch Johnny Gibbs and myself every morning for the latest news on NRL.COM

 

Russ

Russell Barwick's Round 1 Wrap Up

Round 1 of the NRL  is over and boy didn’t some teams say Hello World here we are!!!

 

The usual suspects did what we all thought but what about South’s, The Bulldogs, the Titans and the Warriors?

 

I’m gonna throw this one out nice and early, I think the Warriors will win the grand final!!!

Normally I love to get off side with my Kiwi mates and stir them a bit eh bro.. but this time I’m fair dinkum. They’ve now won 7 in a row at home and I cant see anyone beating them over there for sometime..they get an easy-ish path thru Origin and all they have to do is learn to pack their New Zealand form in the bags when they jump on the plane, and this year I predict they will.

 

Anyway that’s my tip for the grand final....while I’m at it here’s some others..

 

 Melbourne won’t win the minor premiership..they have done for the past 3 years but the odds of them doing it again are very short  and they will struggle to be the benchmark.

 

South’s will make the 8?  I’ll repeat that if you didn’t hear me.. Souths will make the 8 maybe even top 6. Don’t forget they still have Craig Wing to come into the side and they were awesome on the weekend.  But memo to Russell Crowe, mate lose the thumbs up, thumbs down thing Maximus.

 

Manly is in trouble..they said the preparation was great leading into the Bulldogs match.. wrong choice of words. Probably better of admitting the dramas had more of an effect than they imagined and then they had an easy out..they will still make the top half dozen but I reckon there is more dramas than meets the eye.

 

Bulldogs, a magnificent start to 2009 with all the recruits playing outstanding BUT life might get more difficult as the season goes on.

 

The Titans are now officially my sneaky side.. I am going to tip them everytime Scott Prince plays. He is a fully fledged star as he has showed time and time again but they way they came from behind and over ran the Knights suggests to me that they are a finals team as well.

 

On Monday night the Tigers and Canberra played tip footy in hot conditions but as entertaining as it was to watch, these guys can all definitely plan for a footy trip in September cos they wont be doing much else. Add Penrith, the Roosters and Newcastle to that list as well. And while I’m at it.. throw in the Eels.

 

The Dragons went great and will win more than they lose..simply because Wayne Bennett wins more than he loses.

 

The Cowboys will hardly lose a game at home. They’ve got a very good coach, Matt Bowen and Jonathon Thurston, in fact forget the coach Thurston and Bowen is enough. I just don’t know how many they are gonna win away from home. They don’t like the cold wet winters in Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra.

 

The Sharks have lost 2 blokes already injury wise and they wont be the prettiest team to watch. The new faster style of footy might not suit them and they have never won the comp before and wont in 09.

 

Brisbane will be fantastic. How they just keep churning out young kids who are potential stars is beyond me but they do so write them off at your peril.

 

So here they are sportsfans.. the top 8 as at March 17^th 2009 according to little old me.

 

Warriors

Brisbane

Melbourne

Manly

South’s

Dragons

Titans

Cowboys

----------

Sharks

Bulldogs

 

Forget the rest....

NRL Preview

Passion, Spirit and teamwork are three words that can be used to describe Rugby League. No matter if you barrack for the Dogs, Panthers or Eels, every successful team has these three traits.

As the 2009 football seasons kick off we take a look at some of the issues that will make or break teams and spirits over the coming months.

Rugby League
The 2009 season was already a major talking point well before last season was over, with the season kicking off in March we take a look at some of the major changes that will impact the competition.

Wayne Bennett
No one would have thought that one man could cause so much change. Wayne Bennett’s decision to join the St George Illawarra Dragons has not only affected two teams, but the entire competition. The Dragons who have been perennial cellar dwellers for almost 10 years now have possibly the best coach around but can that make them serious premiership contenders? Bennett has already handpicked a new array of players and coaching staff alike to try and lead the Dragons to their first premiership since they merged with Illawarra in 1999. Under Bennett the Dragons are considered by many to be real contenders, whether they can deliver the promise is the big question.

Bennett’s decision to move will of course have major implications for his former team, the Brisbane Broncos. The Broncos not only lost their coach of 20 years but also 13 members of their 2008 squad. No doubt this will have a major impact on the players and club alike with a completely new culture having to be developed. This will be one of the Broncos defining seasons and prove whether one man can be the heart and soul of any club. 

Players, supporters and commentators alike are all asking the same questions, can Wayne Bennett turn the Dragons into the next powerhouse of the NRL and how will the Broncos survive without their mentor?

First year coaches
Starting a new job can be hard, stepping up in to that position can be even harder. In a profession that is subject to so much scrutiny, being a Coach is one of the toughest jobs in the world.

In 2009 three new coaches have reached the pinnacle of their profession for the first time, Kevin Moore (Canterbury Bulldogs), Ivan Henjak (Brisbane Broncos) and David Furner (Canberra Raiders) are all now leading premiership teams. All three have very different expectations and goals for 2009.

Kevin Moore is looking to revitalise a team who have had their fair share of dramas. Some things are out of Moore’s control, but one thing he will look to rectify is the club finishing with the dreaded wooden spoon in 2008. Having bolstered their line up with a number of new high profile recruits, including Brett Kimmorley, Ben Hannant, Michael Ennis, Josh Morris and David Stagg, Moore will be looking to start the year off with a bang and re-establish the Dogs as real threat.

Henjak and Furner have arguably a much tougher task, they need to maintain the high levels of expectation from both the club hierarchy and fans after both made the top eight last year. The Raiders defied all expectations to be one of the form teams leading into the backend of last season and  the Broncos came ever so close to defeating the Storm in what would have seen them progress to the preliminary final. Both teams have had substantial losses in their playing ranks and, with the exception of Israel Folau for the Broncos, have been unable or unwilling to pick up any new high profile additions to their 2009 playing ranks.

From the team at Rooty Hill RSL

Good Tipping