Roosters All Crowed Out?
The Sydney Roosters were seemingly cruising to back-to-back premierships in 2014 before being shocked in week one of the finals by fourth-placed Penrith. They never recovered. The following week they nearly blew a 30-point lead against the Cowboys to scrape home 31-30 before being hammered by the Rabbitohs in the preliminary final.
Questions have arisen after a shock home loss to the Melbourne Storm – a defeat that ended a 12-game win streak – that the Roosters may have again peaked too early. There is no doubt the loss of key players Jared Waerea-Hargreaves and Mitchell Pearce has hurt. There is, however, a growing school of thought that Trent Robinson may have timed the Chooks’ run a little early.
There is no question that the Chooks have set the standard this year. And class alone could be enough to see them get over the top of Canterbury on Friday night. There will be plenty watching for signs of tiredness though as the Broncos sit back rubbing their hands with flee knowing they are now in the box seat for a Grand Final berth.
Execution Blues for Bulldogs
Canterbury’s inability to execute in attack nearly cost them their 2015 existence against St George Illawarra. A similar display of poor touch and lack of thinking will almost certainly crush their premiership aspirations against the Sydney Roosters this week. The Bulldogs went in massive favourites against the Dragons and when they were focussed had all the running but constantly stumbled at the last hurdle, be it with a poor kick or a poor last pass.
There is no doubt the blame falls on halves pairing Moses Mbye and Josh Reynolds. The latter may have saved the Bulldogs’ bacon with the match-winning field goal but his performance – particularly his kicking game – was poor at best. He kicked with little thinking or forward planning. Mbye is struggling with the role of organiser and has seen his kicking game go out the window.
Against such a well-drilled defensive team as the Roosters, the Bulldogs cannot afford a lack of crispness with their passing or an ineffective kicking game. Trent Hodkinson’s absence is really being felt at Belmore.
Of course, the miracle that is Frank Pritchard’s non-suspension will certainly work in Canterbury’s favour. A player could lob at the NRL judiciary and get anywhere between a not guilty verdict for the public murder of a referee or a 50-game suspension for throwing a water bottle and nothing would surprise.
Home On The Range
North Queensland will be out to protect their unbeaten home finals record when they host Cronulla on Sunday night.
The Cowboys have played five finals at the ground now known as 1300 Smiles Stadium dating back to 2004 and have never lost at the ground. Four of the wins – including the last three – have been by double digits. All have been in front of a rabid home crowd, one as loud as any in the NRL.
Of the last 13 finals matches played outside of Sydney, 10 have been won by the home team. One-club towns get a monumental home-field advantage in September and the Cowboys know it.
Nothing to Lose for Sizzling Sharks
It has been nearly 50 years without a premiership for the team from The Shire but it is impossible to write off the irrepressible Sharks.
With just six teams left in the title race, last year’s wooden spooners may be in better form than any of the remaining sides. Only the Roosters and Bulldogs have won more games than Cronulla since Round 21. The Sharks come into this off the biggest Week 1 finals victory, dismantling the defending premiers South Sydney.
Cronulla aren’t flashy about the way they go about their football but they play with a toughness that will put a big scare into North Queensland. The Cowboys won’t be helped by the fact the Sharks rolled them twice this year and eliminated them just two seasons back. The Sharks don’t have a hoodoo on the Cowboys but they do have the wood on them.
With nothing to lose and the pressure squarely on the North Queensland, Paul Gallen’s team look every chance of besting the Cowboys on Saturday night.
Officiating Again Under Scrutiny
The officiating in both matches will again be under the spotlight after Week 1 of the finals series was marred by some major refereeing errors.
No error was more egregious across the weekend than the misunderstanding of the rules by Jared Maxwell that allowed St George Illawarra to slot a penalty goal on the stroke of normal time to send the game into Golden Point extra-time, a decision subsequently called incorrect by referees boss Tony Archer.
It was one in a series of questionable refereeing calls across the weekend. Combined with clubs seemingly willing to exploit officials’ reluctance to use the sin bin to give away deliberate penalties on their own line, the pressure is well and truly on the refereeing fraternity to get it right and get some control.
After such a messy season of officiating, few could have total confidence Gerard Sutton, Ben Cummins and their teams will get it right this weekend.
