The Cowboys head to the glitter strip on Sunday afternoon to take on the Titans, in a matchup that will round off Round 22. With the loss to the Eels already this weekend, the Cowboys can skip at least 3 points clear of 9th place with a win, and they should be far too good for a fumbling Titans team today.
Below, we will dissect the matchup, supply our Best Bet, and suggest a Same Game Multi via Picklebet. Be sure to head over to our NRL Tips page regularly, as we preview every single game all season long, for free!
NRL Round 22 Preview & Betting Tips
Gold Coast Titans vs North Queensland Cowboys
Cbus Super Stadium, Sunday 30th July, 4:05pm (AEST)
The Titans’ season all but ended last week, with a 36-18 home loss at the hands of the Roosters. It pushed the Titans 6 points below 8th place, and despite a decent run home, their form appears to be going backwards. The statistics were pretty close with the Roosters, and despite this they were trounced by a team that’s been struggling all season. There will have to be a big reversal in form if they’re to be any chance against the surging Cowboys.
Speaking of the Cowboys, they were far too good for the Eels last week, in what was a pivotal game for the finals race. The Cowboys won 24-16, but two late Eels’ tries made the scoreboard flatter the Eels. The Cowboys have now won 6 straight, and with some tough matches on the horizon they will be determined to make it 7-straight this weekend.
This is the second meeting between the two Queensland teams this season, with the Cowboys getting the better of the Titans in round 4, 24-12. Keep in mind, this matchup happened when the Cowboys were in the midst of their horrid start to the season, and was one of only two victories the Cowboys had over the opening 7 weeks of the season. The Cowboys also had a sin bin during the game, and still comfortably won by 12.
The Cowboys opened 6.5-point favourites, which seemed low. Since then, the Cowboys have rocketed to 8.5-point favourites, and I can see this number closing double digits so believe there is still value in the Cowboys against the spread.
As for the total, it opened 46.5 and has been bet up to 47.5 I believe there’s some solid value here, as my fair for this matchup is a total of 51.5. Whilst I believe the total is a good bet, I really like the Cowboys team total to go over. The Titans’ defence has been woeful over the past month, and the way the Cowboys’ attack is clicking right now, I find it hard to see the Titans holding the Cowboys under 30 points.
So, plenty of value here on Sunday afternoon, with the Titans overrated in the market for mine. The Cowboys should win this and win well.
Cowboys (Team Total) Over 27.5
$1.81 (2.5 Units)
Same Game Multi
Popular bookmaker Picklebet have launched their Same Game Multis for both the AFL and NRL. There are plenty of markets to choose from an excellent odds on offer, so make sure to check them out!
Cowboys (-2.5) – I like the Cowboys to cover the 8.5-point spread, so this is just a top up for your same game multi as the Cowboys should easily win by 4+.
Over 44.5 Points – I make a fair total for this game 51.5, so taking off a converted try to bump up the value here makes sense.
Murray Taulagi (1+ try) – Taulagi has 8 tries this season, and I can see the Cowboys attacking the right edge of the Titans’ defence all afternoon here.
Alofiana Khan-Pereira (1+ try) – AKP has 17 tries this season, good for the 2nd most in the league. It’s been a cracking season for the Titans flyer, and he has every chance to increase his tally today against a Cowboys’ right edge that has struggled defensively over the course of the year.
Val Holmes (1+ try) – Same as for Taulagi, Holmes playing on the left-hand side should get plenty of opportunities for his 9th try of the season.
SGM Odds: $12 at Picklebet
