The 2017 NRL season continues this weekend and we are down to the final four sides. We take a look at both of the games over the weekend in our NRL Preliminary Finals Preview and Betting Tips below.
NRL Prelim Finals Betting Tips
Melbourne Storm vs Brisbane Broncos (Friday 7.55pm AEST)
The Brisbane Broncos advanced to the preliminary final on the back of an enormous defensive effort. The stat sheet suggested the Panthers were victorious but the Broncos held out raid after raid to earn the narrow victory. The side was forced to play the second half without winger Corey Oates who suffered a terrible concussion but he has been named to play on the wing. Meanwhile, Darius Boyd has been named to start and he will almost certainly take his place at fullback. This well help the Broncos in attack and they will need to be more clinical if they are to break the Storm’s defence. Benji Marshall has moved to the bench with Kodi Nikorima moving from fullback to the halfback position. However, we won’t be surprised if Marshall starts the game in the number seven and Nikorima is used as impact off the bench.
The Storm enjoyed the week off after defeating the Eels a fortnight ago. It wasn’t the most polished performance from the Storm but as they have done all year, they did enough to get the win. While the Broncos’ defence was terrific last week, there were situations where they could have been broken but the final pass went to the wrong person. The Storm won’t make these same mistakes with Cameron Smith, Cooper Cronk and Billy Slater rarely making the wrong choice. The Storm have got the better of the Broncos in recent matches and we can’t see the Storm falling short of a grand final appearance, especially when they are playing after a week’s rest and on home soil.
TIP: Storm at the margin (1-12) - $2.88 with Sportsbet
Sydney Roosters vs North Queensland Cowboys (Saturday 7.40pm AEST)
The Roosters are the other side, which had the pleasure of putting their feet up over the weekend. They did it the hard way to earn the victory against the Broncos a fortnight ago but they showed in the opening 30-minutes their full potential. The side attacked with precision, defended great, forced errors, applied pressure and played at a premiership contender standard. However, they fell away from their structure and that is their biggest issue.
The Cowboys have defied the odds twice and proven they have a lot of heart. The side defeated the Sharks in extra-time and blew away the Eels last week in a convincing victory. The side was terrific in defence, holding out the Eels for the majority of the match with their only tries coming from long range efforts on the back of a kick. Matt Scott has been named on an extended bench but we doubt they will be playing their co-captain in a finals match when he hasn’t played in more than 20 weeks. Michael Morgan will need to play out of his skin for back-to-back matches for the Cowboys to stand a chance at reaching the grand final.
Mitchell Pearce needs to take this game by the scruff of the neck and prove he is the player to provide in the clutch and lead a team to victory. He has failed to do it at origin level and even though he won a premiership in 2013, the side was star studded and he had James Maloney playing alongside him in the halves. This is Pearce’s team and he needs to control the attack and manage the game. We believe he will be able to do that, along with the players he has around him, and they will earn a narrow victory.
TIP: Roosters at the margin (1-12) - $2.80 with William Hill
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