Second up in the NRL this Sunday will be the clash between the South Sydney Rabbitohs and the North Queensland Cowboys. Once again, Scooby is here to bring you his full preview, best bet, and Same Game Multi.
Catch our best free NRL tips for the clash below and good luck to everyone following!
NRL Round 17 Preview & Betting Tips
South Sydney Rabbitohs vs North Queensland Cowboys
Accor Stadium, Sunday 25th June, 4:05pm (AEST)
The Rabbitohs have been on a slide recently, winning just 1 of their past 4 matches. The loss has coincided with a climbing injury toll and player unavailability through Origin. This meant that their first Bye of the season in Round 16 was perfect timing. Prior to that, they were defeated 36-30 by the Dragons on the road, with the narrow score line assisted by 18-points scored in 2 minutes. They were starved of possession (43%) and in turn, struggled to create opportunities; they made fewer total metres and post-contact metres, while also missing 36 tackles. They are still a dangerous team with the ball though, creating 9 line breaks.
The Cowboys take winning form into this game, following their 27-23 Golden Point victory against an understrength Panthers team. They also overcame a 20-12 HT deficit; overall they had a superior completion rate (84%) and had more line breaks but still allowed the Panthers to make more metres, as they missed 59 total tackles. They still have a lot of areas to address, evident in their NRL Power Rankings standing. Nevertheless, it has given them consecutive victories after two ordinary performances and should make them a tricky opponent in this contest.
Cody Walker is named to return in this game, further boosting the Rabbitohs credentials on the back of Cook and Murray being likely starters after Origin. The Cowboys named all 5 of their Origin players in the reserves but at time of writing (Friday), it is expected that their squad will change dramatically, and they will come into the team.
The Rabbitohs are listed as favourites ($1.43 vs $2.85), and this is no surprise given the potential of each team. The Cowboys are not without a fighting chance, but they will need to improve their defensive approach if they are to be competitive. The trip south to face the Rabbitohs has never been kind though; they have just a 39% winning record at this ground compared with the Rabbitohs 58%. The Rabbitohs have also won their past 7 against the Cowboys, with 4 of those victories coming as the home side, at an average margin of 9.9 points. That trend looks set to continue too but as confident and capable as the Rabbitohs team is, they will not want to take their opponents lightly. There have been several instances this season of them allowing teams a chance in a game and just scraping home or having to fight hard to overturn the result. While they are the preferred selection and will feature in the SGM, the Suggested Bet will revolve around these two great attacking teams producing a high scoring contest, much like majority of their games already this season.
Total Points Over 44.5
$1.90 (2.5 Units)
Same Game Multi with Picklebet
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Rabbitohs HT/FT – Simple selection and goes without saying. Expect them to lead from the outset.
Johnston & Graham to Score – Johnston has experienced a ‘quiet time’ by his standards recently. Still, he has scored 12 tries (competition leader at 16). Campbell Graham on the other hand is in a rare patch of form. He has scored 14 tries this season and looms as a threat on the Rabbitohs right edge every time they are in the oppositions 20m zone.
SGM Odds: $5 at Picklebet
