The third match on NRL Super Saturday heads to Sydney with a ‘battle of the beaches’ between the Roosters and Sea Eagles. These two teams are separated by just 3 competition points on the NRL ladder and are close on the NRL Power Rankings also. It will be an early Finals preview between two sides who are extremely capable on their day. In a tight contest, Before You Bet is here to take a thorough look at the action ahead and help guide you through the betting options available.
NRL Round 21 Preview & Betting Tips
Sydney Roosters vs Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles
Allianz Stadium – Saturday 27th July – 7:35pm (AEST)
Match Preview
The Roosters headed down to Melbourne last week as favourites and were given a reality check, defeated 24-8 by the competition leaders. Hoping to prove a point, the Roosters conceded two tries early but hit back with their own, eventually heading into HT down 14-4. There was still a sense that they could bounce back but ill-discipline let them down. It was always going to be challenging for them with just 48% possession and a 63% completion rate; they were inferior in most areas. Their defence was especially poor allowing 9.9m per carry (made just 8.5m themselves), more PCM’s, conceding 8 line breaks (made just 3) and missing 33 tackles. With plenty of time to fix their shortcomings, it could be a timely loss moving forward.
The Sea Eagles had no such issues in their commanding 38-8 victory over the Titans at home. Conceding the first two tries inside12 minutes they didn’t panic, rather, they built themselves into the match, with late tries in the first half helping them to lead 12-8 by HT. It was one-way traffic in the second half as they scored 5 unanswered tries. In some areas, they could’ve been better; with just 49% completion rate they completion at 76% (inferior to their opponents), missed 47 tackles and conceded 7 line breaks. Their power was evident though through the middle, averaging 11.1m per carry and having 9 line breaks of their own. They have now won 3 consecutive matches and 5 of their past 7, with this game arguably their toughest challenge to date.
Match Prediction
The form of the Sea Eagles has many liking what they are producing. Taking a deeper look at it, they are yet to defeat a quality team recently. While you can only defeat what you are up against, this casts doubt on what they are producing. The Roosters will be out for revenge in this match; they were defeated 21-14 in Round 2 by the Sea Eagles; the home side is a remarkably stronger team this time around and will pose a different challenge altogether. T
he Roosters will be motivated by their poor performance last week. They were strangled out of the contest but a superior team. The averages of each team give the Roosters an advantage; they score more points in attack (29ppg vs 25ppg) and concede fewer points (17ppg vs 19ppg) in defence. As good as the Sea Eagles have been, this is their toughest test to date. Capable in their own right, more is needed from them before you can invest with confidence. The Roosters are favourites for a reason ($1.38 vs $3.10) and playing at home gives them another edge; they have a 64% record here compared with the Sea Eagles 53%. The home side has also won 7 of the past 8 games between these two sides. The average winning margin in the past 5 games is 8.6 points and this should be remembered when investing. The line is set at 9.5 points.
The Roosters could easily pile points on the Sea Eagles, however if the visitors were to win a game, the timing is right, now. Last week would’ve taken more out of the Roosters than they would care to acknowledge. Use the line to your advantage with this game likely to be another early preview of the Finals.
Sea Eagles +9.5
$1.90 (1.5 Units)
Same Game Multi
Following the recommendation from above, the despite the line favouring the Sea Eagles, the margin will likely be less than 2 converted tries to the Roosters. Young is the Roosters’ leading try scorer and was a threat again in several instances last week. Tommy Turbo is slowly getting back to full fitness and has crossed for 10 tries this season (2nd for the Sea Eagles) and if his team is to perform well, they will need a big contribution from him.
Roosters 1-12
Young & T. Trbojevic to Score
SGM Odds: $9 at Ladbrokes (0.5 Units)
