A bumper afternoon/night of NRL Super Saturday awaits and action begins at Leichhardt with the Tigers hosting the Titans. Sitting outside the Top 8 and performing poorly, this game is crucial to the winner regaining some much-needed confidence. It will test the patience of the most hardened rugby league fan in the process though. Before You Bet is here to ease the pain and add to your enjoyment by finding a winner via our comprehensive match preview.
NRL Round 15 Preview & Betting Tips
Wests Tigers vs Gold Coast Titans
Leichhardt Oval – Saturday 15th June – 3pm (AEST)
Match Preview
The Tigers started well against the Dragons last Friday, jumping to a 10-nil lead inside 13 minutes and held that into HT, ahead 14-12 courtesy of a late try in the first half. That is where the fun and enjoyment stopped though, as they conceded 44 points in the second half; a 6 try period in 25 minutes heaped pressure on them. Possession was an issue; they had 35% overall but just 24% in the second half. A 60% completion rate didn’t help, nor did having 11 line breaks and missing 39 tackles. Negative media attention and other distractions are only causing further issues.
The Titans were equally as poor in their 46-12 loss to the Rabbitohs at home, with the match all but over at HT as they trailed 22-6. Conceding 8 tries while scoring just two of their own highlighted the difference in class in a game which they were expected to perform better in. A 45% share of possession and 66% completion rate made circumstances challenging; missing 31 tackles and conceding 8 line breaks were also issues. Just as quickly as the Titans appeared to be improving, this result returns them to the underachieving side which fans are accustomed to. Each team is capable of a better performance and will want to return to consistency over 80 minutes.
Match Prediction
This is an ugly game to attempt to determine a winner. The Titans are favourites ($2.25 vs $1.65) but neither team is demonstrating consistent form worthy enough to invest on them with confidence.
The Tigers had movements against the Dragons and the Titans were improving, before they were embarrassed by the Rabbitohs. Perhaps, it is best to look at the facts heading into this game. The Titans have a terrific record over the Tigers; they have won 17 out of the 26 matches played, with the Tigers successful just twice in their past 13 attempts. The move to Leichhardt Oval won’t phase them either, they have an 80% record here (vs Tigers 55%). With all that information, it appears as though the Titans are well placed to win this fixture.
The key may be avoiding a head-to-head winner and investing on this game being a close match. Of the past 5 meetings between these two sides, the average winning margin is 8.6 points, with 3 games decided by 8 points or less. Ideally, this would be a game you avoid altogether this weekend. There are better options available, and confidence is extremely low in this contest. If you must, invest around a margin with either team able to be successful.
Either Team by 10.5 Points or Less
$2 (1.5 Units)
Same Game Multi
This option goes against what has been said previously in that the average margin between these two teams in the past 5 matches is 40.2 points. Still, conceding so many points this season, the total is likely to be larger than previous years. Fifita crossed for a try last week and he will be out to make another statement and force his way back into the Maroons team.
Total Points Over 49.5
Fifita to Score
SGM Odds: $4.40 at Ladbrokes (0.5 Units)
