We head into the second Sunday of NRL action with some of the top teams flexing their muscle in the opening matches of the season while there looks to be a few early wooden spoon contenders. We’ve got two massive game today with the Wests Tigers hosting the Roosters and the Sharks and Raiders going head to head.
NRL Round 2 Sunday Betting Tips
Wests Tigers vs Roosters
Sunday 21st March 4.05pm (AEDT)
The Tigers take on the high-flying Roosters with both teams having opposite starts to their season. The Tigers were comfortably beaten by the Raiders last week in their season opener while the Roosters demolished a struggling Manly side. The Roosters looked sharp and once again the early signs show this team will be a premiership contender come the business end of the season. The Tigers fought hard last week and kept the match close for the majority until being overrun late. Unfortunately for them, it doesn’t get any easier this week and they’ll need to show big improvement to topple their opponents today. The Tigers will be boosted by the return of Adam Doueihi but lose James Roberts to a shoulder injury while the Roosters include Sam Walker in the reserves as he edges closer to a first grade debut. Jake Friend misses out due to concussion but the Roosters go into this as heavy favourites and will look to stars James Tedesco and Brett Morris to repeat their heroics of round one.
Verdict
It’s hard to see any other result than the Roosters coming away victorious in this match however I am expecting the Tigers to put up a fight at home in wet conditions. You can guarantee the wet weather will dampen the attack of both sides and I am expecting this match to be one in the middle of the field. The Roosters forwards were top class last week and they just keep showing up and getting the job done. The Tigers measured up in defence for the first 60 minutes of their match against the Raiders and will take some positives from that performance. The Roosters are one of the best in the business however and I think they should be winning this match comfortably. Pretty keen to back the Roosters to cover the line in this match with 9.5 looking reasonably fair. They have one of the best attacks in the league and James Tedesco is in for another massive game. Expect him to be instrumental in a performance which will again stamp their authority as competition front-runners.
Cronulla Sharks vs Canberra Raiders
Sunday 21st March 6.15pm (AEDT)
The second match of NRL Sunday sees two sides who both came out on top in their season openers. The Sharks, after an early scare ran out comfortable winners against the Dragons while the Raiders were too strong against the Wests Tigers. Both teams took some time to get into their groove but once they did they were much too strong for their opponents and this match today looks set to be a cracker. The Raiders were strong in the second half of their match against the Tigers and were lead by strong performances from hooker Josh Hodgson and a double to star winger Jordan Rapana. They will be needing to start the game in better shape this week as the Sharks will take full advantage of any early errors. The Sharks had a similar sort of performance to the Raiders last week and will also need to start the match well with the Raiders being one of the more clinical sides in the competition.
Verdict
Thinking we might be in for a Sunday special today with two teams who will be desperate to get their second win of the season on the board. The Raiders come into this as favourites and I think they will prevail but it looks set to be a really tight match. The Sharks depth is already being tested with injuries to a number of players and I think the Raiders just match up too strong across the field. Canberra looked to be just finding their groove towards the end of their last match and I am expecting they will have taken massive improvement from that performance. I am banking on an old-school, tough match played in wet conditions with the Raiders coming out winners late in the match. Think Josh Hodgson will once again lead the way and will need to be at his usual match-leading best to guide his side around the park.
