Round 5 was an exhilarating display of rugby league and it has left fans wanting more. Many would also be forgiven for being confused when looking at the current ladder but that is an accurate description of the start of the season. Perhaps the weekly NRL Power Rankings are a better indication of each sides potential this early in the season. Round 6 action begins in Melbourne this week, with the Storm hosting the Roosters. Each team has the same number of victories to start the year and it promises to be another high-quality contest.
Let’s get stuck into our NRL Round 6 preview and tips for the Storm vs Roosters!
NRL Round 6 Preview & Betting Tips
Melbourne Storm vs Sydney Roosters
AAMI Park, Thursday 6th April, 7:50pm (EST)
The Storm grabbed their third win of the year in a hard-fought contest against the Rabbitohs. With a lesser share of possession (47%), the Storm’s execution was improved on recent weeks, completing at 84% and committing just 8 errors. This also allowed them to average 9.9m per carry, with the same number of line breaks as their opponents. It showed what they are capable of but there is a sense that they had to perform at their best, while only grabbing an 8-points win against a team which failed to execute. Nevertheless, it was a win.
The Roosters were also victorious, defeating the Eels 28-20. Grinding their opponents down, the Roosters were clinical with their 85% completion rate and dominant carrying the ball (made more metres and post contact metres). The score line wasn’t a true reflection of how good they were; two late tries in the last 4 minutes narrowed their margin of victory. This match was also an indication that the combinations within their squad was beginning to come together and grow in confidence. Despite losing Tedesco early, others stood tall, with Keary one of their best on the night. In fact, their spine was impressive to watch. They will want to maintain their momentum and should still be fresh with a 7-day turnaround after a Bye in Round 4.
The Storm head into this game as slight favourites, with several possible factors influencing the outcome. Team news gives the Storm the upper hand, with James Tedesco missing from this game, replaced my Manu at fullback, while the Storm welcome back Jahrome Hughes from suspension. Home ground advantage is also in favour of the Storm; they have a 74% winning record here compared to the Roosters 40%. Finally, the Storm have won 5 of the past 6 meetings against the Roosters. Those statistics are difficult to overlook, but that is exactly what is going to be recommended. You must trust your eye sometimes and what the Storm have delivered so far has been underwhelming. When they did have Hughes and Munster in their side, they just defeated the Eels, a team the Roosters easily accounted for last week (4 weeks after they met the Storm). There are two key areas which need to be considered; the Storm have missed the 3rd highest number of tackles (34.7 per game vs Roosters 27.3 – 12th) and they average more errors than the Roosters (12 vs 10). These areas are easily addressed, especially with the quality that the Storm possess but the Roosters will have a gameplan which will aim to expose the fragility of their opponents in the forwards. This worked well for them against the Rabbitohs and will be another key focus. Confidence is lower than normal but either way, it should be a close contest.
Prop Bet
Either team to win by 8 points or less @ $2.05 – 1 unit (or an anchor in a multi)
Roosters 1-12
$3.30 (1.5 Units)
