It won’t be the most anticipated match of the round, but this Queen’s Birthday clash will see two teams who are desperate to improve their position on the competition ladder. The Bulldogs will host the Dragons in what sets up to be an interesting match with both sides mixing their form all year. Check out our NRL tips for the match here.
NRL Round 14: Bulldogs vs Dragons Betting Tips
Stadium Australia, Monday 4pm AEST
The Bulldogs come into this match desperate to turn their fortunes around and will be looking to snap a five game losing streak in the process. Their struggles just continue all year with a disjointed attack paired with leaking defence which continues to cause them issues in every game they have played. They’ve conceded 60 points in their last two games and will need to fix their defensive problems if they want to be any chance of turning their form around. They have had a week of rest with the bye and should be ready to fire here today.
The Dragons continue to mix their form, struggling to string good performances together week in week out. They will head into this match with some confidence however, after a strong 54-24 win over Brisbane last week. They will look to build on that here in a match which they should be winning. Matt Dufty and Ben Hunt continue to pull the strings for the Dragons and when they are playing well, it is built on the back of their impressive forward pack. A win today would see them consolidate their position in the top eight.
Tariq Sims has been named in the extended reserves and is a chance to back up from his strong Origin performance during the week for the Blues. The Bulldogs haven’t been so lucky with Dallin Watene-Zelezniak set to miss today’s game through injury.
The home side will need to drastically improve their attack if they want to make any inroads in the second half of the season. Trent Barrett’s side is averaging a measly 11 points per game this season, a stat which just shows how much they have struggled. They remain the only club in the competition who are yet to score 200 total points and a lack of leadership and creativity in the halves has been a huge factor in this.
The Dragons have won four of their last five matches against the Bulldogs and will like their chances once again on the back of a very good performance last week. They were 32-12 winners the last time these two sides met earlier this year and they have put together some strong all-round performances at times throughout the season. Unfortunately consistency continues to plague their results and they sit exactly in the middle of the ladder at this stage. Jack De Belin makes his return for the visitors in what is a massive boost to their chances and he will only strengthen their strong presence in the middle of the field.
Expecting this to be a fast-paced match with plenty of opportunities for points to be scored. Both these sides have conceded plenty of points all year and history shows we should expect a high-scoring game of footy. Five of the last six matches between these two sides have gone over the total points line. I think the Dragons will be too strong for the struggling Bulldogs whos attacking woes will be too much to overcome for an inexperienced side.
