It’s Preliminary Finals time in the NRL as the hunt for the 2022 NRL premiership is down to just four teams.
This weekend’s NFL finals action kicks off Friday night as the rampaging North Queensland Cowboys take on the Parramatta Eels with the winner earning their place in the 2022 NRL Grand Final.
This should be a beauty!
Greg Davis is back with his preview and NRL tips for the big match. Will it be the Cowboys or the Eels? Let’s take a closer look…
NRL Preliminary Final - North Queensland Cowboys v Parramatta Eels
Queensland Country Bank Stadium, Townsville, Friday 7:50pm AEST
Squads
North Queensland Cowboys
1. Scott Drinkwater 2. Kyle Feldt 3. Valentine Holmes 4. Peta Hiku 5. Murray Taulagi 6. Tom Dearden 7. Chad Townsend 8. Jordan McLean 9. Reece Robson 10. Reuben Cotter 11. Tom Gilbert 12. Jeremiah Nanai 13. Jason Taumalolo 14. Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow 15. Luciano Leilua 16. Coen Hess 17. Griffin Neame 18. Jamayne Taunoa-Brown 19. Tomas Chester 20. Jake Granville 21. Brendan Elliot 22. Ben Hampton
Parramatta Eels
1. Clinton Gutherson 2. Maika Sivo 3. Viliami Penisini 4. Tom Opacic 5. Waqa Blake 6. Dylan Brown 7. Mitchell Moses 8. Reagan Campbell-Gillard 9. Reed Mahoney 10. Junior Paulo 11. Shaun Lane 12. Isaiah Papali'i 13. Ryan Matterson 14. Bryce Cartwright 15. Jakob Arthur 16. Oregon Kaufusi 17. Marata Niukore 18. Makahesi Makatoa 19. Bailey Simonsson 20. Nathan Brown 21. Ofahiki Ogden 22. Ky Rodwell
A sellout crowd, searing September temperatures and a slick and substantial posse of hombres riding high in the saddle await Parramatta when they take on North Queensland in Friday night’s preliminary final in Townsville.
The triumphant side will secure the first spot in the 2022 NRL Grand Final and most bookies have the home team as the favourite in head-to-head betting at anywhere between $1.65 and $1.75.
Rightly so too.
The Cowboys had last week off after pipping Cronulla in a 93-minute thriller in the first week of the finals to book a home preliminary final.
North Queensland boast a 9-3 record at Queensland Country Bank Stadium this year when they completed a remarkably rapid rise up the ladder after finishing 2021 as one of the competition’s cellar-dwellers.
The Cowboys and Eels have met once in 2022 and that was in the heat and humidity of Darwin’s TIO Stadium with North Queensland belting Parramatta to the tune of 35-4.
The North Queensland line-up is well-settled, well-drilled, well-rested and well, bloody hard to beat in 2022 if their defensive structures and never-say-die attitude remain intact.
A fourth grand final berth awaits the North Queensland club after trips to the big dance in 2005, 2015 and 2017 and they simply have never been better placed at this time of the year.
There’s been a lot of talk about the heat and how the Eels will handle it. They are certainly in a better spot than the New Zealand Warriors in 2007 when they had to play the Cowboys in a final in Townsville on a Sunday afternoon.
A clever Cowboys official got permission for the home side to wear their away strip – a predominantly white uniform – forcing the Warriors to don their all-black kit.
North Queensland thrashed the sun-soaked Warriors by 49-12 with the uniform switcheroo probably not playing that big a role in the result.
Fast-forward to this Friday night and the two sides are much more evenly matched having both finished in the top four with the Cowboys claiming the one extra win in the regular season.
The Eels were electric against Canberra last week as they dismantled the Green Machine with ease. A week earlier, they failed to fire against Penrith in a first week finals flop.
Backing Parramatta could send you broke given their renowned inconsistency.
The Eels are 8-4 on the road in 2022 and have found some sort of form in the back-half of this season. They have planned a hit-and-run mission for the preliminary final and spared no expense in their bid for their first grand final since 2009.
Anything less than a spot at the season showpiece will be considered a failure for the Eels. So, they are under the pump from every which way.
If they bring their absolute best, they will be in this contest up to their eyeballs.
If they don’t pack their A-game for the trip to Townsville, the Cowboys could ride roughshod over the Eels.
But to paraphrase one Mr F Gump, the Eels are like a box of chocolates, you never know what you are going to get.
So, it’s the Cowboys to win on the back of their home ground advantage, a week’s rest, weapons across the paddock and irresistible momentum.
Prop Bets:
First try: Jeremiah Nanai - $14 (Dabble)
Anytime try: Waqa Blake - $2.35 (Dabble)
Total Points Over 42.5
$1.90
