They've been doing it all day sir!
Two Englishmen in Australia, talking sports and life in a new country
They've been doing it all day sir!
Ep#13: Moses Has Risen! Shutouts, Comebacks, and Golden Point Drama.
We dive into the drama of NRL Round 7, exploring dominant performances, stunning comebacks, and referee controversies that shaped a fascinating weekend of rugby league action.
• Canterbury Bulldogs continue their unbeaten run with a second consecutive shutout
• Stephen Crichton possibly being the most impactful signing in recent NRL history
• The Dolphins stunning the Storm with 40 unanswered points after trailing 16-2
• Reece Walsh's kickoff blunder in golden point costing the Broncos against Warriors
• Panthers showing signs of returning to championship form against the Roosters
• Hudson Young scoring tries in three consecutive games for the Raiders
• Mitchell Moses transforming the Eels' attack in his return from injury
• The ongoing circus at Wests Tigers surrounding Jerome Luai and Lachlan Galvin
• Inconsistent refereeing decisions becoming a major talking point
• Looking ahead to a blockbuster ANZAC Day round with key matchups
Join us this week as we break down all the action from Round 7 and continue to follow the twists and turns of the 2025 NRL season.
Welcome along to another episode of. They've Been Doing it All Day, sir. I'm Ben and I'm Chris With round seven in the books. We've got some things to talk about, so let's get stuck in.
Speaker 2:How's your week been lad?
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's been good, actually. Long Easter weekend enjoyed over the weekend, which was, yeah, an eventful one A lot of sport going on, a lot of family events, a lot of getting out and about with the kids. Sport going on, a lot of family events, a lot of getting out and about with the kids uh, them discovering cycling tracks as well and learning how to navigate speed bumps falling off of bikes. So, yeah, it's been a fairly eventful one. But what about yourself? How was your easter weekend?
Speaker 2:yeah, it's good cheers, mate. Um went over to my partner's in-laws. Uh, for for the on the sunday had a bit of a feast. Um, I cooked a otolenghi lamb I saw so good, so good, so essentially Middle Eastern lamb from the Jerusalem cookbook, so I thought it was very very in tune with Topical Very topical for the weekend. It's a fantastic recipe.
Speaker 1:You let it marinate overnight as well, didn't you? What flavours are in it?
Speaker 2:Give me a taste. There's about 12, 13 different spices in it. So the first eight year you roast on a cast iron pan and then you put, put it into a powder, um, and then you add in sort of your corianders, uh, oil, salt, pepper, that sort of stuff, and yeah, just, I've, I've sort of adapted, so you're supposed to just put it all in a bowl and then mix it, whereas I've now started put it into a blender and turn it into a paste. Nice and it, and it seems to work a lot nicer as well. Um, and you can make some amazing sort of gravy sauce from the, from, like the fat and the, the water that you had to base it um sounds delightful yeah, it was really good.
Speaker 2:And then we, and then, um, we also had a massive t-bone steak as well, so it was a very, very heavy meat orientated um sunday, which was, which was pretty awesome, all washed down with some very nice wine around yours next year for the easter long weekend.
Speaker 1:But talking of flavors, um, one thing that I've discovered recently that I actually enjoy and like is, uh, vegemite, which, okay, okay, which I randomly was thinking about this earlier because I got back from the gym and I had a vegemite bap. Um, yeah and um, are you a lover, a hater? A marmite were in the back of the uk neither don't don't go anywhere near it.
Speaker 2:To be honest, I I lose my shit when my partner leaves a vegemite on the, on the, on the it's an australian thing, it's an australian, and then she goesite on the knife.
Speaker 1:It's an Australian thing, it's an Australian thing, and then she goes in with the butter. Double dip.
Speaker 2:So there's Vegemite all over the butter and I'm like then I can taste it and I'm like I just wanted butter, I didn't want Vegemite as well.
Speaker 1:The old knives get left out. In my house as well, they get left on the side with Vegemite all over and and does my head in?
Speaker 2:To be fair, I'm one of them, but I try and make sure the butter, like the actual blade, isn't on it, because we've got a wooden chopping board and if you leave it on with the butter or the Vegemite it can then stay in the board. So at least I'd flip it, and so the blade is hanging off the edge and not on the wood.
Speaker 1:Don't even get me started about some of the things that annoy me about stuff being left out. I do leave that like I weigh my porridge in the morning. Sometimes I leave away and scale out, but um other than that, yeah, it's a bit of a contentious thing in our household about leaving stuff out.
Speaker 1:But yeah, veggie might one flavor to another, like I've absolutely was not a lover of marmite in the uk. Since coming over here I was like, oh, let's see what it's about and you know what. It just tickles that savory, savory taste bud.
Speaker 2:So yeah, but um, anything else happened over the weekend, anything of note uh, not really, to be honest, pretty pretty chilled, other than that, um, so yeah, yeah, a lot of sport to get through, though.
Speaker 1:um, nrl was a big weekend of sport. Um, we didn't do too well in the tips again. You did fairly average, getting four out of eight, and then I did poor again, getting three. The differential was the Broncos against the Warriors. Felt like it could have gone either way, but we'll review all of the rounds, all of the games of the round, in a bit, but one thing that we want to bring in is kind of calling out our performance of the round and our flop of the round. So over the weekend, who do you think the performance of the round was and it can be team player moment, anything you think and also we've tried to keep it as different as possible as well.
Speaker 2:We're not going to come in with the same thing, and I've just got to go for the dogs Just more on the back-to-back shutouts, which is incredible to do in in this sport. We've discussed it previously how no team should not be scoring with this, with so many different chances to score. Yeah, their points should go up on the board, but for the dogs to do it back-to-back weeks against two different teams, um, and to put on 30 or points as well, like I've got to take my hat off to them. They're they're a very solid, solid defensive team to watch and yeah, I'm gonna give them a shout out for that yeah, I can't argue that they were.
Speaker 1:They were pretty solid. I'm gonna go with the dolphins um, coming up against the melbourne storm. Yes, they're on the up, but what a performance. And to be 16-2 down at one point and then just go 34, six tries unanswered Incredible performance. And I think they've really shown kind of their mettle now in the last couple of weeks. I was listening to the Buy Round podcast earlier and they mentioned something about did we underestimate how much the impact to the start of the season around the floods in Queenslandland, all that sort of stuff impact them? I really think we're starting to see the proper dolphins now. Yeah, um, and they're going to be a challenge for a lot of teams. We'll talk about that later.
Speaker 1:But some of the things honorable mentions to, to kind of give a shout out to as well mitchell moses what a return um worth get on to him later. But it was in general. He uplifted them massively. Hudson young can't argue with him scoring two tries in three weeks, uh, in each game for the last three weeks. Absolutely incredible, um. But let's talk about some of our flops of the round. Who have you gone for?
Speaker 2:I just want to add one more into the, the honorable mentions, because I've just thought about it and how good it actually was was jason the sarbs. Try, yeah, I'll give you that, um, give you that against against the dragons. Not much to be very happy about from that game, which we'll touch on in a minute, but that is the jason sab that I think we all want to see and we all want to, we want to love like he leapt above everyone, caught that and came down with it, which was a fantastic moment, um, with within the game, and also he had he had another one from a, from a kickoff as well, um, so his aerial presence deserves a mention yeah, fair play.
Speaker 1:Fair play from that, but onto the flop. Same again.
Speaker 2:It can be a team, a player or a moment in a game yep, um, I've gone for just going off the back of what you said there about the Dolphins. I've gone for the Storm conceding 34 unanswered points. Yeah, from going where they have been as a team to then leading within this game to I think they're all on the beach, so to speak. Yeah, to then just not do anything with 34 unanswered points, I think that deserves to be a bit of a flop of the week from my point of view.
Speaker 1:Yeah, great one. I'm going to go with a single moment in a game that I think is a flop of the week. And granted, it's now come out that he damaged his PCL in the opening kickoff of the game. But Reece Walsh's kickoff in Golden Point. We've mentioned so many times about how the kickoff is unfairly punished. But you're standing kicking from a tee and all you've got to do is drop it short of the, yeah, the back of the try, try, try line tries on whatever it's called goal line and um, he's done it. He's booted it too long. I know it was windy, but you can't. That's inexcusable. And then, fair play, luke mccarth stepping up, miss, miss, miss, every single extra point. And then, fair play, luke mccarth stepping up, missed, every single extra point. And then he slots over, um, that one from from the halfway line. But again, some honorable mentions to include in this one.
Speaker 1:Manly's first half, we'll touch on it, but it might be the worst half of football I've ever seen. Rabbit o's not scoring a point, yeah, but the bulldogs defense is incredible, and then a big one. The income, which could have been a flop of the round as well, is the inconsistency of the referee, and there's, yeah, two incidents that stand out in my mind that how they weren't called for consistency purposes I don't know. One is when James Tedesco kicks the ball through, runs onto it and Dylan Edwards clearly takes him out. It doesn't matter whether that was intentional or not, they're clearly taking him out, doesn't go to the bin, but Iongi for the Eels I can't remember who it was that kicked it through for the Tigers but then gets sent to the bin for a professional foul.
Speaker 1:Where's the consistency there? And then Kalmatua Luggy's hit on Terrell May on the opening kickoff of that game Nearly opening kickoff of that game nearly takes his head off. If Terrell May wasn't such a solid geezer, I think he could have stayed down and moaned even more, but it turns out that he's got too much suspension from it. Why is he not going to the bin? The the bunker could have seen him. But yeah, well, um, maybe we'll talk about more about refereeing decisions, but it's um, yeah, inconsistency of refereeing is becoming a bit of a problem. On to round seven, then. What a disappointing opening to the round. We were there. We were at Brookvale Thursday night. Hopes were high. You did say in your tip that you're going to tip Manly, but you're worried this could be a Dragons blowout and at one point I was worried it was going to be.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I was getting very nervous in that and I think it just all boils down to what you just said there. They didn't. Manly didn't turn up for the first 50 minutes, which in any sport, if you're if you're asleep for for half the game or more, then you're gonna get punished, and the the really frustrating thing is manly's defense warranted a better attack. Yeah, I agree. Um, which, which is a really frustrating thing, is Manly's defense warranted a better attack.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I agree.
Speaker 2:Which is a really annoying thing, because they were stopping the momentum of the Dragons. Manly were doing really well on that side of things, but then going forward was just so one-dimensional. It was shocking.
Speaker 1:And there were mistakes. I've never seen Oluwatu's hands like that. Either he was dropping, but then the balls from DCE were not being put or Brooks whoever were not being put where they needed to be, and at halftime I was absolutely gobsmacked how terrible it was.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I'm not one to walk out of games early, but if we were against a better team, I think that could have been 14-0 at halftime, I agree, and I team, I think that could have been 14 ill at halftime, I agree. Um and I, I could have been very tempted to to sort of leave it, leave out at halftime and you go to the the attack side of things like. So just quickly going on to the point about dce, there he a lot of the comments you read and he's checked out and things like that, and in attack I would say yes, but defense I, I think he had his best defensive performance of the season.
Speaker 2:He made some incredible last-ditch tackles. He had Val Holmes in his pocket at some points, which really frustrates me in the sense of if a player switched off, he goes missing more in those situations than in attack, and the synchronization of just the moves was just so off. I don't know whether it's because Hoppawattie isn't in the position where he's supposed to be at the time of the passes, and things like that. I, I just, I just couldn't put my finger on it. Um, but one of the really frustrating things about for me was they just kept going to the same option. Obviously there's these sets within the get with within their plays and they have options, five plays or something, and that's it.
Speaker 1:We haven't got. We're screaming out for a ball to be kicked up in the air or just someone to run a dummy, run loop round, do something. And it was just play it through the hands and try and get it out wide as quick as we could.
Speaker 2:It was just always the short option, to the second rowers as well, which ends up leading to a slow try, the Sloan try, because Brooks offloads it to Ben Turojevic, who's got two blokes within within a meter of him and who absolutely wallop it. Wallop him as soon as he gets his hands on the ball, and for me, the half should be able to read what's in front of that, play and go, and actually that's not the option.
Speaker 1:I'm then going to loop it out to the to the back one thing from that as well, like considering Tolu Kola's touted as one of the fastest guys on the team. Ruben Garrick from the far sideline was the closest one to him, like all right, he was going forward and he was jogging through, probably, but still I don't know. It was worrying signs and our problems in the forwards as well. It's only getting worse. Jake Trubojevic knocked out what within the first 10 minutes or something like that, and tried to get up and I thought it blew his knee out.
Speaker 2:So I don't really know what happened around this, in the sense of I thought once a player goes off for a HIA, you can bring the interchange up the 18th man and we saw the whole game. Yeah, it is the 18th man, isn't?
Speaker 1:it yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we saw the whole game. Caleb Navale didn't take his bib off once, yeah, but yeah, it is the 18th man, isn't it?
Speaker 1:yeah, yeah, um, we saw the whole game caleb, navale, navale, navale didn't take his bib off once yeah, I I'm unsure of of kind of the rules around it as well, but it's no matter whether he had to come on or not, like yeah, all right, we have another person on the bench, but it seems like we just lack that. We do lack physicality. There were times, I'll give him credit, simply did run hard with the ball and takiyaho did run hard with the ball, but it's, they take plays off yeah, they're not it only, like you said, it took till the 50th minute until the crowd kind of got behind.
Speaker 1:We scored that people started hitting gaps and, with intention, bully more, as always comes off the bench and always runs hard. But even he was, I don't know, not having the impact that he had before before. Nathan brown's great with a little like initial contact and then sets people up with quick shimmy before he goes into contact and offload. But we really miss boseka, yeah, and we really need another big, powerful uh forward to come in. But um on, simply got done for a hip drop.
Speaker 2:It's such a hard thing for him to get done on because he ends up getting knocked out and just drops to the floor and again, I think this is. We had a good discussion in the pub after about it and it's it's all about. I think that was reffed, the situation was reffed. The situation was reffed. The injury was reffed.
Speaker 2:On the injury, yeah, and not what had happened because, it was initially done for a Takeahou high tackle, yeah, and then the bunkers reviewed it and gone. Oh, actually there's a hip drop in here and it's like, well, no, because Sibley gets knocked backwards. Where else is he he's supposed to?
Speaker 1:just let the blow. He gets a shoulder to the chest and he goes down. And what's he meant to do? He's off balance. He's been hit into that position. I don't get it. I really, really don't get it. And then Tualagi's one in the Eels game as well called for a hip drop. He's got up and then scored on the next drive. Again, the inconsistency of kind of what's been going, as no, I think he's only got a fine, simply hasn't, hasn't he. So he's available for the next round, but he um didn't even. Yeah, he didn't get sent to, he didn't, sorry, he didn't get any suspension for it or anything but it's, it's, it's again the inconsistency side of things.
Speaker 2:You say there and as much as as you see, all the time, um, the ref didn't have the best of games. Uh, there was, there were situations within there where you you are the 50, 50s just seemed to, didn't go go the sort of manly's way and um, there was some decisions, like when he, when he pulled up aliquota for being offside and he caught the ball off of his short drop.
Speaker 2:He was running in but instead of letting the play happen and then calling, he called it straight away, which completely stopped and I reckon from 10 yards out with a head of steam. I reckon Aliquarty was going over there. And then you can go back to the bunker and see.
Speaker 1:Let it play and then review.
Speaker 2:Yeah but he blew straight away, which we were in the opposite corner and even I called straight away. That's touched no one and we were in the back corner. So yeah, there was things like that which killed the game a little bit. But hat off to Dragons. They just kept on going and took their chances they didn't really take advantage of.
Speaker 1:Manly poor, I will. Yeah, manly were very, very poor. To only be what was it? Eight nil down at half time, something like that. Um, it might have even been closer, but the dragons weren't great, they just took their chances, and the breakaway try is a great example of that. But it bodes. The question like, well, two things is dce's departure having an impact on the team, and are manly one of the worst teams in the competition now?
Speaker 2:um, with the dce side of things, I like it's, it's, I don't know.
Speaker 1:Everyone's speculating.
Speaker 2:Yeah, because if it really is, the coaching staff need to make some big boy choices here and do what they need to do.
Speaker 1:But who captains the side after right, Because Turbo's out weekly.
Speaker 2:He's not consistent in the team, someone like Garrick, who's there week in, week out.
Speaker 2:Luke Brooks, I'd even consider but exactly, there's two, two consistent leaders there and, yeah, the attack side of things, he, he's. He's not doing the kickoffs anymore. He doesn't seem to be as kicking as much the hat. The ball tends to go through brooks's hands a lot more than it did previously. Yeah, um, one of the the try, I think what the the cola try, brooks dc linked up, which which created an overlap and created a gap for Hoppawattie to go through. There's just none of that. I can sit here and rant all day about it, but it goes back to I firmly believe that we just don't have the impact in the middle as we had in previous rounds. We're not drawing in the defensive line to then create the overlaps on the outsides. A lot of the other teams have got those big bodies to be able to do the hit-ups in the middle, which creates and brings in two or three extra players to then be able to recover and then whip it out and then you've got overlaps.
Speaker 2:So we'll see if that all changes with Turbo in it this weekend and if it was a little bit of a Hoppawattie was just a little bit off with his timings. But I'm not going to hold my breath.
Speaker 1:I thought last week was a bit of a meltdown about Manny. This week it's only got worse. And then, to solidify everything, the Panthers decide to hit form, and we've got them this weekend. So enough of Manny, though we'll rattle through the fixtures up. Next, though, your performance of the round the canterbury, bankstown bulldogs sticking 32, past south sydney, rabbit o's um bulldogs six, and oh, can anyone stop them?
Speaker 2:I, I, I. I said this a couple of weeks ago and I think it's that it's going to be really hard to to stop the dogs because they get inside everyone's heads. They're, they're very chippy at what they do on the field. They've got a good following as well and they've got the what 65 000 at the course stadium, which we said a few weeks ago it was does not need to hold um club rugby, but when you get 65 000, if you can do that week in week out 100.
Speaker 2:It's unreal, uh, and those boys are loud as well, so it's they're even getting in the head of gyarra as well.
Speaker 1:That's what I'm, that's what I mean. It's unreal, and those boys are loud as well. So it's, they're even getting in the head of gyarra as well.
Speaker 2:That's what I mean is like if you've, if you've got that mentality on the field and the fans follow suit, it rattles players. Sometimes you go go to these grounds and it is all very nicely, nicely, and it's just they're watching it. So it should be, at times, family occasions to be able to, to enjoy games by the family, but you want your home ground to be intimidating, hostile and and hostile. You, you, you want people to not want to play, like one of the. One of the things that was always said about birmingham when we were in the pro b league is teams didn't like come coming to us because of how close we are to the, the fans are to the, to the pitch, and it's like whenever they came over for a corner in the in towards the home ends, they just got pelted with abuse. And yeah, it's you. It feels like you've got the fans right on top of you and I very much feel like this is what happened on on friday with the dogs.
Speaker 1:Imagine the dogs packing out like I'm. They will never go there because the rabbit o's and the roosters are there, but the aliens 45 of them just going it'd be unreal and and they were just, they were just incredible.
Speaker 2:Um, matty burton was back, he was pulling the strings, um, and and this is what I, this is what I come to is like the the mentality side of things, and we've seen how other teams have sort of adapted to new signings. But question question I've got for you is stephen cricht. Has he been the most impactful signing over the last two years?
Speaker 1:I think he has. You come from an elite mindset, elite mentality at Penrith, and you try and bring that into wherever you're going and you can see that in. Well, jerome Luai and we're talking about the Tigers and the Circus there in a bit, but Jerome Luai is having that sort of impact on the Tigers. But Stephen Crichton is the one that set the benchmark. He's gone to um, the Bulldogs. He leads by example, has high standards of everyone and even I don't know if you remember the lead when they're walking out onto the field like he was stopping them. I know they're probably waiting for the music and the timing, but it really looked like everyone. They were going to war, yeah, and he was standing behind them. And what if he said jump? They'd say how high, like that's kind of the mentality that they've got there.
Speaker 1:And he leads by example as well. He puts his body on the line. He's when he breaks. He breaks with speed, he runs. There's him running down the sideline on on one instance, just trying to get as far as he can, as hard as he can, and just run over any rabbit. Oh, in the way, um, but I can't think of another sign in that has had a bigger impact in the lot since his move um and since we've been watching the nrl really like he is, he's one of my favorite players, yeah I, I'm so happy.
Speaker 1:Plays for new south wales yeah, his leadership, his just physicality, the way he speaks as well. He's a very well presented gentleman. I saw him on nrl 360 I think it was talking about a few things and he just comes across as like a real professional. Um, but yeah, what about the rabbit? Ohs? Um, I put in the notes here that latrell back to fullback before the teams were released and it appears that that experiment of jai gray has um ended.
Speaker 2:The trail's been named it at fullback yeah, I feel sorry for for joe gray. I don't think he could have really done much more he's got the most meters in the competition as well exactly.
Speaker 2:He got the most meters for the rabbit. I was again um on on um on friday. Um and this is this could be a little bit of an issue of his size, like I think he's, so he can be so impactful, he's so quick and he's a threat constantly. But in saying that, there may be a little bit worried about his underside size to put him on a wing um, which is 14 isn't?
Speaker 2:it, which saying that shane williams is arguably one of the best wingers to play rugby union and he was like three foot tall, so it's it's. It shouldn't automatically go down to that, but I, I feel, I feel sorry for for jagger. I don't think he could have done much more at the back. Um for them continuous when when the halves were changing it each week and again it takes it takes a village to win a game, not just not just one player, so I and the bulldogs are that village.
Speaker 1:Yes, they include the community and with the crowd as well, and they are showing what having crowd support can do. But it's not getting any easier for the Rabbitohs. They've got the Storm up next, so we'll get on. Who knows?
Speaker 2:who knows, who knows?
Speaker 1:who knows, but on to the Storm. So the Dolphins beat the Storm 42 points to 22. What a fast start by the Storm. This is the Storm 42 points to 22. What a fast start by the Storm.
Speaker 2:This is the Storm that we know. This was the Storm against Manly. This was the Storm against the Warriors. I thought they were going to put 50 on them In the first half. They just looked so good in the attack and everyone was getting involved Ryan Patmanhausen going over, xavier Coates going over Kane. Bradley Patmanhausen was doing all right with the boot as well, so it was ticking along nicely. Got two out of the three, then bang.
Speaker 1:Out of nowhere.
Speaker 2:Here come the Finns.
Speaker 1:Exactly. And what was it at halftime? It's 16-12. At halftime they brought it back and when I was watching at halftime I was like, if the storm get the next score, they're likely going to run away with it. Well, they didn't get the next score and the dolphins absolutely ran away with it after. After half time. They blew them away within 15 minutes of the restart, just, and there was some incredible play. There was flick, little flick out the back. I think it was from, uh, qatar. Is that their set? Who's their seven? Oh, yeah, qatar, qatar, yeah, and then the big guy with the tattoos I forgot his name as well Max no he was the Bulldogs guy.
Speaker 1:Max King scored his first try in 80 games, but was it. Ray Stone. That was it, ray Stone. He, he played well and they just blew them away and what? What happened to the storm? Like, if you stop them, if you rattle them, if you get in their heads, are they vulnerable? It seems like they are, and link into the game before and the bulldogs. It'll be interesting to see how they go against each other, because will the bulldogs defensive effort be able to rattle the rattle the storm?
Speaker 2:100. Um, you would, you would, if, for if you were to put on any team stopping the storm doing what they do, you'd put money on the, on the, on the dogs doing so and talking about sort of going back previously, where we was talking about the rabbit o's and manly having um the halves pairing, not really singing off the the same hymn sheet. I've got to give a massive shout out to Katoa and Nick Arima. Yeah, nick Arima. God, they looked so good together, orchestrating that attack with just such ease of a veteran conductor. It was incredible to watch.
Speaker 1:They were creative as well. They were doing exactly what mandy couldn't do, um, in terms of getting the ball dummy runs inside out, and the storm had no answer for him, like they. There was a point I remember I think they went over for that's the sixth try, and it's almost like the storm were turning around looking at each other like what has happened to us here? Like we've been absolutely turned over, um, but, yeah, there's shouts of izzy, qatar potentially playing for queensland as well, um, in the in origin which it's all hotting up.
Speaker 1:There's, uh, a lot of a lot to talk about in terms of who's getting selected, who's not getting selected, and I think we've got some potential players that are going to make a shout for themselves in some games coming up. But I tell you who did also impress me Herbie Farnworth. I said, yeah, a couple of weeks ago that he had a great start to the season. Maybe hadn't found his feet, found his rhythm, but I felt like he had a great game and one one of the the English boys standing out there and I just just a little.
Speaker 2:I was reading a bit about this game as well and just a bit of historical context around it. It was the first time the Dolphins have beaten the Storm yeah um and for Melbourne, it was the first time they've conceded 40 consecutive points, wowzers um and we. We were saying it was 34, but it was actually 40 on the chart because they didn't end up scoring.
Speaker 1:That can't be right, because Manly beat the Storm 40-0 in the grand final in 2000 and someone.
Speaker 2:My stuff may be wrong there.
Speaker 1:Your sources may be wrong, because they definitely lost 40-0 to Manly, because it's the highest winning grand final in history, because the year before melbourne beat uh, manly, I believe 36, 12 or something like that.
Speaker 2:But either way, yeah, it was, it was 40, it was 40 what year was that?
Speaker 1:2008 um 2007, 2007, 2008 yeah, because the year before I'm pretty sure it was the one where Melbourne got done for the salary cap breach as well. So Manley should have another. But yeah, the Dolphins, what to make of?
Speaker 2:them. I think they're just going to build and build and build, and they're just going to grow in confidence From starting. With what was it? Three losses on the bounce, or something like that?
Speaker 1:Tough circumstances though.
Speaker 2:Yeah, massively tough circumstances, but they have shown what they can do and they aren't to be taken as mugs Because they did it to. Was it the Panthers the week before as well? Yeah, so they've just done it against two of the best teams that have been in the last three, four years of the NRL. So I think people have got to sort of stand up and start taking notice of the Dolphins.
Speaker 1:Another starting test for them. This week, though, they've got the Canberra Raiders, which we'll touch on in a bit. But moving on to dipping over the pond to Auckland, the Warriors 20. Beat the Broncos 18. Now we split this one. You decided to go for the Warriors and I went for the Broncos, and Broncos went over after three minutes, I think it was, and I was like, yeah, this one's in the bag. And then they were terrible. Ree, it was, and I was like, yeah, this one's in the bag. And then they were terrible.
Speaker 1:Um, reece Walsh I'm just gonna have to touch on him for a second. He I've said it many a time, if he wasn't the face of the game, he wouldn't be playing. And look, I'll give him some credit that he damaged his PCL, uh, in the opening kickoff, which he got walloped on as well. Um, I, as it happened, I thought, oh no, is this on earth the ghosts of joseph suoliti? But um, it turns out that he actually injured his knee and then he had the stinker. With the kickoff, ben hunt had an absolute stinker. His body language didn't seem right, uh, but interestingly, the broncos are exactly the same record as they were last year, but I think they have one of the best sides in the competition. How do you see them?
Speaker 2:it's, it's. It's a really frustrating thing. They, as you said, they've got all the talent there. They just don't seem to be singing together, which which is is you can have all the best players in the world, but if they're not doing well, then you're not the best team. And they had the chance to beat a Warriors team this week and they just didn't capitalise.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and you mentioned about Payne Haas having a big game because James Fisher-Harris wasn't playing, and my word did he? Yeah, but that's the thing You've got your forwards, putting all these hard yards having having a big game because james fisher.
Speaker 2:Harris wasn't playing and my word did he. Yeah, and and, but that's. The thing is like you've got the. You've got your forwards putting all these hard yards. 219 run meters, I think you got, which is ridiculous. And then I think there was only one or two of the backs that ended up getting over 100. Um, I think reese walsh had 40 odd meters, carbo was 99, what, yeah? And then you've got stags and shibiaski, who got um 115 meters, and then you've got Staggs and Chibiaski who got 115 metres, and then no one else. And then you've got. You look at the forwards.
Speaker 1:The two highest run metres were Patty Carrigan and Payne Haas yeah, carrigan did have a bit of a day, but there's a. I thought there was a moment just on the half. They had a penalty. New Zealand had a penalty and what's his name? Metcalf hooked it and it spun round and then then you just see, was it Cobbo? Yeah, no, it wasn't. I think it was Jesse Arfers that caught it and he runs down the wing and he passes it to Cobbo and then the ref calls it backwards, forward, forward. Yeah, now, if we're talking about momentum here and we're talking about hands going sideways, I don't think it was forward. I believe he's passed it along the line and the momentum has moved it forward. It looks like it's a forward pass.
Speaker 2:But yeah, I the only thing I I would, because I did. I did see it, and the only reason I thought it was forward straight off the bat was because his hands were angled a little, yeah, a little more forward than than level um, which, to be fair in those situations, you should not even put doubt into it should have been easily back.
Speaker 1:Such an easy pass. It was so open as well um, which we've got to.
Speaker 2:We're gonna rein it into that, like you can't even put yourselves in those sort of situations to to kill yourselves um. I think that's one of those that I've seen them.
Speaker 1:I've seen a lot worse.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I've seen massively a lot worse. If we can go back to the Dragons-Manly game, there was a few that I think we were calling from our seats, where it was about five metres in front of me it was passing the ball, but anyway it's hard done by there. I think that's one that you can feel very, you can feel aggrieved by, because there's been a lot worse not given.
Speaker 1:Yeah. What do you think of the Warriors? Do you think they're a lot for the top eight?
Speaker 2:If every game was in New Zealand. Yes, yeah, I was about to say the same thing. I could agree with that, but I don't know what it is. But as soon as they get into Australian airspace they tend to not bottle. But they just don't seem to be the same team. I think they'll be in the mix, in the mix yeah. I just don't think they'll make the eight, unfortunately.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and it's instances like Luke Metcalf right, he missed all of the conversions and then slots one straight in front from 50 metres out, like wasn't an easy kick, high pressure. But in moments and games that are close, where you need those conversions you've said it a number of times four points to six points is a huge difference. They're gonna. They're gonna win and lose some games based off of that. So the need to up their kicking game. But they were missing. Nickel clock stat he's back this weekend. Uh, be interesting to see how they go. But the broncos, I don't know what to make of them. Yeah, um, they've got the bulldogs this weekend, so that'll be a really interesting game, but that's, that's a proper origin game as well.
Speaker 2:That's yeah, it is. That's new south wales queensland there yeah, but onto the roosters.
Speaker 1:12, defeated by the Penrith Panthers 40. We both tipped the Roosters in this one and after a big marquee mark, offloaded one-handed backhand onto Daniel Tupou to go over into the corner. I was like here we go, they're going to attack that left edge or Penrith's right, and they're just going to go over there all the time, and they're going to do it. But are the Panthers back Penrith's right? And they're just going to go over there all the time and they're going to do it. But are the Panthers?
Speaker 2:back. No, I'm not going to say, I'm not going to commit to that at all, because we've said this all season is we're like, oh yeah, the Panthers are going to turn up. The Panthers are going to turn up. They've had, but now they put more doubt in your I don't know I don't know, they're really frustrating. There's a lot of frustrating teams in this division.
Speaker 1:I think it's because it's such a tight competition this year.
Speaker 2:Sarawak is very open, and the Roosters are one of them as well. Like I did say that, I could see it being like 48, whatever to the Roosters. I got the scoreline sort of correct, but it's just the wrong way around.
Speaker 1:But saying just on that you say about the competition being so open, even the bulldogs, right, who are six and, oh, top of the ladder, it's not how you start, it's how you finish. So they could go for a bit of a patch where they have a wobble and they get a few injuries. All right, they lost burton and kick out and they did, all right, but they're yet to come up with what's considered a championship team. If the panthers start getting back in form when the panthers play the bulldogs, that could be an interesting one as well.
Speaker 2:So if panthers end up getting in the eight and they've had solid momentum from august I just yeah, you've just probably written that they're gonna end up winning it, but there's still a lot of footy to be played till that happens and um I can't remember who it was who scored in the corner, um, but it was Panthers of old.
Speaker 1:They were whipping the ball around, turning, spinning, offloading dummy runs and then one of the wingers I think it might have been Alamotti that went over in the corner, but it was just like you're watching Penrith for the last four years. But still I don't feel they're at the level. They're not consistently at the level of what they have been. But what an audition of a game for the New South Wales fullback, Tedesco against Dylan Edwards, and for me there was only one clear winner from this.
Speaker 2:If Edwards starts getting informed, he's the best. In my opinion, he's the best fullback within New South Wales and it showed last year when he was brought in in getting game two um. He just adds so much going forward. He's solid in the air. He's solid defensively, um, and when he's when he's on his days, he's so hard to stop yeah, and I think for the first few weeks he was playing injured.
Speaker 1:Until that it might have been round one, round two, when he then against the roosters in round two when he uh re or injured his groin, but he wasn't a hundred percent that time off that he's had, um, all right. Last week they got bad as well, but he's finally found his fitness, I feel. And, um, yeah, we might start seeing the dylan edwards of last year and again it will be a wrap. There will be no competition for that fullback spot if he continues to play like, yeah, it's interestingly something I've just thought. A number of fixtures have been played and reversed. I wouldn't mind finding out if any team has actually won both of those games, because the roosters won the first one, panthers won this one. Broncos, uh, beat the warriors quite badly and then the warriors just beat the broncos. The tigers beat the Warriors quite badly and then the Warriors just beat the Broncos.
Speaker 2:The Tigers beat the Eels Tigers, and then also they lost to the Knights and then beat the Knights. So it'd be interesting to see.
Speaker 1:Did the Warriors play the Broncos, or was that the first time they played? I might have made that one up. I might have been thinking of the Tigers against the Eels, actually, that's where I think I was going with that one. But yeah it, tigers against the Eagles.
Speaker 2:actually that's where I think I was going with that one, but um, yeah, it'd be interesting to see if any of those within a short period of time have actually won.
Speaker 1:This is a massive points turnaround as well, isn't it? So it is, it is, but what to make of the Roosters? What, uh?
Speaker 2:again. They're a team that's stacked with talent who just don't seem to be clicking. Yeah, um, which, which you know. It's really frustrating from that point of view. And are they just trying to have a? You can't even say that they're having a sort of a season on the beach sort of thing, because they shouldn't be. They've got such a solid team that they should be more in this game than they are.
Speaker 1:They lack depth, though, and that's the problem. They've just lost Nat Butcher through MCL, I think it was and Mitch Kenny's been suspended for two games for that one. But again, inconsistency of refereeing hip drop. But who knows what a hip drop is this now? Because it wasn't your conventional hip drop, but he's blown his knee out. Are they reacting on the injury? Because he's got an MCL injury, they've now suspended him for two games. Um, who knows what it is? But again, that's another loss for the roosters. That's another person they've got to dig to the bench for to bring in a replacement. They've just signed the concreter. Um, I've forgotten his name lasalu taylor lasalu, I think his name is as a. Uh, is that his name? Yeah, as a permanent sign-in.
Speaker 2:He's now off the job site.
Speaker 1:It'd be interesting to see what they're like when Sam Walker's back.
Speaker 2:I think they are missing that consistency. He won't be back this season.
Speaker 1:He might be. There's talks about not rushing him back and all that sort of stuff. But him and Brandon Smith when they come back? Yeah.
Speaker 2:I think that's what they're missing in their middle side of things is just that creativity to a certain extent, angus Crichton wasn't playing at the weekend as well. Yeah, which is a big miss. But yeah, we'll see. I think they'll still be creative in certain aspects there. I think they may just finish just outside the eight um and it might be down the points difference because they are shipping some points um which you know it can come all down to what it comes down to the end of the end of the year.
Speaker 1:But uh, we'll see how they go and on to the titans 20, raiders 30. What a fast start by the Titans. I didn't get to watch this one because I had a family commitment which I was traveling over to, so I put it on the radio and I just heard them score one after the other and I messaged you and said, wow, what mugs. We look like we're predicting the Raiders, but what a comeback.
Speaker 2:Yeah, unreal, and I think you even mentioned it was like spoon worthy. I think you even mentioned it was like spoon worthy. Uh, I think you dropped that in there as well and like hudson young man, what, uh, what an absolute boy ignited that sort of comeback. Um, he's, he's just, he's just been incredible all season and set out the second row he has.
Speaker 1:He has and huddy young call up potential for new south wales. He's got some stiff competition in there, though. It's got leon martin, angus creon, big Hamole Olukowatu. Jacob Preston is going well for the Bulldogs and then Keon Kalerma-Tungi for the Rabbitohs. It's going to be two of.
Speaker 2:If you want an attacking and defensive threat, I don't think you look much further than Hudson Young.
Speaker 1:No, and at the moment he's a standout performer in that position and this is my concern about origin. They're going to go on past like stalwarts, people that have been called up and like, don't get me wrong, angus crichton and liam martin were hitting incredible everything that was moving in game three last year, but if we're going on form, no doubt hudson young gets picked. But another person um that for me was a standout in this game as well was tom starlin, someone that hits everything that moves. There's one point where regan campbell gillard, I think, took the kickoff, was running it downfield. I saw replays of this and he just targets tom starling. He goes instead of sitting there and waiting for him to come to me. He's like nah, not having a bar of this bang wallops him, forces an error and turns over, and they're the sort of performances that you need.
Speaker 2:So yeah, massively he'd been, he'd had a few quiet weeks. Um. To be fair to him and I, I was bigging him up quite early on um he started like a rocket, yeah even even mentioned that the possibility of him getting a, an origin call up um in that hooker position and it's good to see him coming back into it and the raid. The raiders were just asleep for the first like 10-, 15 minutes of this game and then they just come back and just do what they do best, to be honest.
Speaker 1:Exactly, and we well, not we both I predicted the Raiders to be spoon contenders. I've admitted that I was wrong from the past couple of weeks. Where do you see them finishing up now?
Speaker 2:They're good, they're're good, they are very good and they're a good favorite. I reckon to be in the eight um. I, I, I, I think I had them just outside um, but if they continue like this, they've got, they've got attack. One of the things that they have which I think pulls them out from those others that are like eight to possibly 13, 14 who may be in that mix, is they've got attacking threat from everywhere. Yeah, they've got boy, they've got.
Speaker 2:Their second row is matt nicholson and hudson young, who can score tries. They've then got their centers and wingings, who can score tries they've got. They've got creativity from fogarty in there as well, and ethan strange has had a fantastic season so far. So they've just got so much where they can hurt you from that it's just not funneled in from one avenue, um, which I think he's gonna have that and you know what, other than the sort of the lapse against manly, they've been pretty solid in defense as well. So I think, I think they're gonna be. That's where they're gonna edge ahead of everyone else is from their attacking prowess.
Speaker 1:I've got them now and this is the biggest turnaround in history. I think I've got them finishing between three and seven.
Speaker 1:I reckon they're looking strong. My only concern, my concerns, are Jamal Fogarty. We read on the way over here that Manny are actually going to offer him a three year contract. There's talks of him staying at Canberra. Is that going to cause any issues? Because we've seen how transfer sargos have caused issues. Yeah, recently they potentially could use Hudson Young. Lose Hudson Young going into origin, they potentially could lose Corey Horsburgh playing for Queensland, and they could potentially lose Jamal Fogarty as well, and there's talks around him representing Queensland. So if any of those eventualities happen, that might rock the boat a bit. But I think they look solid. The fact that they found Matty Nicholson coming over from England, who's just a powerful runner, scoring tries as well. They can, let you say they can score from anywhere. But moving on to the penultimate game of the week, which I watched loosely whilst at this family event, one thing I can tell you, though, is the Newcastle Knights got battered by the Cronulla Sharks, and are the Knights the worst team in?
Speaker 2:the league. I nearly put this down as the highlight of the week. It was the Knights scoring in the first half of a game which I went back in round two. I went back and looked at and I was shocked to see that this is the first time they scored, because they scored late on last week. I think they scored late on a few weeks previously. They got shut out by was it the Dogs? They ended up getting shut out by.
Speaker 1:Possibly they got shut out by someone and it was the tigers that they scored against it last night in the last minute, and then the campbell town.
Speaker 2:They nearly went back to back not scoring points, and then the week before that they scored within the last five, ten minutes yeah um, that, uh, it's, it's. I can't believe I'm saying this, but they are more than one dimensional than manly, which is which is mental mind you, similar to Manly, the threat that they've got.
Speaker 1:They've got Ponga. They've got Best. They've got Marju, who had a day. He got 200, but he did have a huge break breakaway run but he got 200 and something odd metres. They've got Kai Pierce, I heard earlier is their head coach head on the chopping block, but he's just signed a new three-year deal. Nice little payout if he does get sacked, exactly. But the Sharks just do what they do. Ran the ball hard for New York, blake. Ran the ball hard. Who's the fullback?
Speaker 2:Kennedy.
Speaker 1:Kennedy just had a game as well. He's now top of the Dallium standings, overtaking Jai Gray.
Speaker 2:He's had back-to-back weeks that he's gone good in, but yeah, it's not looking good for the Knights, I think they've got a similar issue to Manly, in the sense of that their pack isn't as effective as you would hope. They've got some big boys in there, like Leo Thompson isn't exactly the smallest of human beings.
Speaker 1:Cypher, he's a big boy as well, yeah.
Speaker 2:But they're just not being able to create the space that you need for the likes of Bradman Best when you give him space and give him opportunities.
Speaker 1:He's incredible.
Speaker 2:And yeah, caelan Ponga, has he signed somewhere where he's not going? Because I think I was reading somewhere about they were the Knights fans were a bit annoyed with how he was acting in the pre-game conference. He was a bit like all happy jokey, laughing a bit, so I don't know.
Speaker 1:I didn't read too much into it, but yeah but yeah, he's potentially off to the roosters or something like that. But talking of transfers, they've got dylan brown and this links nicely into the next game. They've got dylan brown coming in now. Mitch moses is back for the eels and we'll touch on that in a second about the impact that it had on dylan brown. But he wasn't the one in previous weeks where dylan brown's been controlling the team. He's been non-existent. Yeah, he's going to go up to newcastle and't the one in previous weeks where Dylan Brown's been controlling the team. He's been non-existent. He's going to go up to Newcastle and be the one that's going to have to command everyone about and direct everyone. Who's going to be his partner, that's going to support him and be the Mitch Moses. I don't think they're going to get a $1.3 million a year player, especially for 10 years.
Speaker 2:No, and this is the thing You've got Cael got kalen ponga, who's been tracked, who's been acting as as as your halves and your halves trying to create stuff, and you don't really want that from your full, but you want your full back in with a sort of the link play um, and not sort of like directing it. So maybe that's that's something to look at. He's bringing, bringing ponga down and then sliding him in the halves, which I could, I could, quite, quite ably, sees, I think he'd be very creative there. Yeah, um, I know there's been a lot to talk around sort of, uh, latrell mitchell having a little bit of a go there.
Speaker 2:Which the experiment yeah, didn't really work and then there's talk around turbo going in down into the house, which I just don't think will work. No, I just there's something.
Speaker 1:I think it's just too gangly to to once you're, I think once you've mastered the full-back position or, like you use a loose term, mastered, you are a full-back because you're over every part of the field You're left to right. You're not just in the centres and I know sometimes I have centres looping around and playing more slightly towards one side, but still I don't think he is a full-back. He is, at the moment, queensland's best fullback.
Speaker 2:I'd say, yeah, couldn't agree more from that. But I think it showed that Dylan, he needs a partner in crime there, someone that he can work with.
Speaker 1:Maybe that'll unlock Dylan Brown, who knows?
Speaker 2:Yeah, and we're, I don't know, having Mitch Moses. Well, he sort of was getting a little bit of last week as well. Yeah, he had improved. There was clearly something had been said to him. So, um, and also, he has to, he has to prove he is the player that's, that's going to be arriving. So that may have been a little bit, but yeah, their knights are in a little bit of trouble with their attacking, attacking form they are, and they potentially could be spoon contenders along with manly.
Speaker 1:Um, but moving on to the final game of the weekend and what a game this was, I'm gonna say from the outset game of the week I was. I tuned in on easter monday thinking, ah, this is going to be a bit of a boring one, but my word, was it? An absolute barnstormer. Um, first off, how good was Mitch Moses?
Speaker 2:Oh, well, so happy to see him back. He's I was. I was good because I think he's a fantastic player and I really I really saw how good he is and how highlighted he is last year in origin. I think that's where I really picked up right. This boy can play.
Speaker 1:Can't wait to see him with Lomax when Lomax is back.
Speaker 2:They're going to. I think this EOS team may end up being sort of mid-table towards the the bottom eight, especially when Lomax is back, because Josh Adekar turned into a different animal again with Mitch Moses, you know what with.
Speaker 1:The one thing I'm going to touch on is Adekar. Interception probably could have been included in the moments of the week, but Taruva should have done better, like I know it's highlighted. Why didn't he, why didn't he dummy it and then just run around the outside?
Speaker 2:but anyway, the amount of space that he had. Ah, it was so frustrated, um and and that those are the sort of situations where you can get away with a dummy because he wasn't at a car. If at a car, he fully committed it was nowhere near laying out to riva either, so that was just a bit of a poor reading the the situation from toruva. But hell of a hell of a defensive player, though, from addo car it was, but I agree with what you're saying, mitch moses.
Speaker 1:It's because I think now the focus is on moses. It frees up addo car. It frees up penicini stone street. Uh, not stone Street, is it? Sharks Simonson? There's a lot of them, even the fullback Yonge. There's a lot of them that can now play with a bit more freedom. Because of what?
Speaker 1:Lomax can do and Moses sorry, not Lomax, I was going to say when Lomax comes back. That's an even frightening prospect because what they did to Queensland game three, even game two last year together, it was just high corner, low match coming down, is it they've?
Speaker 2:they've got a fantastic relationship with within just from that New South Wales camp, so what, then, must be when they're actually together, working together as a team? It's going to be incredible to watch but their start to the second half.
Speaker 1:They absolutely blew the Tigers out of water.
Speaker 1:I don't think the Tigers touched the ball in the first 10 minutes or they didn't have a player, the ball within the first 10 minutes, which is absolutely bonkers and they were just going back to back to back. And then mitch mosey's vision to see uh simmonson running down the wing I think it was on zero tackles or first tackle or something like that and just boots it into space. He runs on it to ice a game. What, what a performance. But um onto the tigers, what a absolute circus it is at the moment. So, putting these notes in, we were like are the impact of galvin being dropped to a new south wales cup and then, for reasons unknown, he's now been selected to start at six this weekend. Considering luai was wearing the the six jersey at the weekend as well, was that a bit of a shot to um Galvin saying now this is my club, buddy, I'll take your jersey, but Luai's moved to seven, galvin's coming in at six, knowing Luai's attitude?
Speaker 2:yeah, probably, um, but it's, it's. It's a weird one, like I know I've. We've got our reservations about DC at at the moment and what's happening there, and the same with Dylan Brown at the Eels, but you always want to have your best 13 on the field, regardless of what's happening behind, behind the, behind the.
Speaker 1:Benji Marshall's jobs on the line, like if he doesn't pick his best team and they lose like they did at the weekend. Would Lockie Galvin have made a difference? Of course he would. Adam Dewey, he's a lot better than. Would Lockie Galvin have made a difference? Of course he would. Adam Dewey, he's a lot better than him. Galvin and Luai are a lot better than what they had out at the weekend, so could he have impacted that result?
Speaker 2:Probably, I think Nendis needs to be the trust of when they're in those white lines, they're going to perform to their best ability. Because you listen to some of the great teams that have have played together um with it in football, um, you had andy cole and teddy sharing him, who I think absolutely hated each other, but when they were playing up front, they, they're fantastic combinations and I think roy keen says you don't need to be, you don't need to make friends with your teammates, you just as long as you're all pulling the same direction.
Speaker 2:And I think that's the unfortunate. Now we're in the era where social media does explode things up. There's leaks to the media, where things can't be kept in house and they can't be dealt with, and I just I just think they just need to get over it. He's not going to be in there. We were discussing the car way over here. I just I think the mental side of it is he's announced two years away that he's not going to be there.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Which is which is crazy and why, like it's just one of these, let, let, let the even seven months, seven months before or whatever it is like.
Speaker 1:Why would you even do?
Speaker 2:that just just announce, like tell the team privately, yeah, I may not be never staying in but but it, but it should, and and yeah, this is what I can't get my head around. It's maybe because there's no transfer fees when it comes to players and they do tend to just move around on a on a free that these these sort of situations are happening right at the start of the season, which is the worst time for for it to to come out and it just completely froze teams all over the place. Now they're Tigers. There may be a bit of animosity over the next couple of weeks because of it, and it may halter their whole season.
Speaker 1:Yeah, indeed, they've got a tough one this weekend as well. They are up against the Sharks. Lockie Galvin's been named, so it'll be interesting to see how they go. But um one player, that again was an absolute standout. I thought for the tigers was terrell may like he's another one. We spoke about hudson young, potentially making a push for origin. Um terrell may. Apart from pain, house to me is what is the standout front rower that is in the competition.
Speaker 1:That is an incredible partnership to our main pain house yeah, physical, run the ball like they just know know how to do. Like, I look at the position, I look at the others that are up for contention for front row, um, from origin. You have mitch barnett, the warriors. You have back fence spence, who's great off the bench, although his name to start again this week regan campbell gillard, I think. I don't think he's in contention um, both of the Saifiti brothers, so the Newcastle and Dolphins, and then Stefano Toyo Kamano, who's at the Storm, who I think is within a shout.
Speaker 1:So for me, if I had to pick three or four out of them, it would definitely be Terrell May. Payne-hass would be the first on the team. She, like Jake, I don't think he's going to get selected this year. I think he's well off the pace. Um, mitch barnett, I think, is a lock as well, and then it's one more out of out of those. So, yeah, we'll see how it goes. But um, yeah, what next are the tigers sharks this weekend? It'd be interesting to see how this circus impacts them.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and and the sharks are very. They're the. The Sharks are a team to be taken. They are a team there to be beaten and I don't think it's the worst thing for them to be coming into this, because they can push all the things aside and they do have it in their lockers to be able to be creative and possibly beat the Sharks. So, yeah, I don't think it's the worst thing that they're playing the Sharks, but, again, it's all what happens between now and when they play and if they do settle all that animosity that's been going on yeah, I agree.
Speaker 1:And one thing from this game as well, just to touch on we mentioned about the refereeing decisions earlier there's one that I left out Mitch Moses try, save and tackle where he's absolutely gone through the head of the guy in the corner with his forearm. One it's not been given a penalty, try and two he's not been sent to the bin for it. I don't, I don't get it. I don't get the consistency. You see people brushing people's chins with a forearm, yeah, and they get sent to the bend. You know what I think it's screaming for this weekend?
Speaker 1:there is going to be a crackdown on high shots and we're going to see eight sin bins within the first three games yeah, so yeah, but um one thing I will say what a weekend of football it was like there was some great games this weekend and we've got another long weekend of games.
Speaker 1:Um, not necessarily a long weekend of games, but another long weekend in um australia, as it's anzac day on friday, but it's. We're kicking off on Thursday at the Suncorp 8pm, an eagerly anticipated test for the Bulldogs. They're coming up against the Brisbane Broncos. Let's see what the bookies are saying. We've got the Broncos at $2.59 and the Bulldogs at $1.50.
Speaker 2:I think this is the closest thing you'll get to State of Origin without it being State of Origin. And I can see the dogs going up there and causing a bit of bit of mayhem and bit of havoc, and I'm going to, I'm going with the dogs I believe the sun corps is going to be packed out for this one.
Speaker 1:Um, they're going to want to be create a hostile environment, like we've said. Um who? Reese walsh is out for? Uh, brisbane with his with his knee. Um, reece Walsh is out for Brisbane with his knee. Brendan Peacore is back. No one really missing. For the Bulldogs. I'm going to go for a Broncos win in this. I think there's something about the crowd and they're so unpredictable you don't know which Broncos team are going to turn up. And Madge has a he's said to have run a tight ship in and have high expectations during during New South Wales camp. I think he's going to rocket them this week and they're going to come out and they're going to have a point to prove and I reckon they're going to hand the Bulldogs the first loss of the season, so we've gone different on the first one.
Speaker 1:This is this is interesting start to the week. Someone's going to be one nil up after game. One interesting. Then on to the friday 4 pm kickoff. Now this is the anzac stalwart game. This is for the anzac cup. It is the sydney roosters a dollar 73 against the saint george illawarra. Illawarra dragons at two dollars 11 at the aliens again another one. Another potential for a good atmosphere. Where's your money in this?
Speaker 2:one. This is a tough one actually. You've got a team coming off of a win which they were just the better of, two very poor sides, and then you've got another one coming off the back of an absolute hammering. And I'm going to go for the Roosters in this one. I think at home, and if the Dragons turn up anything like they did against Manly, I think the Roosters have more in the attack than they do, than Manly did, to put some points in and sort of punish them.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I agree, it's a difficult one to pick this one. The home crowd could potentially give them a bit of a boost, a bit of a pride thing as well, to play on Anzac day. Um, and especially there's a little trophy on the line as well, the anzac day cup. I'm gonna have to back you with the, with the roosters as well. I think we're both gonna go roosters and two of a lot is missing, which is yeah, it's huge that's.
Speaker 2:That's a big thing for Dragons.
Speaker 1:So, yeah, we'll go with Roosters on this one and then 6pm on the Friday, 6.05 over in New Zealand, in Christchurch. This one though, this one isn't in Auckland, it's not the Go Media, it's at the Apollo Project Stadium the Warriors $1.32 against the Newcastle Knights $3.41. Up the waz, up the waz, up the waz.
Speaker 1:I think, I'm going to have to say it this week. I think I'm going to have to up the waz. But I'm telling you, if someone's going to put on a performance this week Caelan Ponga going to New Zealand. He's got the, he's been there's news that he wants to play for New Zealand and he represented the Maoris in the maori all-star game. If he's going to show up, it's going to be in this game. But nickel clock stats back for um the warriors. Uh, he's the biggest name. That's kind of kind of back for them. Um few names back for dylan lucas is back for the for the knights. I just don't think they've.
Speaker 1:I don't think they've got enough let's go, let's go up the wars let's get warriors victory in this one, uh, and then the last game on the Friday. We've got the $1.21 Melbourne Storm against the $4.45 South Sydney Rabbitohs. This is in Melbourne at Amy Park. For the past two times that we've tipped the storm, we've almost brushed it aside and gone. The storm are going to blow away and they're going to absolutely destroy the Rabbitohs.
Speaker 2:What's your thoughts on this one? Um, I, I think the, the, the storm, are gonna gonna win. Um, I don't. I don't think they'll run well, the last couple of times I've been down at amy park, they've put some points on as well, um, and they look like they've got j. They've got jayden sullivan at hardback, who looks like he's someone's uncle. Um, bless him. And jerome hughes is back. Jerome, who uses playing, is all I sort of need to see from from that I know he was playing last week. Um, big nelson's been named as well.
Speaker 1:Big nelson's been named um. Is he in the reserves? Yeah, he's in the reserves, so might get a call-up, might not.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I'm going, even though they lost last week. I don't see the rabbit holes, putting on 40-odd unanswered points and Bellamy's going to Talking about bollockings. Bellamy's going to have given them a hair-dry treatment, so I'm going to go for the storm.
Speaker 1:There were some strong comments by bellamy after last weekend's fixture as well, saying it's the worst. I think there was a few words in there, I can't remember, but he said it was pretty bad. One interesting thing for me is latrell mitchell's been named at fullback. Um, do I think that's going to have an impact? No, I think the storm are going to absolutely batter them. I think this one could be 40 odd points. There's just something about me the fact that the Rabbitohs didn't score a point against the Bulldogs. They didn't look good and I think Melbourne are going to absolutely blow them away. So we're both tipping the storm in that one. On Saturday we go to the Queensland Country Bank Stadium up in Townsville. We've got the $1.41 Cowboys against a $2.92 Gold Coast Titans.
Speaker 2:Tight one. This is a very, a lot closer than the odds.
Speaker 2:Cowboys coming off the bye. I think I'm going to go for the Cowboys, just because I've had the week off and Titans are just like all over the place at the moment. Stay there, yeah, off. And Titans are just like all over the place at the moment. They they're, yeah, not much. I don't really have much in depth about the sort of the Cowboys, but, to be honest, it's at home, it's up in Townsville, it's going to be. Whether it God knows what it's going to be. I reckon it'll still might be a warm one, even at 5.30. So, yeah, I'm going to go for.
Speaker 1:Go for the cowboys, home advantage yeah, I think I'm going to join you on that one with the cowboys. The titans got david, for feet are back. Um. Is it jayden campbell that they've lost, though, like he's been? Um said that he's going to be out for a fair period of time. There's a bit of a loss for them, but I think the Cowboys have got enough. John Bateman was out the game before the bye with illness. He's back in. I just think the Cowboys are on a bit of a roll and with the rest that they've had, I can see them tucking the Titans in Little Queensland fixture up there Queensland, derby up there North versus South.
Speaker 1:But can see the Cowboys getting it done. And then to the Combank, the 7.35pm kick-off between the Penrith Panthers and the Manly Warringah Seagulls Panthers $1.48, seagulls $2.65. We will be in attendance at this one sitting in the general admission self stand cheering the boys on. But are we going to be cheering them on to?
Speaker 2:victory. So for anyone listening, our away attendance for Manly games is 0-4 0-4. So I would, if I was a betting man, I would tell everyone to put it on the Panthers to win, saying that I am not going to regardless, I am not going against my team, I just don't believe in it. I will be tipping the Seagulls, but I reckon this could be 40-50 to the Panthers and we're going to get absolute. Just pull to pieces If we're not 20-0 down in the first 20 minutes.
Speaker 1:I'll be very happy. These are some bold words, but I am going to go with the logic of that. When I tip for a team in recent weeks, the other team has won. Yeah, okay. So I'm going to pick the Penrith Pampers, okay, one, because I think they're gonna win, but two, I'm hoping that the that that effect takes place that I'm gonna manifest that the panthers, because I've picked them.
Speaker 1:They're gonna lose to the manly seagulls. If we lose this game as well, we uh in a strife because we've then got the buy and then we've got the sharks at home, which isn't looking good. So I'm hoping we win, but I think the pamphlets.
Speaker 2:Hopefully, hopefully having turbo back. It will change up the attack a little bit, but and hop a white on the wing. Yeah, it should be good yeah, hop, a white back on the wing. Uh, which will be, which will be nice to see. Um, I will be meeting some mates very early afternoon.
Speaker 1:So hopefully.
Speaker 2:I won't remember too much of it.
Speaker 1:I've decided I'm going to take a few weeks off the drink. I just feel like I need to do the old weight. The scale is going back up, so I think I want it to go the other way. But onto the Sunday game. 2 pm, or two Sunday games there are. It's the Canberra Raiders, $1.55 against the Redcliffe Dolphins, $2.56. This is down in Canberra at the GIO stadium.
Speaker 2:This is another tough one to call. This is a really tough one to call. I'm just going to say it. You go through the team list and it's pretty even in all positions. You go through the team list and it's pretty even in all positions.
Speaker 1:The Dolphins have lost Kofusi, who's a big enforcer. Mco injury which may have an impact, but I believe he didn't play that much of the last game and they still pulled off a pretty impressive performance.
Speaker 2:I'm going just because it's in Canberra. I'm going to go Raiders Hudson, young 2 tries Matt Onyck or someone is my prediction.
Speaker 1:Lump on. I'd love to know the odds of that, but I'm going to join you on that. I think the Raiders have got too much of the Dolphins. I said this last week about the Melbourne Storm and it went the wrong way. But I do believe that the Canberra Raiders down in Canberra will want to put on a show for the home fans, show that they are top four worthy, and I believe that they're going to get it done. I agree with you. I think Huddy Young's going to score another one, maybe not two, but I think he's going to get one in there. And then on to the final game of the weekend. We are at Leichhardt Oval. We visited there. We saw Manny play the Tigers and guess what Manny lost? But we got the West Tigers $2.98 against the Cronulla Sharks $1.40.
Speaker 2:Nico Hines has started to hit a bit of form, both sort of playing and with the boot the last couple of weeks, which is quite handy. It's going to be a good physical middles game with Terrell May up against Faneua Blake, so that's. That's going to be good to watch.
Speaker 1:But in saying that, I still think the circus around Lockheed Galvin is still going to impact them this week and I reckon the Sharks are going to win this game yeah, I'm not going to cause any controversy in this and pick the West Tigers just for picking sake, because I did that last week with the Warriors and broncos, just to be different. Um, I think the sharks are too strong. I think got powerful run game through the middle. It'll be great to see them come up against, uh, the terrell. May, um, see him running the ball.
Speaker 1:But, um, for me, I think the sharks just do what the sharks do. They play good footy. They get it out wide when they need to, they run through the middle when they need to, um, and I can see them, yeah, beating the sharks, uh, beating the tigers at leichhardt. So, yeah, be one to one to keep an eye on. But again, another long weekend I've got a wedding to go to down down in kiama, so I don't know how much I'm going to be able to watch these games, but I will be keeping an eye on the scores, and I might might have the phone on here and there on the Friday just to check out and see what's going on.
Speaker 1:But yeah, formula One, let's quickly touch on that over the weekend. So Piastri, again Piastri wins again.
Speaker 2:The Australian boy wins again. A little bit of controversy just around the penalty that was given to old Maxi V.
Speaker 1:Directly. He was in front. I saw Christian Horner holding out photos, regardless.
Speaker 2:He was in front. I saw Christian Horner holding out photos. Regardless, Verstappen shouldn't have even been in that position.
Speaker 1:He's a knobhead.
Speaker 2:Yeah, he just dive-bombed essentially in that corner, knowing that he was going to just fly over the edge. He didn't break to go into the corner, he didn't look like he was twirling and Piastri just held his line. But yeah, it was good to see that the old McLarens are still flying through. Bit of a good for an English team there. And yeah, weird thing that he only got a five-second penalty and not a ten. And the stewards came out and said oh, because it happened on the first lap, we're only going to give him a five-second, didn't?
Speaker 1:Lando Norris also get a five-second penalty for lining up outside his box, or something like that.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think that was a couple of weeks ago.
Speaker 1:Oh was it.
Speaker 2:He crashed in qualifying, old Lando. Yeah, that's the Verstappen effect he's only having a five-second penalty over a ten-second penalty.
Speaker 1:I can't stand him. I cannot stand him. Every time something happens to him, I'm glad.
Speaker 2:Hope he doesn't win the win, the championship, uh, hope. I hope someone else wins.
Speaker 1:I'd be happy if it's either one of the mclaren boys, either even norris, or piastri, yeah, we've got ties to both ones, english ones, australian mad, that um, and then light touch on the premier league and the the league one updates. Uh, chelsea finally got a decent victory last minute, pedro neto winner against fulham, and what a strike it was.
Speaker 2:Do you know what? For all the doom and gloom you bring on this podcast, I haven't realised how high up Chelsea are.
Speaker 1:Yeah, but yes, and that was from a few run of games earlier in the season, but it's not looking good for us making the Champions League, which, I'll be honest with you, I don't think we're a Champions League team, no, I believe we are Europa League level. Hopefully we win the Conference League. I can't even remember who we got in the semi-final Some team? But anyway, we finally got a victory in the Premier League of some quality against Fulham, pedro Neto scoring the winner. We did go 1-0 down, though Brought it back. So it's good to show a bit of stones, a few marbles, great finish as well. Cole Palmer, cucurello or someone, put the ball in Pedro Neto, little flick turn, smash into the middle of the net. Yeah, so going well onwards and upwards. The only disappointing thing, though, is if Liverpool win their next game, which I think is against Tottenham, they win the league, which is one, a sour point, but two Chelsea have to give them a guard of, which is even worse but yeah, our.
Speaker 1:Birmingham, how Birmingham got on.
Speaker 2:Yeah, sound Drew against Crawley in a thrilling nil-nil at home for the weekend.
Speaker 1:I've never seen a thrilling nil-nil.
Speaker 2:No, no, a lot of sarcasm attached to that. But then we beat Burton last night 2-1, or this morning yeah, this morning 2-1, which is normally a bit of a banana stick screen, the skin ground, uh, when we go to burton. A little bit of a local derby, uh. But we're on 99 points now. We only need four more out of 12 to equal the highest points record. And then, um, if we go over 103, we've, we've got the, we've got the highest points in the league one season, which you know what it's pretty, pretty sound.
Speaker 2:Yeah, happy with that fair play, fair play.
Speaker 1:Well, we've covered a lot this episode um and what are we? What a week it was of sport. Like there's a lot coming. It's all coming thick and fast. Now we've got to start thinking about the lions as well. Who's? Getting selected who's getting selected for origin. There's a lot going on, but, um, yeah, thanks again for listening to this week's episode. What a weekend we got lined up. Looking forward to reviewing it all next week, but we'll catch you in the next one, sayonara.