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!
#27 When Underdogs Bite
The sporting weekend delivered unforgettable drama, with the British & Irish Lions completing the largest comeback in their test match history at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground. Walking into that colossal stadium alongside 90,000 fans, predominantly wearing Lions red, created an atmosphere that gave everyone goosebumps, especially when the teams emerged to pyrotechnics and deafening roars.
What unfolded was a tale of two completely different halves. The Wallabies stormed out of the gates with Rob Valetini and Will Skelton bulldozing through the Lions defense, building what seemed an insurmountable 18-point advantage. Joseph Suaalii showed glimpses of his extraordinary talent when given space, while the Australian forward pack dominated the collision areas with frightening intensity. But crucial Lions tries before halftime kept them within striking distance.
The second half transformation came largely through the Lions' bench, with Ellis Genge, Will Stuart and others providing fresh impetus that gradually wore down the tiring Wallabies. The final moments produced the weekend's most controversial moment, Jack Morgan's clearout at the breakdown that could have been penalised for contact with the neck area. This 50:50 decision will be debated for years to come, with valid arguments either way about whether it contravened the laws protecting players.
Meanwhile, NRL action featured shocking upsets across the board. The Gold Coast Titans stunned the previously high-flying Warriors, Parramatta surprised the Broncos at Suncorp and the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs dismantled Manly at The Allianz. These results have dramatically reshaped the premiership race, with Panthers, Raiders and Bulldogs all emerging as serious contenders alongside the injury-hit Storm.
The coming weekend promises even more drama with the potential series sweeping Lions test in Sydney and crucial NRL matches that could determine final playoff positions. Will you be joining us at the Olympic Stadium to witness what could be another historic rugby encounter? Let us know your predictions for both the Lions decider and the remaining NRL rounds!
Welcome to another episode of. They've Been Doing it All Day. Sir Manly got humbled by the Bulldogs and I'm drowning in Wallabies tears over here. Let's get stuck in.
Speaker 2:How's your week been, mate?
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's been really good mate, really good mate Back from Melbourne. Yeah, birthday weekend. Birthday weekend as well, fun-packed, sporting birthday weekend.
Speaker 2:It was so.
Speaker 1:you can't grumble with that, um, but no, yeah, it's good. Good to be back in old old sydney it is.
Speaker 2:It is um melbourne's, uh, an interesting one. I've got a few few interesting vibes whilst we were over there. Um makes you realize how good you have it in sydney. Yeah, I must admit um, but the mcg, what, what a stadium, incredible stadium, incredible stadium.
Speaker 1:I think that's the highest attended game I've ever been to as well.
Speaker 2:Wembley may have just been about the same. I reckon that Euro semi-final I mentioned previously might have been about the same attendance, but what's weird, the sheer volume of the MCG.
Speaker 1:It felt bigger it just feels huge, doesn't it? Yeah absolutely huge, um, and the thing is, as we discussed, we were sat there because we were on the top third tier, row b, and you're looking around and all you see is people, but then when you look behind, it's just another sea of people behind you.
Speaker 2:It was, it was crazy great stadium, great city, I must admit, like the, the nightlife, and it felt a bit busier, yeah, than sydney. It felt like there was a bit more going on, um, a bit more, bit more different things to do. There was a mixture of things to do, and we certainly experienced that on the friday night as well, with the questionable accommodation that we were staying in. Yeah, god.
Speaker 1:If I don't contract rabies or whatever from anything. Thank God I didn't cut myself anywhere.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, they did not care, did they?
Speaker 2:Cleaning. The room was clean. I'll give the room credit. It was clean, but the communal areas, such as the shower, could do with a bit of mould remover.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, I think they need to get some dusters feather dusters up in the cobwebs as well. There was a few knocking about, but no, it was good. It was good, other than that. It was above a pub, so you couldn't really argue.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and cheap old pints of Guinness as well that they're doing during their happy hour. Friday we had a decent amount and I got struck down on Saturday with something on your birthday, which I felt bad for. But the body was aching, the neck was stiff and sore. I resorted to a Lemsip in a pub, which was some questionable tactics. But on the Saturday, oh no, on the Friday, sorry, we went along to the AFL, didn't we? We went to watch. Who was it? Essendon Bombers against the Western Bulldogs. What's your thoughts on Aussie rules?
Speaker 1:I like Aussie rules. As I said, I grew up playing Gaelic, so the transition is there Sometimes. If it's on, I'll watch it and and whatnot. But yeah, that was just not a good game. I think we chose the worst game to go to.
Speaker 2:To be honest, it doesn't help that when we, when we got in there, um, I cracked a little joke to the people in front of us and they started chuckling about how terrible the standard was, and we found out that essendon apparently had lost a significant number of players through injury and, although, although not bottom of the ladder, they were probably the worst formed team and the final score ended up being 50 to 143, which I think in any terms is an absolute shelling.
Speaker 2:But at the stadium on the Sunday I don't know if you've seen this on social media this clip popped up of the St saint kilda whatever their name is saint kilda against melbourne. They were 46 points down at the end of third, was it? They've basically going into the final quarter. They came back and won it on the buzzer. Love that. Watch the last two minutes looks absolutely incredible. So I think there is. There are.
Speaker 2:I suppose it's with any sport you can go along and watch terrible fixtures, or you can go and see fantastic ones, but unfortunately the one that we saw at Marvel Stadium on Friday night.
Speaker 1:Just wasn't the pick of them.
Speaker 2:Not the first game this weekend that we left early oh.
Speaker 1:God, we'll get on to that.
Speaker 2:We'll get on to the other one later. But yeah, AFL, do you know what? I think there's some phenomenal athletes in the sport.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, incredible, incredible.
Speaker 2:And it produces some highlight reel moments when they go up for marks. The one for the guy from St Kilda that leapt off the back of someone to get a mark with 20 odd seconds to go to tie it up was pretty impressive. But yeah, I don't get what's going on. When it's like they're trying to tackle and some of the fouls that are going on, it's a bit confusing, but they're absolute athletes, they're guns of athletes, I can't deny them that. But the big one.
Speaker 2:The Saturday second test, unreal absolutely unreal what did you think about the presence of Lions supporters in Melbourne compared to when we were in?
Speaker 1:Brisbane the week before. We thought when we got there that it wasn't going to be as bad because of how more spread out Melbourne is, but you could just see them everywhere. Again, it's just. I went for a run at work and I was running around Pyrmont and back. I saw like lines. I must have seen about five or six lines.
Speaker 2:I read something just a minute ago, just before we started recording, that a fair number of flights have been cancelled from Melbourne because of the winds.
Speaker 1:So there's some people that are going to be rolling in late. There's going to be some more people arriving.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, and I nearly didn't make it on the plane back here did I?
Speaker 1:No, you didn't.
Speaker 2:That could. We took it easier, obviously, because I was feeling absolutely rank, but we took a walk down to South Bank and it got a bit livelier down there, didn't it?
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, it was good, it was good Managed to get into one of the pubs down there. It was just a sea of red in every pub.
Speaker 2:Yeah. Which was quite cool I think we were with maybe the only two Wallabies supporters.
Speaker 1:Within a 500-meter radius.
Speaker 2:Yeah, the gaff they were in. It was one of the dads of the kids that I go to school with and his old man, and he was telling me stories about how he was seeing the Lions series back since like 79 and stuff like that.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it was like what. Was it eighth? No, it must have been more than that, like he's watched a lot of them.
Speaker 2:He wasn't impressed with this tour.
Speaker 1:I think it was the eighth one in Australia. I think he said he's watched, yeah, but anyway, yeah, it was quite cool just chatting away with them having a few beers just making our way to the G, yeah.
Speaker 2:Nice to walk in along the river.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it was, it was and getting in there it was.
Speaker 2:it wasn't getting in there, it was just the the show, the pre pre-match, everything was just just awesome. It gave me goosebumps kind of the build like don't get me wrong the build up at the sun court because of the, the tight environment. It was incredible. But for those, how many of them were there? 46 plus staff like everything walking out to the fireworks, the flames, the noise of the crowd, and they're slightly on an uphill slope as well. So you're coming out and you're seeing it all. It must have been absolutely phenomenal.
Speaker 1:If I was playing, I doubt I would have made it up that ramp. I think my legs would have given way, knees would have been knocking, they would have been like jelly.
Speaker 2:The world would have been knocking. The world would have fallen out of my backside before the game as well.
Speaker 1:I'm telling you that was some build up, and I mean look, I've got to give it to them the first two tests. The build up has been incredible. I'm really looking forward to what the old the Olympic Stadium can do, because that's got it's light shows. It's got it's massive LED screens as well.
Speaker 2:So it'll be interesting if they can follow. Not that I. I mean I would have liked a third game in the series that could be competitive. I think it would have gone up a level if it would have been 1-1 going into third. But we're getting to the game. We were in shock. Yeah, we're sitting there. Not a clue what was going on.
Speaker 1:No, and they got handed to the Wallabies. They came out swinging.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:And they did extremely well. Lions were just poor, couldn't match the physicality of it Mistakes. Valentini and Skelton were difference makers, I think having just two absolute animals and brutes.
Speaker 2:The way Valentini was carrying the ball as well. It was hard. He was running, he was into contact. He's a doubt, though, for the game three, which is, which is a massive shame.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's not. I think he was out of his calf before, but it's his knee. But Skelton, big boy Gies, is enormous, like Toge's, not a small man, and he had him round the throat like he was tiny, like a kid, absolutely bonkers. But largest ever comeback by a Lions team in a test match. What were they down? They were 18 points down. You could see it happening, though you could. If the Lions didn't score those two tries before halftime, I don't think it would have happened. And I believe the Wallabies just ran out of gas for that last five minutes. They put it all into playing with a man up. They put everything they could into it and I think Joseph Suoli showed to world rugby by his performance what he can do when he's got some space. And if it wasn't for Ben Curry's tackle, which was a game-changing moment because that was coming towards us that was in the second half, wasn't it? If he doesn't come from behind and take him down, the Wallabies go on and win that. And he had Ben Curry again Ben Curry.
Speaker 1:Tom Curry.
Speaker 2:Why was I thinking Ben Curry? It's his brother. Tom Curry had an absolute fantastic game yet again, as well as Burn Tag, burn Yep, another phenomenal performance, and I think the front, the pack and the replacement front row that came on.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you could see. You could see the difference. You can see what everyone was talking about Cause that was just, it was such an impactful sort of substitutions and and coming onto the and coming on, and you've got the likes of Genge coming on, who just adds a different level and he dominated in the first game as well and, I reckon, every penalty.
Speaker 1:If the Lions could get a scrum, they would have got a scrum. I think the referee was a little bit lenient at times to the Aussies because there was some dominating pushes by the Lions.
Speaker 2:Oh, true, they did come up quite early quite a few times.
Speaker 1:So I don't know because I haven't watched it back, but from where we were it looked like the Lions were dominating the scrum in that second half and I think there could have been a lot more penalties from it. But I think the ref had a little bit more leniency on it, yeah.
Speaker 2:And it comes back to what I said around when I listened to Ronan O'Gara before the first test and he was saying about making sure you have a strong bench because test deciders are usually within the last 12 minutes and it proved its worth in kind of them coming on, Jack Morgan coming on and clearing out at the end. But on that decision, what do you reckon?
Speaker 1:I've watched it back so many times. You said it incredibly well that I don't think there's been a more controversial 50-50 moment in any sport. Because you look at the laws, the laws say that you can't put pressure on the neck, but from what I saw, his head gets underneath the jackal. I can't remember his name off the top of my head Tizani I think it was.
Speaker 1:And then he pushes like it's a scrum and then pushes him back. So obviously there is going to be contact with, in some sort of way with the back of the neck, but it's not shoulder straight into the back of the neck, which is what that law refers to.
Speaker 2:He's. Also when he's jacking, he's lowering his head down to kind of go over the ball, which your head's not meant to be below your hips, so look. I believe it could have been given either way and I think if it's given, lions fans are outraged and Wallabies are saying it's the right decision. If it's not given, like it wasn't, lions fans are saying it's the right decision and Wallabies fans are outraged, like it's just. It is one of, like you said, it's one of the most game-deciding, controversial calls.
Speaker 1:It would have been really interesting to see what the Wallabies would have chosen to do if they had, if it was the penalty, because the time would have been stopped. So the options would have been kick, scrum or I don't know run it Probably, just boot it away. Boot it away. But then they have a line out which they could lose, which then gives the ball to the Lions to then try and get back up the field. But then, if they choose, to the scrum, the option of losing it quite early would have been there.
Speaker 1:So do you just risk it and run it and just try and beat breakdown after breakdown. So it would have been interesting what the decision would have been there. But I reckon if you dive into the ins and outs of a ruck you can have a penalty pretty much every ruck, I reckon 100% every clear out, and Martin Johnson said it as that and you probably could have picked penalties.
Speaker 2:James haskell even said it as well, that if you're giving that, you've got to give a penalty every right. But phenomenal, phenomenal outcome. Lions win the series already. Um coming into third, got something to do about 100, winning it all, three out of three and tests nine out of nine victories.
Speaker 1:It's only going to be 100% in Australia, though, because they lost to Argentina. Yeah, all right, All right.
Speaker 2:I'll give you that.
Speaker 1:Because I thought that earlier. It's like is the crown? Is it diminished? Is there a dent in the crown because they lost to Argentina?
Speaker 2:Nah, I don't think so. They're not undefeated, but you can give. But looking forward to Sydney, how do you reckon it will go? I feel there's going to be a bit of rotation. I think we might see a.
Speaker 1:I don't think there's going to be as heavy a rotation as people think. I think it's still going to be an extremely strong, like test team, because I reckon they want to, they want to win it, and they want to win it and they want to win 3-0 saying that the bench could like look like, or Benal could start.
Speaker 2:I reckon Pollock could be on the bench. You could have Owen Farrell starting and then Jones to a plot. Who may?
Speaker 1:be, I think. To be honest, I didn't see much of Bundiaki, so you've got a rotation of Farrell to a plot and Jones, probably in the centres for me.
Speaker 2:I agree. It'll be interesting to see how it goes, but looking forward to it, of course, I don't think this one's a sellout. Actually, I think there's still going to be 80 plus thousand there. It's still going to be. Oh, that's another thing. We were part of the largest crowd to ever bit of history. Can't go wrong with that, um, but at the moment feels like it's going to be a tight game. It looked like they're on the beers already. Not gonna lie. Look like they were celebrating on the beers, um might start well, might be on our beers ourselves.
Speaker 1:Start our own little pub crawl from the uh top of the northern beaches all the way down to the stadium, that is very true.
Speaker 2:Got a friend over from the uk so got a show on the sites of DYRSL Brookvale. Where else do we plan on going, manly?
Speaker 1:go.
Speaker 2:Four Pines get Light Rail across. Let's hope we remember some of the game we'll report. We'll report back next week.
Speaker 2:This is the thing we've discussed is memory wise, I'll be sober at games and don't remember much of the action it's quite an interesting one so it goes on to the nrl and look, there's a couple of fixtures that I don't one fixture in particular that we might skip over. But, um, some big upsets this week, some huge upsets. But we'll kick it off by going down to the gio stadium, where the raiders were held quite, quite tightly at halftime by the newcastle knights. And then they do what they do, isn't this?
Speaker 1:what we said last week they're going to have one half, which is just going to be too good for the Knights. It was the second half where they go and score 24 unanswered points.
Speaker 2:Nine straight on the bounce, Absolutely in form red hot team at the moment. Imagine if they played two hours of rugby. How good they would be. They could be dangerous. They could be very, very dangerous. But what is a real positive sign after what we saw on Sunday? Seeing Jamal Fogarty have an absolute ball game and booting the ball into orbit, having time for everyone to get down there and just being creative, opening things up, just commanding the ship, looking forward to him being at Manly next year, but Raiders.
Speaker 1:Knights, do man?
Speaker 2:No, I was going to say Raiders, the fact that we said they're guaranteed for the minor premiership. Are they now near enough? Not guaranteed, because nothing's guaranteed in life, but are they favourites for the premiership? I?
Speaker 1:think the only other team who's in the form of winning well is the Panthers, which we'll talk on a little bit later. Yeah, so I wouldn't be surprised if it's depending on how the table finishes and if it allows, it would be a Raiders premiership final.
Speaker 2:We'll see how it goes. But Knights look they. We'll see how it goes. But Knights, look, they kept themselves in it up until a point they weren't too bad. But I think they're just going to limp to the end of the season. Now. Try not to finish in the bottom half. Have a respectable season's end. Yep, I agree with that, go from there. But a game that, look, we could skip over and just say well done Dogs. But I think we should dissect it a bit and talk about what went well, but what went?
Speaker 2:wrong for Manning.
Speaker 1:First of all, I've got to give it to Dogs fans. That is probably the best league atmosphere I've been a part of. They were loud. The noise they made when Garrick missed his conversion was like they'd just scored.
Speaker 2:They got their 1,000th win as well this weekend, and it was in front of the 30th year anniversary of their 1995, which they won against Manly, I believe.
Speaker 1:What do you think of that Celebrating?
Speaker 2:I was disappointed with the amount of people that are out on the pitch walking around. There was only 8 people maybe, or 9, 10 or 11. There wasn't that many people. Obviously I don't know the ages. There could have been circumstances.
Speaker 1:But now, as in celebrating a league from 30 years ago, is that the only league they've won? No, because they won it with James Graham and all that.
Speaker 2:So did they win it with James Graham? I don't think he won a premiership.
Speaker 1:They got to the final. Okay, that's what I'm on, but I believe they have won it.
Speaker 2:since I don't know, I'm not too sure about it. I'm thinking of the James.
Speaker 1:Graham Rabbit O's yeah On Sam we were there half time.
Speaker 2:We thought we were in it and it was a strong defensive performance from manly up until half time. One person that I have to give massive props to, big Matty Lodge ah the guy was running with such intent, he, he he was bouncing people off like he's so good he he's a prop those first 11 weeks.
Speaker 1:I reckon we could have the games that we lost closely against the Dragons. If we had Matty Lodge in there as a in prop, I reckon it could have been a different ball game he's just, he's just froze. He was the only forward that got over 100 metres as well.
Speaker 2:Takiyaho, though, like you said last week, bounces off of him when if he's having a physical game. Takiyaho then goes in. They both had a strong. What? Was it 15, 20 minutes to the game and they set the tone. Look, we weren't great going forward. We got one try just before the half, which was probably from like our third visit to the red zone. But a man that's kind of been under a bit of scrutiny and question marks is Jason Saab, under the hype. Why is he dropping that?
Speaker 1:To be fair, we said it at the time as well. It was the easiest out of a few that he dropped.
Speaker 2:He ran onto one over his shoulder that he caught perfectly fine two minutes later. But he drops the first try and it wasn't Max King, it was the other prop that went over.
Speaker 1:I thought it was Max King. No, it was the other prop that went over. Oh, was it my I thought it was my.
Speaker 2:Nah, it was the other one that went over. But we just after halftime. It was mistakes that cost us. Yeah, stupid like Kola trying to or Hoppawattie trying to whip it out to Kolo who wasn't there. Garrick missed the tackle on fifth tackle and they go over, and at that point ramped up and then look, they were very good. Can't take anything away from the Bulldogs, they absolutely punished Manly. But bit of disappointing news come out of the game Hamoli Olokowatu out for the rest of the season read a stat, didn't I on the Saturday that 50.
Speaker 2:It's a 50-50 chance to whether you're gonna re-dislocate your shoulder like you need surgery. And I mean I've heard whether you're going to re-dislocate your shoulder you need surgery. I mean I've heard another stat say it was like a 90% chance. So it's one of those things. But I hope it doesn't end up what seems like how Josh Aloaez has, where it's just repeating, repeating repeating that would be such a massive loss to the game.
Speaker 1:if he is.
Speaker 2:He needs to take time and rehab. But what do you think this does to Manly's season?
Speaker 1:we're 9th now, roosters next week, raiders the week after if Manly lose to the Roosters, that's it all done and dusted. I think there's a glimmer, I hope, outside of that nothing yeah, I agree.
Speaker 2:And then onto the Roosters. Let's move on, otherwise we're going to end up sounding too negative. But look good, first half performance.
Speaker 1:Again. Manly were in it Again. We've talked about it all fucking season. If they were more clinical going forward, I reckon Manly could have been up at half and it could have been a different game and if he weren't booting the ball down Tracy's throat he's so good down the Tracy's throat. He's so good like DC is so good at finding the fullback yeah, the fullback great 40-20, though yeah, on real 40-20. Give him that the fullback could be sat in the crowd and you'll still find him. Yeah, it's mental.
Speaker 2:I couldn't believe it. Every single time it just seemed to be rammed down his throat and even and it's just.
Speaker 1:it's just such a trajectory angle as well. There's no height on it, it's just looped straight into it anyway.
Speaker 2:Moving on, the Melbourne Storm overcome the Sydney Roosters 34 points to 30. And this was a great comeback by the Roosters.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it was, they dug deep.
Speaker 2:Oh, Angus Crichton was on our flight, wasn't he To Melbourne? Forgot about that on the Friday. Big Angus Heon was on our flight. Wasn't he To Melbourne? Forgot about that on the Friday, Big Angus.
Speaker 1:He looked very Melbourney as well, didn't he?
Speaker 2:He did look very Melbourney, his oversized jeans and the old hat that he had on, but A lot taller than I was expecting. Big boy, he's a big lad, he is a big lad. But yeah, storm, come out on top in a close one. If I'm honest. When was this Thursday? This game? Yeah, memory of it's hazy. Lots gone on since then, but I remember thinking Rooster's gonna actually do this well again.
Speaker 1:It's just that unconvincing away form by the storm I know I've tried to, I've suppose I've shown a little bit of consistency in my understanding of the storm is they just don't click and it's the players, it's the talent within the team that's getting them over. I think They've got to sort this out. You can't be shipping 30 points in a playoff game. It's criminal.
Speaker 2:These bigger games are starting to feel like finals football, and from that Jerome Hughes might be missing for some of their finals football. Big loss, huge loss.
Speaker 1:Huge loss and he's instrumental through it all. And that's what I say about the talent brings it through. It's his play that changes games and you look at a team which they didn't really. You had Nwengen Itawase up against Xavier Coates.
Speaker 2:which sort of Cancelled, each other out Cancelled each other out.
Speaker 1:but then you got Daniel Tubbo, who you said yeah, gies is just unstoppable in the air.
Speaker 2:Different Absolute, different gravy in the air. If you send anything up, he's coming down with it. So fair play to him. But upset of the week, up next, I believe, the Broncos. Actually, no, I wouldn't say this is the upset of the week. Actually no, there's a bigger upset of the week. This is the second upset of the week this is the second biggest upset of the week Broncos defeated at home at the Suncorp by the.
Speaker 1:Eels. Well, we were chatting to a Broncos fan in the pool, weren't we on Friday before we played pool, and he said this is the first time they've got all their big six playing.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, those boys yeah From the. Gold Coast. They just were shocking. They were absolutely shocking. Did we? I don't, we didn't watch much of this, did we?
Speaker 1:I can't really remember, to be honest. No, no, no.
Speaker 2:I can't really remember either, but I remember thinking, wow, they've stunned them. Moses, apparently was a difference, was he and you did?
Speaker 1:say that actually you did say that him being back was going to be a bit of a difference maker, but this is the thing with the Broncos.
Speaker 2:They'll scrape into the eight and they could show up and be the best team in the comp, or they could put on an absolute stink of a performance like this.
Speaker 1:But the thing is then the Eels on the flip side. They've got this in their locker, but where has it been all season? I know they've had injuries consistently and is it going to be a bit of a look back for the Eels and go? We've missed out on a decent looking season here, especially in a season where everyone was beating everyone. So it's like I think the Eels can look back and go. We've missed a good chance here.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I just don't think they've got enough, though, after the Dylan Brown, knowing that he's off, did he want to contribute any more?
Speaker 1:But we watched Paramaster rip Manly apart.
Speaker 2:This is very true.
Speaker 1:It's not hard to do, though it's not, yeah, as the dogs found out. But, as I said, the performances are there, and you can't go up to the Suncorp and put in a half-hearted shift and come away with a win. You've got to put in something to beat the Broncos at home, and they did Fair play to them.
Speaker 2:I don't know what to make of the Broncos, no. They're likely going to finish in the eight, but I don't know where they're going to get to. But a team that someone I don't know where they're going to get to, but a team that someone or a game that one of the guys that you just mentioned had seven grand could have potentially won seven grand.
Speaker 2:If, who was it? Shane Flanagan? No, carl Flanagan, his son, if he scored and he didn't, I think that's what made it such long odds. But he had what six try scorers or something like that on he just needed Shane Flanagan scoring. He didn't. But again another one that we were having a few beers on Friday night watched a little bit of this. Tom Dearden having an absolute game of it again since he got picked for Origin he seems to have stepped up his performances a little bit, doesn't he?
Speaker 2:Yeah, which is always good, but the Dragons again like another tight game that they've lost. They're losing games but they can't get over the line. I don't think their position on the ladder really reflects the sort of team they are. They should have more wins than they have, but the Cowboys seem to be at the moment putting points up for a bit of fun.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and it's interesting because the Eels and the Dragons are going to be one of those teams to watch for next season when they have an off-season together and possibly bring in some. I reckon if the Eels bring in some big boys up front, some sort of skill makers, and then the Dragons just If they can keep Tupulatu fit out on the wing get Val Holmes back, like that's not a bad back line that they've got.
Speaker 2:Oh, he's had shoulder surgery as well. Yeah, it'll be interesting to see how he comes back. But I look at the Dragons. So you look at the teams, you look at the Seagulls, Roosters, Cowboys, Dragons, even down to the Tigers and the Ills.
Speaker 2:There's not much form-wise splitting those teams, but then you get to even the Knights. I'd chuck in that it's very tight now to who's going to be there or thereabouts. I think there are some teams that have got too much to do, but it'd be interesting to see how it pans out. But the next game is the one that we're going to talk about that is the biggest upset of the week. We upped the wars, we wazzed up, we went the wars at home and the titans turned up and turned them over. They did they did.
Speaker 1:Kieran foran, fucking throwing back the years with hoyan passes left, right and center, like it's. Like it's christmas day there's has this job on the line and then all of a sudden they pull out a performance 500 game, fucking throwing back the ears with.
Speaker 2:Hoyne passes left, right and centre Like it's Christmas Day, dez has his job on the line and then all of a sudden they pull out a performance 500 game as well, Because we were watching this before the game and they just they looked like they bullied them. Yeah, you had the first three try scorers, didn't you? You had Halasimo went over Pompey and Jojo Fafita, and you just needed, ah, dwz.
Speaker 2:I just needed DWZ to go over and they never, looked like they were going to attack down his side either, which was bonkers, but it was two of us that went over for their other try. But I don't know, is a loss like this going to cost the Warriors? Are they going to be thinking of these results going into the finals.
Speaker 1:This is the sort of game that they have a tune-up game and they blow the Titans out of the water.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:That's what you would expect Not to come in here and have a difficult performance. And you look at what the games that they've had sort of around. They got thumped by the Broncos and Panthers not that long ago, yes, but then you look at the beat the Tigers, they beat the Knights, but then they've come into this and lost to the Titans. It's like well, where's that consistency that you need in the finals? And they've got the Dolphins, dogs, dragons, titans again in the next three games.
Speaker 2:Four games Dolphins, dogs, dragons. That'll be a tough little run.
Speaker 1:It's not the easiest, considering a couple of them are away as well. You've got. They need to change it up. They need to find that killer instinct that they've had the whole of the start of the season.
Speaker 2:Yeah Well, they've got Manly last game before finals football, so we'll see how that one goes. It is at Brookie, though. It is at Brookie, so we'll see what happens, also losing Metcalf.
Speaker 2:Yeah, tanner Boyd has been all right, but maybe it's moments like this that he has lacked the composure to steer the ship and even last week to miss as many field goals as he did and then win it by fluke, really. So it seems like, yeah, the Metcalfe loss is costing them. Didn't watch any of this game the next time the Rabbitohs defeated by the Sharks 14-12. By everything that I've kind of read and feedback from it real boring game in which Jack Whiten took someone's head off and has been banned for two games. So things just go from bad to worse for the Rabbitohs.
Speaker 1:Talking about every other the Warriors and the Broncos. You look at the Sharks. Their last two victories ran away with it. And again you'd come into this one and you're like, oh, like, oh. Sharks easily run away with it if they're going off the form of recently and just again limp there a team that's fighting for the last places of the eight and it's like, well, you need to put in a decent shift to get that momentum to stay in the eight and then take it into the finals.
Speaker 2:Sharks are another one. I don't know what to make of it. All of a sudden it goes from like you're confident about teams that are going to turn up and perform. Then the Warriors end up losing, the Broncos end up losing. Sharks don't look convincing, but one team that is. We said this would be a cricket score.
Speaker 1:You said, this could Just win.
Speaker 2:Convincing yeah, but one team that is currently Fucking hell. We said this would be a cricket score. Yeah, you said this could be a cricket score, and 36 for two.
Speaker 1:I've seen England with that cricket score many a time.
Speaker 2:Exactly the way the English pronounce cricket scores or announce cricket scores is 36 for two. So seems like the Panthers just turned up Cleary's like. You know what. I've had enough of all this origin stuff being shouted about me. Did you see his kick through? No, the banana kick.
Speaker 1:Oh, something different. He's got it on a string. He's kicked it around. I can't remember whose try it was for, but he's kicked it around about three or a couple of defenders and it's hooked.
Speaker 2:The tigers they're on a bit of a downward spiral, but panthers are on the up, like there's no doubt about it. Don't write them off. Let's have a look at what they are for the premiership now down to five, but oh wow. So we're looking at the raiders, bulldogs and panthers, all at five dollars.
Speaker 1:And then the storm of the favourites Should have put money on them. When they were at what? 40 were they? Yeah, or something like that.
Speaker 2:I wouldn't put the Storm as favourites at $325. Especially now that they've lost Hughes, I'd put them at $5. With the rest of them, I suppose you've got to have an out, well, you don't have an out and out favourite. But yeah, warriors have dropped down to $31. Broncos are at $11. Sharks at $19. So it's tightening up at the top. Raiders for me, I think, are still. If it works out, is it going to be a Raiders-Panthers final? That would be incredible, but let's get on to round 22.
Speaker 1:Yep.
Speaker 2:Up first Thursday night. We're going to be there. I'm going to be there. Sorry, I'm going to be there. In fact, I think half of the British and Irish Lions supporters might be there.
Speaker 1:There's going to be a sea of red.
Speaker 2:I know the hospitality seems sold out. So it appears that everyone's going to be going for the booze in the hospitality there's going to be an influx of brown shoes and jeans, blue jeans, jeans and shoes at the Combank on Thursday night 7.50pm. We have the caveat this is before team lists are being revealed, so we're just going to go off pure vibes, as we said last time.
Speaker 1:Pure vibes.
Speaker 2:So the Parramatta Eels at $3.62 against the Melbourne Storm at $1.29.
Speaker 1:Do you know what I'm going to go for? The Paramount.
Speaker 2:Eagles. You reckon they're going to do it. I don't know.
Speaker 1:Pat Combank Storm without Jerome Hughes are going to be a little bit lacklustred Mitch Moses, mitch Moses turning it on. I reckon both Lomax and Naderkar destroy the wings. Coates is going to not know what's hitting him and Parramatta Eels are going to win 32-6.
Speaker 2:I'm going to settle it down a little bit and I'm going to think the Storm are just going to Pure vibes. I'm just going to grind out a win in this one. Obviously, jerome Hughes is out, but it's Tyrone Wishart, I think that possibly comes in. So I still think they're too good. Whether Pappenhausen's back or not I know he's still coming back from injury, but for me it's got to be the Melbourne Storm.
Speaker 1:Fair play. And then we're back over in Auckland at the Go Media Stadium the Warriors at $1.72 against the Dolphins at $2.13. What a fixture, what a game If the Warriors turn up.
Speaker 2:If the Warriors turn up? If the Warriors turn up, that's a very, very good point. I don't think they will turn up, though. I think they go back-to-back losses at home against a team that scores for fun. I think the Dolphins get this one done. I think the Dolphins win one in New Zealand.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I'm going to go. I'm going to join you there. I'm going to go for the Dolphins win one in New Zealand. Yeah, I'm going to go, I'm going to join you there. I'm going to go for the Dolphins. I think the exact same reasons that you've just given, yeah.
Speaker 2:And then we go back to the Suncorp. On the Friday. We have the $1.19 Brisbane Broncos Some low odds there against the $4.70 South Sydney Rabbitohs.
Speaker 1:It's got to be the Broncos, surely, surely it's got to be the Broncos, it's got to be, it's got to be the.
Speaker 2:Broncos. It's got to be. There's no way. It can't be. The Rabbitohs have lost. They're just about to lose Jack White. Don't think anyone's coming back. Sean Keppy also might be making that one up LeSean Mitchell, he's still out. He's out for the season, I believe Broncos, yeah, all day, every day, yeah.
Speaker 1:Broncos and then Seabrook Stadium. First game on the Saturday We've got the Gold Coast Titans versus the Pembroke Panthers. Titans are at 445. Panthers are at 121. And this is before team lists have been sent out.
Speaker 2:Come on, the Panthers are in such a vain run of form, they don't lose this, they win it comfortably. Dez Hasler did well in the 500th. He does terrible in 5.01. Yeah, kieran Foran did well in his 500th.
Speaker 1:Kieran Foran doesn't do well in 5.01. No, no, no, no, no.
Speaker 2:I'm going to go with the Penrith Pampers in this one.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I agree, I think they're going to run away with it, I think they're just, they're not going to see anyone as a little speed bump.
Speaker 2:They're just going to kick them out to the side. Oh, we go down to Wollongong. Down in the gong we got the St George Illawarra Dragons at $2.74 against the Canberra Raiders at $1.46. Raiders, oh, the old Viking clap with the Raiders. Yeah, I do think this is going to be a little bit of a test for them. Okay, I don't think it's going to be as plain sailing, because the Dragons have been all right, but Viking claps all over the gaff. Raiders to win this one, love it.
Speaker 1:And then we are at Brookie Oval. Well, we won't be at Brookie Oval, we won't.
Speaker 2:We won't for the second time this season because of the British and Irish Lions.
Speaker 1:We'll be at what's it called Homebush.
Speaker 2:Alley, accor, accor, the Accor. How are Manly favourites in this?
Speaker 1:You can tell the team list hasn't been released.
Speaker 2:How are Manly favourites?
Speaker 1:You've got Manly at $1.65 against the Sydney Roosters at $2.24.
Speaker 2:I think it's going to be a good game okay if the physicality of Matt Lodge Takiyaho comes out, if Bully Moore again comes off the bench and runs hard, I think Talal has got to come in or Foulalo has got to come in for Saab. Yeah, he had scored decent try, great finish, but he's under the high ball and defensively Don't get me wrong he rocked Bronson Sherry on a hit and poor old Bronson Sherry taking the double boot of kick-outs to the face.
Speaker 1:I was like, I recognise that nose.
Speaker 2:I'm going to back the boys in this, though. Bounce back victory, get the train back on the tracks. I'm going to back the boys in this, though Bounce back victory, get the train back on the tracks.
Speaker 1:I'm going to go for the Manly Seagulls. Yeah, manly, I'm going to go. Manly, I just want to see Turbo have a good game. Yeah, if he's going to be fit, because apparently he was, was he yeah?
Speaker 2:He took a bit of a knocker apparently later on. Yeah, we will see. We go to the Combank. We've got the West Tigers 2-2. Where's my eyesight going with this one? $3.63 against the Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs at $1.29.
Speaker 1:Do you know what? After seeing the Balmoral Barmy Army, I think they're going to just take over the Combank and they're going to absolutely take over Parramatta and they're going to take it over the West Tigers and absolutely destroy them. I'm going Bulldogs.
Speaker 2:They've been called the Balmoral, the Belmarsh, the Belmore, the Bulldogs, barmy Army are just going to absolutely pile through the West Tigers. I think they're going to pile through in the stands and I think the Bulldogs are going to absolutely pile through on the field as well. Feels like Tigers might have checked out a bit. Yeah, definitely, I think the Bulldogs win this and they win this big if they touch the surface of what they did against Manly they win this quite comfortably and do you know what?
Speaker 1:fixture? That's a lot, probably tighter due to the weekend's fixtures than could have been last week. We're at Shark Park for the $1.38 Sharks versus the $3.07 Cowboys.
Speaker 2:I think the Cowboys are going to win this. I believe they're in a bit of form, tommy Dearden doing well. And I'm going to go North Queensland Cowboys to beat the Cronulla Sharks.
Speaker 1:I'm going to end it on a disagreement and I'm going to go. The Sharks you reckon they're going to thumb in a softy and win it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, we'll see how that one goes.
Speaker 1:That is loyal. But yeah, I'm going to go for the Sharks.
Speaker 2:So another event that could have been climactic, but it ended in an anti-climax.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:England against India in the cricket Ends into a draw, heads into a final test. England are winning the series 2-1.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Class batting performance.
Speaker 1:Just couldn't get it done with the ball.
Speaker 2:And.
Speaker 1:I think that was a testament to the wicket. To be honest, I think the wicket died out a little bit, but that's my worry, as I've said, is over here. When the pitches do die out with a softer Kukaburra ball, are England going to be able to take 20 wickets?
Speaker 2:when the ball starts to lose its ability to move drag. I was watching the opening hour maybe, or I missed that first half hour. So 45 minutes after that, when the new ball came in, wokes had it moving. It was just missing edges. It was just millimeters away from edges. And then Root dropped Jadeja on Archer's second ball after he'd just got. Was it Shipman Gill that he got? Yeah, swung at it. Things like that go our way. It might be different and if you can do a bit more damage with a new ball, but what do you reckon? What's your opinion of the old controversy at the end of the handshake?
Speaker 1:I'm siding with the Indians.
Speaker 2:Indian fans moaning, though you wouldn't have.
Speaker 1:I don't think there's anything wrong with it. I think the whole controversy stemmed around them not finishing the game early because there was going to be no result. But you've got two lads out there who could get their test hundreds.
Speaker 2:Like 100%.
Speaker 1:And if it riles you up as an England team, well, get them out. It should flip you the other side of going right. Boys, these have got the arrogance to think that they're going to score a ton against us. Let's get them out.
Speaker 2:But it didn't, and it just boiled over to be absolute handbags yeah, and the game kind of fizzled out and finished on a draw, early handshakes and it goes. Where is the fifth test, oval? The Oval moves about, doesn't it?
Speaker 2:the Oval a bit, so it'll be interesting to see Bumrah potentially might not be playing. Might not be playing, so we touch and go to see how that finishes. Hopefully it'll be rained out. Indians will start moaning again, like they love to do. But a good bit of good news to finish on the England's women's team win the Euros back-to-back.
Speaker 1:Back-to-back champions.
Speaker 2:Lionesses win it in a penalty shootout against Spain, left it late again. Yeah, how many of the games were won by penalty shootouts?
Speaker 1:I think, going into, I think, all the knockouts of penalty shootouts. I think the quarterfinals, semifinals and final were all penalty shootouts.
Speaker 2:Surely that's got to be some record as well.
Speaker 1:I think that was. But anyway, Chloe Kelly slotting it away to win the Euros Absolute ice in her veins. She's just had a great tournament throughout the whole thing.
Speaker 2:Fair play to them, back to back. Let's hope they can repeat it in the World Cup, coming up and see if they can be world champions.
Speaker 1:No, they beat Italy Fine, but went through against Sweden. I think it was Chloe Kelly scored off a penalty, so it was safe?
Speaker 2:Of course it was.
Speaker 1:It was that equaliser, and then yeah so yeah, kelly, but anyway, back to back champs, showing every European team on how it's how it should be done yeah and yeah.
Speaker 2:Let's see if they can keep it going and maybe men can follow them up and win a win, a World Cup coming up in in America in two years time we shall see. But big weekend coming up. We've got the final. We've got the final Lions test. Manly have got to bounce back, but we're going to be out at the Accor going hard. But be sure to follow along on socials. They've been doing it all day, sir, on TikTok, instagram. Give us a follow on YouTube, like and subscribe all over the place and be sure to catch us in the next one. See you later.