NRL Finals Week 2, Tips and Previews
Sea Eagles vs. Roosters
September 17th
After being handed a spanking by Melbourne Storm in the qualifying final, Manly will now seek its redemption when it faces Sydney on Friday night.
The Sea Eagles went down 40-12 and now face a Roosters team riding the momentum of a heart stopping one-point win over Gold Coast last week to progress to this semi-final.
The Roosters defiant season has been admirable to say the least with injuries causing concern for coach Trent Robinson.
But Sydney has fought on strongly to give itself a chance at making a preliminary final in the most trying of circumstances.
Robinson’s men do boast a massive win over the Sea Eagles this season, but did so without having to face the threat of Tom Trbojevic.
Turbo Tom will be up and about for this game after being well handled by the Storm last week.
He rarely has two quiet games in a row and a return to try-scoring could be the reason for a Sea Eagles win.
Regardless, the Roosters do look value at the line.
SUGGESTED BET:
Roosters +10.5 at $1.90
Panthers vs. Eels
September 18th
Mackay will be the venue for their week-two semi-final on Saturday night with the Panthers coming off an upset loss to Souths and the Eels building momentum after a gutsy win over Newcastle.
The Panthers have had a smooth run throughout most of the season but they were brought undone by the Rabbitohs in week one of the finals.
Parramatta have been much more inconsistent throughout the season and have a recent history of finals fade-outs counting against them.
However, coach Brad Arthur is confident they can still improve on their performance against Newcastle when they nearly coughed up a 12-point lead before sealing the win with a late penalty try.
For all the knockers of Penrith after the shock loss against Souths last week, its form over the Eels this season gives us confidence it can bounce back here.
