Rugby League

Easts started fast last week but couldn’t go with Penrith when they went up a few gears. I’m not so sure Manly provide as stern a test in the grind. The Roosters profile well to go straight through the front door here. They looked good playing direct through Reece Robson early and can have some joy flooding the ruck before unleashing James Tedesco on the Sea Eagles edges. This could be a long night for DCE haters… Tips Sydney Roosters 13+ @ $2.60 Mark Nawaqanitawase 2 Or More Tries @ $3.25 Bet Now New Zealand Warriors vs Wests Tigers 8:00pm…

Canberra’s chaotic, high-risk attack didn’t hold up in the wet against New Zealand last week and I’m keen to see how they respond here. There are still some promising looks through Ethan Strange now stationed on the right edge but the Raiders need repeatable actions to fall back on in the grind. That’s exactly where Canterbury will look to take them here; the Bulldogs excel at chipping away at their opposition while applying pressure throughout the 80 minutes. I like Canterbury’s defence to win this one. Tips Best: Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs @ $2.02 Anytime Try Scorer: Jacob Kiraz @ $1.73 Same…

All eyes turn to Allianz Stadium this Friday night when the South Sydney Rabbitohs attempt to crown Alex Johnston as the greatest try scorer in NRL history, against their bitter cross-town rivals no less. Oscar Pannifex thinks AJ is worth backing this week, as well as a few value picks on Sunday afternoon. Brisbane Broncos vs Parramatta Eels 10:00pm Thursday | Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane Brisbane Broncos Win @ $1.25 & Gehamat Shibasaki Anytime Try Scorer @ $2.30 Parramatta fooled me and a few others into believing they could upset Melbourne at home last week. Do we dare roll the dice…

Craig Bellamy and the Melbourne Storm in Round 1 is usually as close to a sure thing as we’ll get in rugby league. That being said, I think Jason Ryles and the Parramatta Eels profile well to spring a huge upset on Thursday night. Parramatta fought and scrapped their way through the ‘25 regular season while building some promising foundations in the process. Fast-forward to NRL 2026 and with a few shiny pieces added to those foundations, there’s some serious upside about the Eels this year. A fit, creative forward pack and two triple threat (pass, run, kick) halves playing…

Fletcher Sharpe has been handed the #6 jumper after a productive showing in the pre-season trials. He followed the ball like a shadow in both yardage & good-ball, collecting late offloads and injecting panic into the defensive line in the second phase. Even when the offload isn’t on, Sharpe’s speed is enough of a threat to force defenders into poor decisions and create half chances on the following play. In an ideal world, it’s the perfect storm for Dylan Brown and Kalyn Ponga to go to work; two elite running threats free to scan the line and turn half breaks…

Three trial weekends. That’s all that stands between us and the 2026 NRL season proper, and footy fans are absolutely feasting.  With season previews flooding your feed, we thought we’d do things a little differently for uncle betcha’s blog this week.  Instead of straight rankings, I’ve split the comp into four brackets, Confident, Keen, Splinters and Shaky, based on how well placed each side looks to handle the chaos that is an NRL regular season (and what comes after).  PART 1: CONFIDENT Part 1 kicks off with the Confident bracket: four heavyweights who shape as genuine players in the 2026 Premiership race… Penrith PanthersPremiers $6 | Top 4 $1.83 Dead…