NRL round 7 preview

Round 7

Date		Venue	Time
Fri 17 Apr 2015	St George Illawarra v Brisbane	Jubilee Oval	7:35PM
Fri 17 Apr 2015	Canterbury-Bankstown v Manly	ANZ Stadium	7:35PM
Sat 18 Apr 2015	Gold Coast v Penrith	Cbus Super Stadium	3:00PM
Sat 18 Apr 2015	North Queensland v Warriors	1300SMILES Stadium	5:30PM
Sat 18 Apr 2015	Melbourne v Sydney Roosters	AAMI Park	7:30PM
Sun 19 Apr 2015	Wests Tigers v Canberra	Leichhardt Oval	2:00PM
Sun 19 Apr 2015	Newcastle v Parramatta	Hunter Stadium	4:00PM
Mon 20 Apr 2015	Cronulla v South Sydney	Remondis Stadium	7:00PM

Bulldogs v Sea Eagles

Chris Boulous writes:  Josh Reynolds and Trent Hodkinson will get another chance to push their Origin claims after failing in their first attempt to guide the Bulldogs around the park without captain James Graham. They will not be helped by a short turnaround and injuries to key players Brett Morris and Tim Lafai. In their favour is an injury ravaged opposition who are playing without confidence. The Sea Eagles do welcome back captain Jamie Lyon as they look for revenge from their round three loss to the Bulldogs.
Tip: Sea Eagles by 4

Dragons v Broncos

Chris Boulous writes:  After two rounds no one could have predicted the tag line for this game: two in-form teams battling for the competition lead. The Broncos ride into Sydney after winning five straight games including big wins against the Roosters and Warriors and welcome back captain Justin Hodges. The Dragons have strung four wins together and have bankrolled their success on the back of the best defence in the league. Tyson Frizell (suspended) is out for the home team and will be replaced by Will Matthews .
Tip: Broncos by 6

Titans v Panthers

Chris Boulous writes:  The last time these two teams met, the Panthers thrashed the Titans 40-0 in round two. A lot has changed since then. The Panthers are missing Jamie Soward, Peter Wallace, Dean Whare and Bryce Cartwright amongst others. The Titans have welcomed back Greg Bird and David Taylor and seen the emergence of rookie half Kane Elgey. Former Panther, James Roberts, is the undoubted X-factor for the Titans and he will square off against NRL debutant Robert Jennings who replaces Jamal Idris who is out for the season.
Tip: Titans by 8

Cowboys v Warriors

Chris Boulous writes:  The last three weeks have confirmed two things. Number one, Johnathan Thurston is the best player in the game and two, he has a pretty handy support cast in Townsville with Michael Morgan, Matt Scott and Jason Taumalolo all helping the Cowboys to three wins in a row. Their opponents, this week are the hot and cold Warriors who also have a 50 per cent record this year. Remarkably, the Warriors have named the same forward pack for the seventh week in a row; a rare occurrence in modern day NRL.
Tip: Cowboys by 12

Storm v Roosters

Chris Boulous writes:  After falling perilously short of a win in Brisbane, the Roosters travel to Melbourne to complete their NRL's version of the Doomsday Double. Jake Friend will start in the No.9 jersey for the first time this year but the tri colours will be missing duo Sam Moa (suspended) and Aidan Guerra (injured). The Storm are unchanged and return home after snatching the win in Canberra. Jesse Bromwich has announced himself as a bona fide star and has allowed the Storm's big guns to fire off the back of his go-forward.
Tip: Roosters by 7
Wests Tigers v Raiders
Chris Boulous writes:  Does anything beat Sunday afternoon footy at Leichhardt Oval? The Wests Tigers certainly hope a return to their spiritual heartland will spark their 2015 campaign and set the stage for young guns Luke Brooks, Mitchell Moses and James Tedesco to shine. It won't be easy against a tough Raiders outfit who are playing better than their record suggests and possess an equally talented crop of young stars. Shaun Fensom (ankle) and Josh Hodgson (foot) have been named but will need to pass fitness tests to play.
Tip: Wests Tigers by 4

Knights v Eels

Chris Boulous writes:  Of the many storylines that percolate from this clash including Danny Wicks' return to Newcastle, the potential match up of Beau Scott against his future club and Tim Mannah and Chris Sandow playing their 150th game, there is only one thing that really matters: winning. Both teams have lost consecutive games and have dished up error riddled and inept performances that have questioned their top eight credentials. Despite not being named, Eels flyer Semi Radradra is still a chance to make his return.
Tip: Knights by 10

Sharks v Rabbitohs

Chris Boulous writes:  Two weeks is a long time in rugby league. All of a sudden the Sharks have won consecutive games, Jack Bird has emerged as a superstar and their experienced forward pack is laying a platform for the likes of Valentine Holmes to exploit. It's a different challenge this week against the defending premiers who will be hurting from their second half capitulation last week. Glenn Stewart will again wear the No.6 jumper as Souths' big three – Greg Inglis, George Burgess and Issac Luke look to get the Bunnies back on track. Both teams will be missing key players with Andrew Fifita (Sharks) and Adam Reynolds, Dylan Walker and John Sutton (Rabbitohs) out of the clash.
Tip: Rabbitohs by 8