Round 24 of the NRL is almost here, with the finals just around the corner and plenty of teams hungry to make it. There are a number of important clashes taking place this weekend, with some teams getting to the desperate stage and needing to take their remaining chances.
Brisbane Broncos vs Melbourne Storm kicks-off on Friday night at 7.35pm. The Broncos need to win this one, and the Storm will be a tough test if they want to stay inside the eight. While Brisbane will be hoping that shear determination can take them through, Melbourne do look the better side at the moment.
The other Friday night clash sees Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs take on Wests Tigers at 7.35pm, with the Tigers just as desperate as the Broncos to make the top eight. The Bulldogs are in top form right now however, and it might take more than shear will power for Wests to have a win.
The first game on Saturday is between the Canberra Raiders and the Sydney Roosters at 5.30pm. The Raiders are currently in tenth position on the ladder, which does give them some hope of making the finals. The Roosters don’t have nearly so much to play for, and are likely to struggle with Canberra on their home turf.
Cronulla Sharks vs South Sydney Rabbitohs kicks-off on Saturday at 7.30pm, with the Sharks not exactly setting the world on fire during the last couple of weeks. In contrast, Souths are sitting pretty in third spot at the moment, and will get a confidence boost from the return of Greg Inglis for this encounter.
The Warriors take on the Penrith Panthers in Sunday’s midday match, with both teams languishing near the bottom of the ladder. While the Warriors are doing slightly better than the Panthers on points, they have lost their last five matches and had big losses in the last two.
Gold Coast Titans vs Parramatta Eels kicks-off on Sunday at 2.00pm, with the Titans not yet out of it in 11th position. Gold Coast fans will be hoping this hunger is enough to get them over the line, and with the Eels in bad form of late, it very well might be.
Manly Sea Eagles play Newcastle Knights on Sunday at 3.00pm, with Manly currently in fourth spot and the Knights in ninth. Newcastle won the first clash between these sides earlier in the season, and will be keen to have another win to keep their finals chances alive. However, the Sea Eagles look like they’re hitting their stride at the right time of the season, making them very difficult to beat.
The last match of the round is between the St George Illawarra Dragons and the North Queensland Cowboys, kicking off on Monday night at 7.00pm. Even though the Cowboys are sitting in fifth spot, they have struggled getting wins on the southern side of the Queensland border. They will be keen to win this one in the lead-up to the finals however, and the Dragons probably don’t have enough to stop them.
