NRL Round 5 betting preview: Reuben Garrick to run riot for Manly against the Knights
The Roosters and Eels meet in a blockbuster clash on Thursday night to open the round, with Parramatta seeking back-to-back wins over the Chooks for the first time since 2007.
On Friday night, South Sydney continue to run the gauntlet of a daunting fixture list when they host the Melbourne Storm at Accor Stadium.
Elsewhere, Penrith has the wood over Canberra after winning in the trot four and is hoping to get back into the winning column after being defeated by Parramatta in the golden point in the last lap.
The Broncos sit pretty high on the table after an unbeaten run earlier in the season, but the bottom-ranked Wests Tigers actually have a great current record against them, having won all four of their past games.
MORE: NRL Confirmed Team Lists – Lineup of each side for Round 5 | Dally M Medal Rankings
On Sunday, a rejuvenated New Zealand Warriors side will look to continue their impressive start to the season against Cronulla, who have emerged victorious from 10 of their last 12 meetings.
Here is The sports news‘ Round 5 Betting Predictions.
Quotations courtesy of Bluebet.
Joseph Suaalii to maul Parramatta
Joseph Suaalii has been in the headlines all week for his move to rugby union and the young gun is likely to continue that trend on Thursday.
The Samoan international has scored two tries in his previous two games against the Eels, while running just under 300 yards in that time and 14 tackle busts proved almost impossible to stop.
Only the Dragons and Titans have conceded more points than Parramatta early in the season as they sit 14th in the rankings with just one win from their four games.
They’ve already lost 30 points or more in two games this year, so they need to improve massively to keep Suaalii out.
Joseph Suaalii any time try scorer – $2.30
South Sydney to make history
South Sydney have never beaten the Melbourne Storm in consecutive games but have a chance to do so after last year’s 24-12 win.
Both teams sit in mid-table after the first month of action, but the narratives around them are different.
The Bunnies endured arguably their toughest games early in the season, while the Storm suffered uncharacteristic losses to the Bulldogs and Titans as injuries and suspensions hit them hard.
Spurred on by Lachlan Ilias, who scored a golden point field goal to beat Manly last week, the Rabbitohs will be looking to make it two on the go.
Edge of South Sydney [1-12] – $2.90
Reuben Garrick scores twice at Mudgee
Manly were brought back to earth last weekend against South Sydney after a quick start to the season under Anthony Seibold.
The Sea Eagles drive through their sets, hitting the edges with precision as the trio of Josh Schuster, Tom Trbojevic and Reuben Garrick wreak havoc on defence.
No player has made more linebreaks than the Manly winger, with Garrick and Alofiana Khan-Pereira each recording seven of them.
In their last two meetings with Newcastle, the Sea Eagles have accumulated points with victories 42-12 and 30-6.
Player to score 2 tries: Reuben Garrick – $3.20
Briton Nikora draws the first blood
The New Zealand Warriors and Cronulla were in dangerous offensive form in the first month, with the two sides registering 25 and 23 linebreaks respectively, enough to put them ahead of the rest of the competition.
The return of Nicho Hynes surprisingly kick-started the Sharks’ attack against the Dragons last weekend and they are now the highest-scoring team in the league and the only club to have surpassed 100 points so far.
William Kennedy has scored at a speed of knots with five attempts already, while Ronaldo Mulitalo, Jesse Ramien and Britain’s Nikora have also been on the scorer list many times in the opening month.
First try scorer: Briton Nikora – $17