NRL Notepad: Round 18 (Saturday)
From now through to October, I’ll look back at my notes from the prior round and highlight an area of each team to keep a close eye on from your couch.
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St. George-Illawarra Dragons v Canberra Raiders
Dragons
Did I jinx Mikaele Ravalawa?
I’ve been really impressed with what he has done in 2020 and awarded him the makeshift Most Unexpected Most Improved Player award on Monday. By Tuesday, he was out of the 17 entirely…
So, as if I wouldn’t be watching the debutant enough, I’ll be paying close attention to Cody Ramsey after he was named to replace my guy Mikaele on the wing this week.
Raiders
Joseph Tapine is playing some good footy at the moment.
I’d like to see the Raiders use him a little more.
He has the skills to be a really good lock forward. His footwork is great, he can play at the line, and is always searching for an offload. He can be especially dangerous in good ball sets and showed promising signs against the Roosters. But as Dan of ‘Sportress’ pointed out in his game review, “the Milk forgot this as the game wore on.”
Remember he’s out there this week, Raiders.
Let’s see what Tapine can do through the middle of the field close to the opposition goal line. If he can’t create something himself, there is a good chance he opens up space for Jack Wighton out wide.
Gold Coast Titans v Brisbane Broncos
Titans
The Titans produced a ripper last week.
With the Bulldogs stacking their right side to cater for Jamal Fogarty who would typically stay on that side of the scrum after feeding it, the Bulldogs have just two defenders on the left. Rather than feeding the ball and calling it a day, Fogarty instead sprints around to the open side to wrap around AJ Brimson. With Jeremy Marshall-King failing to follow him and Brimson engaging the covering defence out of the scrum, the Titans all of a sudden have an overlap.
Marcelo Montoya does relatively well to recover after rushing in on Young Tonumaipea, but Fogarty is too quick. Now two on one, the Titans half sells Nick Meaney a dummy to score.
It’s something to keep an eye on, not just for the Titans, but for every team when scrums are called close to the opposition goal line.
Broncos
I was really impressed with Sean O’Sullivan last week.
He kicked well to bring Corey Oates into play at the end of sets. After questioning how willing he was to dig into the line after a premeditated pass to Daniel Fifita early on, he ran for 80 metres and looked good doing it. He put a few nice shots on defensively, too.
This O’Sullivan/Tom Dearden halves pairing has long-term potential. With Kieran Foran possibly heading to Brisbane for 2021, I’m looking to see if O’Sullivan can keep building as he continues to improve following another lengthy injury layoff.
Wherever O’Sullivan ends up, he’s unsigned beyond this season and is playing for his next contract.
Sydney Roosters v Newcastle Knights
Roosters
You probably don’t want to hear this after last week, but this is the game to look at Sonny Bill Williams. The hype train has slowed down, and more importantly, he has some minutes under his belt. He’s felt the speed of the NRL after a short stint in Super League and will be better prepared both physically and tactically to produce on Saturday.
While he won’t be at his best yet, we might actually get an idea of how Trent Robinson might use Sonny Bill. Did he just throw him into the middle to blow the cobwebs off last week? Will he end up there again, or on the edge? While all the talk is about what Williams does for the NRL brand and the money he brings into the game, he can have a pretty big impact on Sydney’s quest for three premierships in a row, too.
Knights
Welcome back, Edrick Lee.
In impressive form before his injury in Round 8, a fit and firing Lee can play a big role in this Knights side heading into the finals. He cleared 150 running metres four times in his first six games of the season. He bagged five tries in that time too.
A strong runner to get the Knights out of their own end, a handy finisher and serious threat under a high ball, we’re looking for how Lee returns, and how the Knights try to use him.
With teams choosing to go with shallow attacking kicks more often this season, it will be interesting to see how Adam O’Brien tries to make the most of Lee as an aerial threat.
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