Final Ladder 2018

1. Sydney Roosters

2. Melbourne Storm

3. South Sydney Rabbitohs

4. Cronulla Sharks

5. Penrith Panthers

6. Brisbane Broncos

7. St. George Illawarra Dragons

8. Warriors

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9. Wests Tigers

10. Canberra Raiders

11. Newcastle Knights

12. Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs

13. North Queensland Cowboys

14. Gold Coast Titans

15. Manly Sea Eagles

16. Parramatta Eels

Week 1 Finals

Qualifying Final - Melbourne Storm 29 (Suliasi Vunivalu 2, Cheyse Blair 2, Curtis Scott tries; Cameron Smith 4 goals; Cameron Munster field goal) def. South Sydney Rabbitohs 28 (Greg Inglis 2, Dane Gagai, Robert Jennings, Cameron Murray tries; Adam Reynolds 4 goals)

Elimination Final - Penrith Panthers 27 (Tyrone Peachey 2, James Maloney, Christian Crichton tries; Nathan Cleary 5 goals; James Maloney field goal) def. Warriors 12 (Issac Luke, David Fusitu'a tries; Shaun Johnson 2 goals)

Qualifying Final - Sydney Roosters 21 (Cooper Cronk, Joseph Manu, Latrell Mitchell, Daniel Tupou tries; Latrell Mitchell 2 goals; Cooper Cronk field goal) def. Cronulla Sharks 12 (Sosaia Feki, Edrick Lee tries; Valentine Holmes 2 goals)

Elimination Final - St. George Illawarra Dragons 48 (Tariq Sims 3, Leeson Ah Mau, Tim Lafai, Luciano Leilua, Matt Dufty tries; Gareth Widdop 7, Zac Lomax 3 goals) def. Brisbane Broncos 18 (David Fifita, Darius Boyd, Kodi Nikorima tries; Jamayne Isaako 3 goals)

Week 2 Finals

Semi Final - Cronulla Sharks 21 (Chad Townsend, Valentine Holmes, Luke Lewis tries; Valentine Holmes 4 goals; Chad Townsend field goal) def. Penrith Panthers 20 (Nathan Cleary, Isaah Yeo, Waqa Blake tries; Nathan Cleary 4 goals)

Semi Final - South Sydney Rabbitohs 13 (Adam Reynolds try; Adam Reynolds 3 goals; Adam Reynolds 3 field goals) def. St. George Illawarra Dragons 12 (Ben Hunt try; Zac Lomax 3 goals)

Week 3 Finals

Preliminary Final - Melbourne Storm 22 (Billy Slater 2, Brodie Croft tries; Cameron Smith 5/5 goals) def. Cronulla Sharks 6 (Luke Lewis try; Valentine Holmes goal)

Preliminary Final - Sydney Roosters vs. South Sydney Rabbitohs

Was a thrilling week of finals, with both games being decided by a field goal.

On Friday night, Cronulla survived a brave fightback from Penrith to continue their campaign. Cronulla got off to a flying start posting 18 points inside the opening 30 minutes. Former Penrith Panther Matt Moylan had a point to prove against his former club and played a pivotal role in two of those tries. Despite trailing by 18 points, nobody was prepared to write Penrith off. They had come back from similar deficits through out the season and were capable of playing better football.

They eventually crossed in the 48th minute of the contest, when Nathan Cleary chased down a Tyrone Peachey kick and grounded the ball just before it went dead. It was a try Cronulla should never have conceded, but superstar fullback Valentine Holmes made a rookie mistake. Instead of shielding the ball or forcing it dead, he gave Cleary an open passage which he took full advantage of. Their second came in the 65th minute of the contest when vice captain Isaah Yeo forced his way over in good field position. Then from the kick off rookie sensation Viliame Kikau made a powerful burst through some would be defenders and linked with Waqa Blake to level the scores.

Just as Penrith looked to have all the momentum, Cronulla found something in the tank. Perennial bench forward Jayson Bukuya drove the Penrith Panthers defence back 20m in the best run of the night and it was later followed by a 35m run by unheralded winger Sosaia Feki down the touchline. It put Cronulla in field goal range and Chad Townsend made no mistake, slotting a 19m field goal.

Penrith had multiple opportunities to respond, but couldn't convert any of them. Nathan Cleary missed from 20m out, they would have had a shot from 30 but chose to run it wide and Cleary was well off from 49m out in the last play of the game.

It ended a dramatic season for the Panthers. Despite being 4th on the ladder, they chose to sack coach Anthony Griffin a month out from finals and finished the regular season with a disappointing 2-2 under new coach Cameron Ciraldo. Many believe the move was made to secure Ivan Cleary, Nathan's father, head coach of the Wests Tigers and the ex-head coach of the Panthers. Nathan comes off-contract next season and has made it no secret that he wants to be coached by his father.

Cronulla turn their attentions to Melbourne where they'll take on the Storm in a 2016 Grand Final rematch. Cronulla have won 4 of the past 5 meetings, but will go into the game without Australian representative Wade Graham and could be without club legends Luke Lewis and Paul Gallen. Both players sustained injuries in the clash against Penrith and were unable to return. Early diagnosis suggests Lewis suffered a cork so he should be cleared, but Gallen may not be so lucky. It's feared he tore his rotator cuff which would effectively end his season.

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In the second semi final, South Sydney were able to clinch a 13-12 win in a dramatic match against the St. George Illawarra Dragons. Souths were heavily favoured heading into the game following the injury to Dragons Five-Eighth and English International Gareth Widdop in last week's 30 point romp against Brisbane. To the surprise of many, St. George maintained the intensity they showed in Brisbane and forced South Sydney into error. Despite enjoying a mountain of possession and territory, Souths only score was a penalty goal.

St. George Illawarra leveled the scores in the 22nd minute and eventually took the lead in the 35th minute. The Dragons big off-season purchase, halfback Ben Hunt, sold a fake to his opposite Cody Walker and strolled over in an impressive 25m run.

The second half started on a bad note for the Dragons, with New South Wales representative Tariq Sims suffering a serious knee injury. The injury prevented Tariq from returning to the game and meant Coach McGregor had to keep shuffling his pack around to accommodate the loss. It eventually took it's toll in the 56th minute when Reynolds isolated Sims' replacement, Luciano Leilua, with a short pass to New South Wales representative Angus Crichton. Crichton burst clear of the Dragons defence, running 15m before linking up with Reynolds who scored underneath the posts.

Souths dominated field position and possession, but couldn't break the Dragons defence. In the 67th minute, fullback Alex Johnston made a terrible error on a kick return when he tried to pass it to his winger Robert Jennings who wasn't ready and fumbled the ball. This gave the Dragons a rare opportunity inside South Sydney's redzone. A pre-emptive 20m field goal attempt from Ben Hunt missed, and South Sydney made him pay with a 92m set. Adam Reynolds from 14m out nailed his field goal and Souths regained their lead.

5 minutes from full-time Dragons forward Tyson Frizell produced a huge play for his team. Frizell took advantage of a new rule that allows defenders to strip the ball one-on-one provided the other defenders had dropped off the tackle. In their confusion, South Sydney conceded the penalty and rookie centre Zac Lomax made no mistake from 15m out giving St. George a 1 point lead.

St. George learned turn about is fair play when in the ensuing set, they pulled the exact move on Dragons forward Leeson Ah Mau. 20-year-old star of the future Cameron Murray produced a one-on-one strip and put South Sydney in prime field goal range. Adam Reynolds from 18m out made no mistake and once again scores were locked up.

Reynolds resisted the opportunity to take a shot from 35m out, choosing to punt it and forcing the Dragons to work it out from a sideline 10m out from their line. Under pressure, St. George Illawarra came up with the worst play of the season where on fifth and last, they chose to run the football 35m out from the line. It was a hero-to-zero moment from Ben Hunt and instantly drew comparisons to his infamous 2015 Grand Final performance.

Souths made the most of the opportunity working the ball in position for a 19m field goal for Adam Reynolds to seal the win.

For the Dragons it was a heart-breaking end to a disappointing season. They led the competition for 16 rounds, only to lose 6 of their past 9 regular season games to slump to 7th. They produced one of the all-time great ambushes on the Brisbane Broncos and put themselves in a position to win against the heavily favoured Rabbitohs but fell at the last hurdle. They'll retain the bulk of their roster heading into 2019, ensuring they'll be amongst the top teams provided they identify the cause of their late season collapse.

For Souths, they get to add another chapter to the oldest rivalry in the NRL when they face off against the Sydney Roosters. They won't have an injury concerns, whereas the Minor Premiers will have a few absentees. Electric centre Latrell Mitchell is serving a one game suspension for an illegal tackle and fiery Queensland forward Dylan Napa is still serving a suspension for his controversial hit on Andrew McCullough. There were some doubts surrounding Roosters prop Sio Siua Taukeiaho but it appears he'll overcome an ankle injury in time for the clash.

Teams will be announced later today, so I'll get the details posted up then.

FINALS WEEK 3

PRELIMINARY FINAL #2

Melbourne Storm vs. Cronulla Sharks

AAMI Park, Friday September 21st 2018

Starters

1. Billy Slater 2. Suliasi Vunivalu 3. Will Chambers 4. Curtis Scott 5. Josh Addo-Carr 6. Cameron Munster 7. Brodie Croft 8. Jesse Bromwich 9. Cameron Smith (c) 10. Tim Glasby 11. Felise Kaufusi 12. Joe Stimson 13. Dale Finucane 

Interchange

14. Kenneath Bromwich 15. Christian Welch 17. Nelson Asofa-Solomona 18. Brandon Smith

Starters

1. Valentine Holmes 2. Sosaia Feki 3. Jesse Ramien 4. Ricky Leutele 5. Edrick Lee 6. Matt Moylan 7. Chad Townsend 8. Andrew Fifita 9. Jayden Brailey 10. Matt Prior 11. Luke Lewis (c) 12. Kurt Capewell 16. Aaron Woods

Interchange

14. Scott Sorensen 15. James Segeyaro  17. Jayson Bukuya 20. Joseph Paulo

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PRELIMINARY FINAL #1

Sydney Roosters vs. South Sydney Rabbitohs

Allianz Stadium, Saturday September 22nd 2018

Starters

1. James Tedesco 2. Daniel Tupou 3. Mitchell Aubusson 4. Joseph Manu 5. Blake Ferguson 6. Luke Keary 7. Cooper Cronk 8. Jared Waerea-Hargreaves 9. Jake Friend 10. Sio Siua Taukeiaho 11. Boyd Cordner (c) 12. Isaac Liu 13. Victor Radley

Interchange

14. Lindsay Collins 15. Zane Tetevano 16. Nat Butcher 17. Ryan Matterson

Reserves

20. Paul Momirovski 21. Sitili Tupouniua

Starters

1. Alex Johnston 2. Campbell Graham 3. Greg Inglis (c) 4. Dane Gagai 5. Robert Jennings 6. Cody Walker 7. Adam Reynolds 8. Thomas Burgess 9. Damien Cook 10. George Burgess 11. John Sutton 12. Angus Crichton 13. Sam Burgess 

Interchange

14. Hymel Hunt 15. Cameron Murray 17. Dean Britt 20. Tevita Tatola

Reserves

18. Braidon Burns 19. Mark Nicholls

(Images courtesy of LeagueUnlimited.com)

I only recognise Cam Smith and Billy Slater out of that Storm team - have they changed quite a bit over the last couple of years or do I pay even less attention than I thought I did?

After their disappointing end to 2014, Melbourne went through something of a rebuilding process. Players like Suliasi Vunivali, Curtis Scott, Josh Addo-Carr, Cameron Munster, Felise Kaufusi, Dale Finucane & Nelson Asofa-Solomona were brought into the first grade side and helped Melbourne become the most dominant force since the 1998 Brisbane Broncos in 2017. While they were expected to be competitive in 2018, many felt they would struggle to replace the loss of Australian Halfback Cooper Cronk after he decided to leave the club and move to Sydney to be with his partner. The truth is, they have struggled to find an adequate replacement trialing three different players for the position before ultimately deciding on young gun Brodie Croft. Even with that distraction, Melbourne have managed to remain one of the top teams, largely through the work of Cameron Smith. Smith drew heavy criticism when on the eve of the State of Origin series, shocked the Rugby League fraternity when he announced his representative retirement. That decision may have affected Queensland, but it paid dividends for Melbourne as they went onto establish themselves as one of the front-runners of the competition. In fact, they would have finished the regular season in first place if they didn't decide to rest Cameron Munster & Brodie Croft in their final regular season game where they narrowly lost to a determined Penrith Panthers outfit.

While Melbourne have introduced a lot of talent to their side in the past few years, they do have some experienced club campaigners outside of Smith & Slater. Australian Test Centre Will Chambers has played 189 games for the club, New Zealand Test Prop Forward Jesse Bromwich has played 200 games for the club, former Australian Test Backrow Ryan Hoffman has played 265 games for the club and Jesse's brother Kenny, also a New Zealand Test player has played 121 games.

To give you an idea, this is what their 2017 Grand Final squad looked like.

Starters

1. Billy Slater 2. Suliasi Vunivalu 3. Will Chambers 4. Curtis Scott 5. Josh Addo-Carr 6. Cameron Munster 7. Cooper Cronk 8. Jesse Bromwich 9. Cameron Smith 10. Jordan McLean 11. Felise Kaufusi 12. Tohu Harris 13. Dale Finucane

Interchange

14. Kenny Bromwich 15. Tim Glasby 16. Nelson Asofa-Solomona 17. Slade Griffin

Reserves

18. Ryley Jacks 19. Robbie Rochow 20. Joe Stimson 21. Young Tonumaipea

Go Storm!

Second best football code in Australia behind the AFL

Nice to have you on board as well, incy. If nothing else, it'd be nice to see Melbourne get up, if only because we have a few members who have a connection to the club.

Melbourne Storm vs. Cronulla Sharks - Of all the teams in the competition who could knock out the Melbourne Storm, it's the Cronulla Sharks. The Sharks play a negative style of football that prevents the Storm from playing their structured brand of football and physically they tend to bash Melbourne out of the game. Cronulla will take Melbourne on through the middle where Andrew Fifita, Matt Prior & Paul Gallen will roll through set after set and give Chad Townsend and Matt Moylan the territory to put the ball into a corner and try to get Edrick Lee 1-1 with Josh Addo-Carr. Lee has a 13cm height advantage and his basketball background makes him an easy target in the air. I also expect the Sharks to send plenty of traffic down the Storm's right hand-side where Brodie Croft will be defending. Croft has been physically exposed in the past, so I expect to see a lot of second-man short plays to Kurt Capewell & Scott Sorensen. It also would not surprise me if Andrew Fifita cameos on the left fringe if Cronulla receive good field position.

Melbourne know they're out-gunned through the middle, so they'll be looking to get their edges involved as much as possible. Chambers, Addo-Carr and Vunivalu are fantastic at getting Melbourne on the front-foot and will give Smith & Slater plenty of time to use Kaufusi and Stimson down the edges. Melbourne will likely target the left-hand side of the Sharks defence since Moylan, Leutele & Feki are prone to making defensive errors. Cronulla are a side that play to their opposition and will do their homework on teams, so Melbourne will have to adjust and throw plenty of decoys at the Sharks defence. Whether that means bringing Curtis Scott over to the other side of the field, or Munster and Croft playing down one edge more often remains to be seen, but I suspect Bellamy will have a few trick shots lined up.

Expectations going into the match have Melbourne as short priced favourites at $1.37 and they're more favoured to win at 13+ ($2.70) than in a tight game ($2.75). I suspect those odds are extremely optimistic and expect the game to be a lot closer. If this was any other side, I suspect Melbourne at home with the week off would be far too strong, but Cronulla are the best team at getting under the Storm's skin. I'm going to back the bookies on this occasion, but I'll be very interested to see how Melbourne will shape up the week after.

Sydney Roosters vs. South Sydney Rabbitohs - This will be the 241st meeting between the two foundation club and yet this is only the second time these two clubs have met in a Preliminary Final in 80 years. It should be the perfect back-drop to a fiery spiteful clash where both teams will be looking to out-muscle each other one way or another. The match-up I'm most looking forward to is between Jared Warea-Hargreaves & Sam Burgess. On their day, both players are human wrecking balls who just tear through teams and will wipe players out with their defence. It will be one of those games where the team that can play their natural game first will win the football game. I expect there to be a lot of uncharacteristic mistakes from both teams, as they adjust to the tempo and intensity of the contest.

In Sydney's case, this could prove a real hassle. They will be missing potent centre Latrell Mitchell for the contest, which should see them play mostly to their right hand-side where they've got two great attacking options in Joseph Manu & Blake Ferguson. They key will be to try and give Manu as much space as possible and try to get him on the outside of Greg Inglis as much as possible. This will mean that Luke Keary will have to play a roving role, taking him out of his comfort zone and try to draw Inglis in with his speed and ball-playing. The problem for the Roosters will be trying to disguise these plays, since everyone and their dog will know their gameplan. So they'll have to have Tedesco & Radley pushing up on the inside and present Keary with options to create opportunities back on the inside. Sydney cannot afford to go into their shell and try to grind out a win as they do not have the players with the temperment to win these type of games. They'll have to play adventurous football if they want to give themselves every opportunity. If they play conservative, I suspect this clash will be a repeat to last year's embarrassing loss to the injury plagued Cowboys.

The key for South Sydney is Damien Cook. The lightening quick dummy half is the best player at getting his side on the front foot, so if Souths can power their way through the Roosters ruck and give Cook fast play-the-balls he will cause havoc through the middle third. Souths have two modes of play, depending on which side of the field they like to play. If they go left, it's far more creative and Cody Walker can bamboozle the defence in any given way. If they go right, they have Adam Reynolds, the best short-distance kicker in the game who is unbelievably consistent at getting repeat sets for his side or getting GI & Campbell Graham 1-1 in the air. They'll play through the middle third, will favour their left hand-side but will most likely find their success down the right with Roosters looking vulnerable with Keary, Aubusson & Tupou defending on an edge.

The bookies have installed Sydney Roosters as the favourites at $1.75 to Souths $2.10. For my money, it's an even game. On paper, the star-studded Roosters backline should still be too much for Souths, but they've yet to live up to their immense reputation. Meanwhile Souths have gotten the most out of themselves and have continued to play good football. They were desperately unlucky to go down to Melbourne in Week 1 of the finals and despite having every reason to lose to Sydney in Round 22 of the competition, they nearly snuck home. I'm going to back the upset here, giving us a Melbourne Storm vs. South Sydney Rabbitohs Grand Final.

Late Team News

Cronulla: Captain Paul Gallen is OUT of tomorrow night's clash. Ball-playing backrow (and American representative) Joseph Paulo will slot into the starting side. In the NRL, you must name a final 19 players 24 hours before kick-off, meaning that Kyle Flanagan & Paul Gallen are the players to drop off. Josh Dugan & Ava Seumanufagai remain as cover, with Dugan an outside chance of playing in the backs.

Melbourne: Sam Kasiano & Cheyse Blair have been dropped. Brandon Smith is tipped to come into the final 17 at the expense of Ryan Hoffman who is battling a hamstring injury.

Melbourne Storm 22 (Billy Slater 2, Brody Croft tries; Cameron Smith 5/5 goals) def. Cronulla Sharks 6 (Luke Lewis try; Valentine Holmes goal)

Melbourne are through to their third straight grand final appearance and have the opportunity become the first team since the 1992-93 Brisbane Broncos to win back-to-back premierships.

The writing was on the wall for Cronulla when captain Paul Gallen succumbed to a shoulder injury the evening before the game. Without his tenacity in the middle, the Sharks struggled to impose themselves with and without the football. Their issues were exacerbated by Luke Lewis and his lower leg injury and a shoulder injury to Sosaia Feki that saw him come from the field 22 minutes into the contest.

Melbourne were at their clinical best, sending plenty of traffic down both fringes before finding success down their right hand-side. Queensland Origin representative Felise Kaufusi set up the first try after he managed to evade Ricky Leutele with some light stepping before linking up with Slater. Billy was able to link up with rookie halfback Brodie Croft who raced over to make it a two possession game. Moments later, Slater found himself on the scorer's sheet after a well rehearsed switch play caught Moylan out.

Then in the shadows of half-time, Melbourne were able to turn defence into attack and put the game to bed. A fight in backplay allowed Cameron Smith to scoot out of dummy half and put in a well timed kick for Slater who read the situation perfectly. After a bizarre video referral, the try was clear and Melbourne went to the break with a strong 20-0 lead.

Cronulla threw the ball around a lot in the second half but Melbourne's relentless defence forced them into error. Eventually they got on the board to Luke Lewis after Cameron Munster made a poor defensive read on his own line. By that point, the game was well and truly sown up and Melbourne slowed the game down in preparation for their 9th grand final appearance in 21 seasons.

They will face a nervous 24 hours as the match review committee examines an alleged shoulder charge against Billy Slater. Slater was penalised in the 23rd minute after he recklessly knocked Sosaia Feki into touch to prevent a certain 4 pointer. If Slater is cited, it will be an automatic one week suspension that would rob him of a grand final appearance and his retirement game.

Stats

Running Metres

Billy Slater - 189m

Aaron Woods - 149m

Valentine Holmes - 149m

Ricky Leutele - 140m

Andrew Fifita - 127m

Post-Contact Metres

Aaron Woods - 51m

Jesse Ramien - 46m

Jesse Bromwich - 41m

Andrew Fifita - 36m

Ricky Leutele - 35m

Tackles

Cameron Smith - 42

Aaron Woods - 37

Felise Kaufusi - 33

Jayden Brailey - 33

Andrew Fifita - 30

The result brings an end to the career of Luke Lewis. Lewis debuted as an 18-year old for the Penrith Panthers in the 2001 season and starred in a variety positions. He started off as a representative centre & winger. He transitioned into the halves and helped Penrith out there when they had no other options, before making a name for himself in the second row. That stint saw him return to the representative arena in 2009 after a 5 year absence and he cemented himself as one of the best forwards of the era. Amid the reshuffle at Penrith under Phil Gould, Lewis made his way to Cronulla where he helped the club get through the ASADA doping turmoil and helped them to their maiden premiership in 2016, winning the Clive Churchill medal for best player on ground.

In the end his record reads...

16 Tests

17 State of Origin Games

324 NRL Games

132 Tries

Cronulla will continue to boast one of the stronger sides, and there's no reason why they shouldn't be there again in the post-season. Captain Paul Gallen has declared 2019 will be his final season after 19 seasons in the top grade signalling a changing of the guard at the club. The Sharks still boast plenty of representative experience with Valentine Holmes, Josh Morris, Josh Dugan, Matt Moylan, Andrew Fifita, Aaron Woods, Wade Graham, Matt Prior & Paul Gallen at the club. This should serve their younger players well as their promising NSW Cup & Jersey Flegg juniors make the transition into the big leagues. Players like Sione Katoa, Kyle Flanagan, Billy Magoulias etc. have all the credentials to be viable first grade options and will play a bigger role in the 2019 season. 

Congratulations to all the Melbourne Storm fans, hopefully you guys tune in Sunday week to see the boys make history.

Sydney Roosters 12 (Daniel Tupou, Blake Ferguson, Paul Momirovski tries) def. South Sydney 4 (Adam Reynolds 2 goals)

The Sydney Roosters have qualified for the 2018 Grand Final after a bruising encounter with the South Sydney Rabbitohs. Both teams were guilty of committing fundamental errors, but it was the Roosters who made the most of their opportunities crossing on 3 occasions while deny Souths on every opportunity. Despite having the lions share of possession and territory in the second half, the South Sydney Rabbitohs never looked threatening as Sydney denied them time and time again.

The difference was Sydney Roosters fullback James Tedesco. The NSW Origin Fullback was a handful with the football and his presence on the edges kept the Rabbitohs from sliding. He had a hand in two of the three tries, including a pin-point pass to Tupou that opened the Roosters account.

All eyes will turn to the fitness of star recruit Cooper Cronk. The experienced halfback suffered a serious shoulder injury late in the first half and is in serious doubt for next week's Grand Final. Cronk stayed on the field and finished the game, but it remains to be seen whether he'll be right to take the field come Sunday. We'll know more about the situation in the coming days, but if Cooper Cronk is out, it will mean the Roosters will enter the game without an experienced halfback. They have two options, they can either call in Under 20s halfback Sean O'Sullivan or shift Luke Keary to 7 and play second-row Ryan Matterson at 6. In positive news, the side will welcome back NSW Centre Latrell Mitchell and Queensland Prop Dylan Napa for the game after they served their respective suspensions.

FW3 Stats

Running Metres

Blake Ferguson - 163m

James Tedesco - 154m

Daniel Tupou - 144m

Greg Inglis - 140m

Sio Siua Taukeiaho - 132m

Robert Jennings - 132m

Post-Contact Metres

Sio Siua Taukeiaho - 57m

Blake Ferguson - 57m

Daniel Tupou - 54m

Greg Inglis - 50m

Robert Jennings - 47m

Tackles

Jake Friend - 50

Damien Cook - 39

Sam Burgess - 38

Angus Crichton - 36

Mitchell Aubusson - 34

It was a disappointing end to the season for South Sydney. In the first week of the finals, they appeared to have Melbourne's measure before Cheyse Blair scored a fantastic try to deny them a saloon passage into the grand final. The disappointment got the better of them and after they got away with a 1 point victory against an injury ravaged Dragons, they had no answers for Sydney. Next year they will enter the competition with the bulk of their roster intact with the exception of Angus Crichton & Jason Clark. Crichton in particular is a big loss. The young NSW Origin forward has been a pillar of strength on that right edge for South Sydney and without an obvious replacement, the Rabbitohs appear to be light in the forwards. They will also have to contend with the distraction surrounding coach Anthony Siebold. A lot was made of the changes he brought to the club and it appears he has a couple of suitors heading into the 2020 season. Clubs can begin negotiating with him from November 2018 and the word is that the Brisbane Broncos consider him the ideal replacement for Wayne Bennett. Souths will want to sort the situation out as soon as possible, especially if they want another taste of premiership success in the near future.

NRL Grand Final 2018

ANZ Stadium, Sunday 30th of September, 2018

Kick Off: 7:20pm

Starters
1. James Tedesco 2. Daniel Tupou 3. Latrell Mitchell 4. Joseph Manu 5. Blake Ferguson 6. Luke Keary 7. Mitchell Aubusson 8. Jared Waerea-Hargreaves 9. Jake Friend 10. Sio Siua Taukeiaho 11. Boyd Cordner (c) 12. Isaac Liu 13. Victor Radley

Interchange
14. Dylan Napa 15. Zane Tetevano 16. Paul Momirovski 17. Ryan Matterson

Reserves
18. Lindsay Collins 19. Nat Butcher 20. Sean O'Sullivan 23. Cooper Cronk

Starters
1. Billy Slater 2. Suliasi Vunivalu 3. Will Chambers 4. Curtis Scott 5. Josh Addo-Carr 6. Cameron Munster 7. Brodie Croft 8. Jesse Bromwich 9. Cameron Smith (c) 10. Tim Glasby 11. Felise Kaufusi 12. Joe Stimson 13. Dale Finucane

Interchange
14. Kenneath Bromwich 15. Christian Welch 16. Brandon Smith 17. Nelson Asofa-Solomona

Reserves

18. Ryan Hoffman 19. Jahrome Hughes 20. Sam Kasiano 21. Cheyse Blair

Billy Slater will face the judiciary tonight to determine his availability for the grand final. On the face of it, it's difficult to see how he'll be cleared under the current interpretations. The defence will argue the presence of his right hand in the tackle and the involuntary nature of the play, but for all intents and purposes, it was a copybook shoulder charge. If Slater is cleared, it will set an interesting precedent. The shoulder charge was outlawed in 2013 for player welfare reasons as the tackle was considered unsafe and an unnecessary part in the game. This decision was later justified when a Queensland Cup player lost their life after being on the receiving end of the tackle. In most cases, the shoulder charge is an incomplete tackle that merely forces the player to the ground. In Slater's case, it was a legitimate try saving option as the tackle forced Sosaia Feki over the sideline. It will be difficult for the NRL to distinguish between the two contexts, but I believe there's a difference between what the rule was intended for, and what Slater did and should come under two different umbrellas. I would like to see those tackles charged under Dangerous Contact and for the offender to serve time in the sin-bin for committing a professional foul.

Tomorrow night is the Dally M awards where the media and ex-players collaberate and vote categories like MVP and positional awards. The early favourite appears to be Souths hooker Damien Cook who was the most improved player in the competition and made a successful debut into the representative scene. Other contenders include Valentine Holmes, Roger Tuivasa-Sheck, Cam Smith & Andrew Fifita.

Finally Brisbane have announced that 2019 will be Wayne Bennett's last at the club. Wayne Bennett initially coached the Brisbane Broncos in 1988 in a stint that lasted 21 seasons and resulted in 6 premierships. Bennett left and had stints with St. George Illawarra & Newcastle before returning to the club in 2015. At 70 years of age, it's difficult to imagine Bennett coaching in 2020 but he still remains one of the best coaches in the competition and clubs like St. George Illawarra, Penrith Panthers, Parramatta Eels, Manly Sea Eagles etc. would be in the market for a coach of his calibre. If he does sign with another club, it will be interesting to see which players will join him. A few players have made it known that they signed with Brisbane to be coached under Wayne, so whether that rhetoric holds true or not remains to be seen. The current favourite for the Brisbane Broncos job is South Sydney coach Anthony Siebold who is set to win the Dally M Coach of the Year and comes off contract in 2019.

I always thought Wayne Bennett was a great separated at birth with Sandman. :lol:

How do you get a Mr. Burns-looking teetotaller mixed up with a hardcore legend known for slamming beers into his skull? :lol:

After a long deliberation, Billy Slater has been CLEARED and will play in the grand final.

Sept 25, 2018 10:49:48 GMT Big Pete said:

After a long deliberation, Billy Slater has been CLEARED and will play in the grand final.

You want to see the big names play finals but these things always make a mockery of the rules. They did the same thing last year in the AFL when Cotchin clearly should have been suspended for the granny.

Dally M Awards

Player of the Year (MVP): Roger Tuiavasa-Sheck (Warriors)

Fullback: Roger Tuiavasa-Sheck (Warriors)
Wing: Blake Ferguson (Sydney)
Centre: BJ Leilua (Canberra)
Five-Eighth: Cameron Munster (Melbourne)
Halfback: Luke Brooks (Wests)
Prop: Andrew Fifita (Cronulla)
Hooker: Damien Cook (South Sydney)
Second Row: Josh Jackson (Canterbury)
Lock: Jason Taumalolo (North Queensland)
Interchange: Jazz Tevaga (Warriors)

Women's Player of the Year: Brittany Breayley (Brisbane)
Peter Frillingos (Moment of the Year): Women's State of Origin
Kevin Irvine (Top Try-Scorer): David Fusitu'a (Warriors)
Provan Summons (People's Choice): Damien Cook (South Sydney)
Captain of the Year: Cameron Smith (Melbourne)
Coach of the Year: Anthony Siebold (South Sydney)
Rookie of the Year: Jamayne Isaako (Brisbane)

The highlight of the event came right as Roger Tuivasa-Sheck finished his speech. Team mate Issac Luke began performing a haka and a few Kiwi players joined along to honour Tuivasa-Sheck. It maybe the greatest slow clap in sports history and made the 2018 Dally Ms unforgettable.

Tuivasa-Sheck was certainly a deserving winner. While other candidates may have had bigger high points, Tuivasa-Sheck started and finished the season in top form and was a key reason for the Warriors success this season. With Tuivasa-Sheck guiding the team, the Warriors qualified for their first finals series in 7 seasons and many pundits tipped them to be the dark horses of the finals series. Unfortunately during their first post-season game, Tuivasa-Sheck suffered an injury that would rule him out for the rest of the game and the Panthers went onto record a comfortable 27-12 victory.

The positional awards on the other hand were highly contentious. RTS, Munster, Fifita & Cook were all favoured to win, so their recognition didn't come as a shock but the rest were highly debatable. Ferguson enjoyed a stellar season, but he was in a strong field and his dismissal from the NSW Origin side was an obvious black mark. His NSW Origin replacement Josh Addo-Carr has been far more reliable for the Melbourne Storm and his pace off the mark gives Melbourne an edge very few teams get to enjoy. David Fusitu'a (top try-scorer) also had a strong claim to the award.

BJ Leilua was one of the most damaging ball-runners two years ago, but teams have exploited his horrible defensive reads and his temper. On his day, Leilua can still be a quality player, but the Raiders inability to finish games was linked to players of Leilua's ilk and should have counted against him here. Latrell Mitchell, Joey Manu, Will Chambers, Curtis Scott, Jesse Ramien, Esan Marsters & Waqa Blake all would have been better candidates.

Halfback isn't as shocking as it should be since the field was extremely ordinary. Despite leading all the important statistics, they couldn't give it to Johnathan Thurston since he was clearly a shadow of his former self. So they went by order of elimination and since all the other obvious candidates like Cherry-Evans, Cronk, Pearce, Cleary etc. had obvious short-comings, they snuck in a player not many would have thought about. Brooks enjoyed a much improved season, but his form grew patchy as the season wore on and he didn't have the composure necessary at halfback. If they were going to go for a shock selection, Chad Townsend at Cronulla steered his team home on multiple occasions and was the most consistent halfback of the year.

Before Slater won man of the series in this year's State of Origin (despite being on the losing side and only playing 2/3 games), Josh Jackson was the meme player whenever anyone was shockingly declared Man of the Match. Jackson had a strong season for a struggling club, but was overlooked by the NSW selectors for better options. Players like Tyson Frizell, Boyd Cordner, Tariq Sims, Angus Crichton etc. played a much bigger role in their teams success and the season as a whole. I'm honestly surprised he was recognised at all given the season Viliame Kikau, John Sutton & Tohu Harris had for their respective clubs.

Of all the contentious positional awards, Taumalolo winning lock of the year is the least controversial. Taumalolo is the best runner of the football and his ability to win the ruck is second to none. However, Taumalolo's slow start and relatively soft defence was a key feature behind the Cowboys disappointing season and the likes of Jack de Belin & Jake Trbojevic were far more favoured. Again it's Taumalolo, so in 5 years time it wasn't as baffling as the Jackson selection but fans shouldn't presume 2018 was a great season by his standards.

EDIT: I should point out, the Telegraph changed the way they voted on the positional awards. Where as it used to be a case by case situation, now it's awarded to the player who picked up the most Dally M votes essentially putting their money where their mouth is. In this instance players like BJ Leilua, Luke Brooks, Josh Jackson, Jason Taumalolo were stand-out players in struggling teams. Luke Brooks was only 3 votes off winning the award, so he automatically came into contention. The final leaderboard was...

1. Roger Tuivasa-Sheck (Warriors; Fullback) - 29

2. Kalyn Ponga (Newcastle; Fullback) - 27

3. Luke Brooks (Wests Tigers; Halfback) - 26

4. Valentine Holmes (Cronulla; Fullback) - 25

5. Mitchell Pearce (Newcastle; Halfback) - 23

6. Jason Taumalolo (North Queensland; Lock) - 19

6. Cameron Munster (Melbourne; Five Eighth) - 19

8. Ashley Taylor (Gold Coast; Halfback) - 18

8. Damien Cook (South Sydney; Hooker) - 18

8. Issac Luke (Warriors; Hooker) - 18

A few of those placements are baffling, but Taylor making the Top 10 maybe the most curious. Taylor was largely MIA through out the season and completely under delivered for his side. If anyone from the Gold Coast stood out, it was usually Anthony Don (Wing), Ryan James (Prop) or Jai Arrow (Lock). Even when it came to their playmakers, AJ Brimson was hands down their most likely player, especially in the second half of the season.

If I could relay any overall impressions to outsiders, it's that the code's official awards are always controversial. We've gone from a system that was plagued with confirmation bias, to one that celebrates mediocrity. Fortunately the award that matters most usually ends up going to the right player and I can't think of any instance where they've gone so far from left field or just completely overrated a player. It's usually just the near-misses that end up baffling.

Sydney Roosters vs. Melbourne Storm

After one of the closest seasons in recent memories, it's come down to this. The two preseason heavyweights made it through the fire of competition to meet in the biggest game of the year and the one game fans will remember. The purists will tell you it's been a long time coming. Last year the Sydney Roosters were in the box seat to qualify for the grand final when they were eliminated by a plucky North Queensland outfit. It's a loss that ate away at the club and they made sure they would never have to feel that embarrassment again. So after signing arguably the best up-and-coming player in the game in James Tedesco, they went and signed the ultimate professional Cooper Cronk to lead the team around the paddock. It was a move that could have been seen as heavy handed. After all, the Roosters had one of the best playmakers in the competition in Mitchell Pearce, but the Roosters refused to take half measures.

Unfortunately for the Roosters it appears that Cooper Cronk will not be suiting up come Sunday. He's been named at 23, but reports emanating from Sydney suggest he failed to complete the captain's run which will mean they'll have to look at other options. For most pundits, this spells a clear victory to Melbourne, but Sydney cannot be underestimated. In the finals they've shown a level of intensity no other team has been able to match and have out-muscled every opponent they came up against. In Melbourne, South Sydney managed to score four tries against Melbourne, against Sydney they couldn't score a single try. Sydney will be going into that clash with the same mentality and with players like Jared Warea Hargreaves, Boyd Cordner, Victor Radley, Dylan Napa, Zane Tetevano they will scrap, claw and do everything to put Melbourne off their game.

The only problem for Sydney is, Melbourne live for this stage. Melbourne are the consummate professionals in the competition who can match any side, but have the champion players to execute in the significant moments. In Cameron Smith & Billy Slater, Melbourne have the two greatest players in their respective positions and their ability to compete on every play and break a game wide open is unparalleled. Even in the twilight of their careers, both players have continued to dominate the competition like so few players and their ability to catch the opposition unawares makes them the most lethal combination in the sport today. On top of that, they have a tremendous supporting cast who can take the focus away and turn the game on it's head. Whether it's an Addo-Carr kick return, a Munster dummy and go or a Bromwich offload Melbourne rarely give teams an opportunity to breathe.

In my mind, I've come to terms with Melbourne going back-to-back. Their recent record against Sydney is fantastic (5/6), they have their full compliment of players and with Slater playing his final game of Rugby League they have the motivation. Even with Cronk, the Roosters were going to struggle and I just don't think they have the credentials to beat Melbourne.

For Sydney to win, they'll need to be the front-runners. The Roosters will have to play with higher tempo around the ruck and really challenge Brodie Croft, Joe Stimson, Will Chambers and Suliasi Vunivalu down their right hand edge. This is where they'll need to be creative and use Boyd Cordner effectively. If they can get Cordner running different lines and looking to pass, they could stretch the Melbourne Storm's line and create space back through the middle of the Storm's ruck. This is where a player like Tedesco can be extremely effective and if Luke Keary or by some miracle Jake Friend can link with him through the middle, it could just create the impetus Sydney desperately need heading into the game. The key for Sydney will be to remain patient. If they can't score inside the first twenty minutes, it's OK, they just have to be the first team to score and do everything in their power to keep Melbourne silent. It's a tall order, but if we see the Roosters of the first week of finals they'll be in with a shot.

For Melbourne, it will be about matching the intensity of the opposition. They cannot afford to underestimate the Roosters and will have to go with them during those initial plays. Jesse Bromwich, Dale Finucane, Nelson Asofa-Solomona will have to be on their game and cannot afford to be caught flat footed. Last week Melbourne found a lot of their success playing around the fringes early in the tackle set and a similar approach here will pay dividends. Sydney are incredibly strong through the middle third, but if you start targeting players like Keary & Mitchell they'll begin to make lazy mistakes and enable you to win the ruck. If they can get Kafusi running on the inside shoulder of Keary and try to get Slater lurking around the ruck, they will create opportunities for themselves. Finally Bellamy will have to simplify Croft's job. Croft's kicking game hasn't been great this series, but his running game has been extremely strong. If he can make him the secondary kicker and have him play straight, it will eliminate one of the major risk factors heading into the finals. The last thing Bellamy will want is a Ben Hunt 2015 esque performance from his halfback.

Prediction: Melbourne 14-10

First Try Scorer: Josh Addo-Carr

Man of the Match: Cameron Smith

Sydney Roosters 21 (Daniel Tupou, Latrell Mitchell, Joey Manu tries; Latrell Mitchell 4/6 goals; Luke Keary field goal) def. Melbourne Storm 6 (Josh Addo-Carr try; Cameron Smith goal)

If you simulated the game 1000 times, this would have been the best outcome for the Roosters. They achieved everything they needed to do to beat Melbourne and the game ended up being a lot more one-sided than anyone expected.

In the end, Cooper Cronk shocked everybody when he decided to play through a broken scapula and lead the side to victory. For all intents and purposes, Cronk was a passenger, but his guidance and game management around the field gave the Roosters the confidence to keep Melbourne at bay. As strong as Cronk was, it was the Roosters defence that was the star of the show. They chased every kick with ferocity and smothered the Storm's back three, preventing them from generating any momentum. In contrast Tedesco, Tupou & Ferguson constantly got Sydney rolling over the advantage line on tackles one and two, and enabled Keary to take advantage of the Storm's loose right hand-side defence. Cordner had a field day running at Croft and Keary constantly had the Storm defence back-peddling. His involvement saw the Roosters build an early 12-0 lead, which was extremely important as it took Melbourne outside of their comfort zone.

Sydney were brilliant on the night and Melbourne didn't have any answers. Whenever they had an opportunity they would squander it. A telling moment was 30 minutes into the contest when big Nelson Asofa-Solomona charged on the ball and made a beeline towards Cronk. If he holds onto the ball, Melbourne likely give themselves a great opportunity down their left hand-side. Instead Nelson dropped the ball cold, allowed Friend to pick it up and Munster found himself in the sin-bin for a professional foul. It proved to be the moment that sealed the match as Sydney extended their lead and went into the sheds with a commanding 18 point lead.

Clive Churchill Medalist Keary was fantastic. He played down both sides of the ruck, did the majority of the kicking, defended his fringe well and was a constant threat with the ball in hand. His only blemish was throwing a loose pass which gave Melbourne a late try in the 62nd minute of the contest. Other than that, Keary stamped himself as one of the elite playmakers in the game and now has two premiership rings next to his name. He was in extremely good company though and every Roosters players did their job.

In saying that, the 2018 NRL Grand Final will be remembered for the toughness of Cooper Cronk. He clearly should not have taken part in the game, but to play with a broken scapula and still make a positive difference to his team is unbelievable and puts him right up there with Sam Burgess (broken jaw - 2014) & John Sattler (broken jaw -1970) as one of the toughest performances in a grand final. For Melbourne fans, it will be a bittersweet moment for them as Cronk was their greatest ever halfback before he left the club.

Unfortunately for Billy Slater, it was a sombre note to go out on. Slater was booed everytime he touched the football and rarely had any opportunities to involve himself in the contest. In the second half, he and Smith did everything to make something, but with so little momentum they couldn't convert their half-breaks into points. It wasn't the note he would have wanted to go out on, but Billy has nothing to be ashamed of. Most greats of the game rarely get the fairytale finale and usually have their careers ended in the cruelest of ways. There's been a few cases of going out on a grand final loss - Broncos Captain Justin Hodges went out in 2015 after losing in the golden point thriller and former Australian Captain and Roosters legend Brad Fittler went out a Grand Final loser in 2004. The truth is, many fans thought Billy Slater would have retired in 2016 after a series of shoulder injuries kept him on the sideline for two seasons. He went onto win a Premiership, an Origin Series and a World Cup on return and cemented his legacy as one of the best of all-time. His record reads:

Billy Slater

319 NRL Games

190 Tries (2nd Most In NRL History)

31 Origins

12 Tries

30 Tests

27 Tries

NRL Grand Final Stats

Running Metres

James Tedesco - 214m

Daniel Tupou - 184m

Josh Addo-Carr - 178m

Blake Ferguson - 155m

Boyd Cordner - 144m

Post-Contact Metres

Boyd Cordner - 55m

James Tedesco - 53m

Blake Ferguson - 45m

Isaac Liu - 38m

Daniel Tupou - 37m

Tackles

Cam Smith - 53

Dale Finucane - 51

Joe Stimson - 45

Felise Kaufusi - 44

Jake Friend - 43