St George Illawarra Dragons vs. Melbourne Storm
WIN Stadium, 7:50pm, Thursday July 4
Team News: The Dragons have lost Ben Hunt, Corey Norman, Paul Vaughan and Tyson Frizell to Origin, while Tariq Sims is suspended. Jai Field and Darren Nicholls come into the halves, with Josh Kerr, Pat Kaufusi and Mitch Allgood coming into the side. Tim Lafai replaces Lachlan Maranta at centre. Solomone Kata and Sandor Earl come in for Chambers and Addo-Carr, while Olam remains in the centres with Marion Seve dropped. Billy Walters debuts at five-eighth in place of Munster. Tino Faasuamaleaui and Albert Vete join the bench.
Prediction: This game has been ravaged by Origin, with a combined 11 players not featuring because of rep duties. While Melbourne lose more men, St George Illawarra lose more in key positions, with half of their spine missing. Melbourne will have young Billy Walters, son of Queensland coach Kevin, debut in the halves. While the Dragons will have home ground advantage, Melbourne still has a host of elite players, with Cameron Smith playing his 399th NRL match, and he'll be the one that steers the Storm to another win. Storm by 16.
Wests Tigers vs. Sydney Roosters
Bankwest Stadium, 7:55pm, Friday July 5
Team News: Moses Mbye and Oliver Clark are replaced by Paul Momirovski and Josh Aloiai. Nat Butcher replaces Boyd Cordner in the second-row. James Tedesco is also out through Origin, with Joey Manu shifting to fullback, Latrell goes back into the centres, and Luke Keary returns in the halves. Taukeiaho is out, replaced by Jared Waerea-Hargreaves. Ryan Hall is on the wing with Matt Ikavalu dropping to the bench, while Sitili Tupouniua replaces Lachlan Lam.
Prediction: Until it was revealed that Luke Keary and Jared Warea-Hargreaves were returning, this game was a coin flip. But with those two internationals back in the line-up, and Latrell Mitchell in the centres, this could be big win for the Roosters, which should rocket them back into second place. The Tigers were valiant and showed last week against South Sydney how good they were in the grind, but the Roosters will get an early lead and build on it. Roosters by 14.
Newcastle Knights vs. New Zealand Warriors
McDonald Jones Stadium, 7:35pm, Saturday July 6
Team News: Edrick Lee's broken arm is offset by the return of Danny Levi, which sees Levi start at hooker, Connor Watson move to fullback, Kurt Mann to the centres and Hymel Hunt on the wing. Daniel Saifiti is replaced by brother Jacob, while Tim Glasby's absence sees Pasami Saulo return. Leivaha Pulu and Nathaniel Roache are replaced by Lachlan Burr and Isaac Luke.
Prediction: Only the Warriors could've lost that game last week. The team's motto in recent years has been 'snatching defeat from the jaws of victory', and that's exactly what they did. They do however lose no one to Origin, while Kalyn Ponga, Daniel Saifiti, Tim Glasby, David Klemmer and Mitchell Pearce are missing through either injury or Origin. The late absences of Klemmer and Pearce could tip this one in favour of the visitors, although the Knights might just have enough in them. Newcastle by 2.
Cronulla Sharks vs. Brisbane Broncos
PointsBet Stadium, 4.05pm, Sunday, July 7
Team News: Kurt Capewell comes in for Wade Graham while Kyle Flanagan dislodges Blayke Brailey as the bench utility. Brisbane have lost Anthony Milford and Richie Kennar to injury as well as Joe Ofahengaue, Matt Gillett, Corey Oates and David Fifita to Origin. Wingers Xavier Coates and Herbie Farnworth will debut. Jake Turpin moves to five-eighth with Darius Boyd returning to fullback. Thomas Flegler starts at lock, with Alex Glenn and Tevita Pangai Jnr on the edges, and Rhys Kennedy, Shaun Fensom and James Segeyaro joining the bench.
Prediction: For only the third time in Brisbane's 30-year existence, they appear set to miss the finals. There's a host of facets to it, but simply they've been far from the standard of every other team above them, and Anthony Seibold looks lost. Meanwhile, Cronulla is fighting to keep in touch with the top four after a diabolical loss to Canterbury. They need to sort out the balance of their spine as soon as possible. Regardless, they've got enough strike power to defeat a hapless and undermanned Brisbane outfit. Cronulla by 8.
Point To Prove: Darius Boyd. Rumours have swirled all week that if Darius doesn't have a big game this week, he'll be playing for Redcliffe next week. While he has undoubtedly struggled this year, specifically in his defence, Boyd is a champion of the game, and no matter how he has played in 2019, he'll stand up this week when he needs to.
Struggle Street: Matt Moylan. In all honesty, if he was playing this week, it would have been Jack Wighton after his shocker against Parramatta. But Moylan had five errors, at crucial times as well. The adage 'too many cooks spoil the broth' comes to mind with the Sharks, often failing to click with three players that all want their hands on the ball. As a fullback, Moylan must take a step back if he wants the Sharks to climb the ladder.
Rookie Watch: Xavier Coates. The speedy centre will debut on the wing for Brisbane at just 18, and this kid is special. Coates made his international debut for Papua New Guinea last week against Samoa, and was strong in defeat. His rise has been rapid, playing only one game for Tweed Heads this year, though scoring two tries in that match. He's a special talent, and certainly one to watch coming against fellow speedster Bronson Xerri.
Best Bet: Melbourne Storm 13+. Both sides are losing players in key positions, but Melbourne still has the likes of Cameron Smith, the Bromwich brothers, Vunivalu and Nelson Asofa-Solomona. Plus a rookie by the name of Ryan Papenhuyzen. They'll be far too strong.
Rumour of the Week: Regardless of the result of this Origin series, don't be surprised if it's the last we see of Kevin Walters as Queensland coach. The Gold Coast Titans were happy to let Garth Brennan use last year to find his feet, but after recruiting Kangaroos Shannon Boyd and Tyrone Peachey, the Titans' board are filthy that their club sit equal last with nine games to go. And their ideal replacement? Kevin Walters.
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