12 rounds are in the books for 2022, and with it comes the halfway point in the campaign, as well as the Origin window.
From the Penrith Panthers running away at the top of the table, to two of last year’s top four becoming two of the season’s biggest disappointments, there has been plenty to keep footy fans on their toes.
Add that to the Queensland teams becoming the competition’s biggest surprise packets, a sacked coach and the Warriors' impending return home whilst still in finals contention, and it has been an excellent first 12 weeks.
So, before things get just a little bit crazy this weekend, with new players, byes and then a Wednesday night game that stops the nation - well, not the nation, but the east coast anyway - it’s time to look back at the opening three months.
Here is how your team has performed during the opening 12 rounds on the Zero Tackle mid-season report card.
Keep in mind that these grades factor in pre-season expectations as much as they do form and results over the first 12 rounds.
Cronulla Sharks
Grade: B-
Record: 7 wins, 5 losses, +38 points differential
The Sharks were the talk of the NRL world for the first six weeks. Craig Fitzgibbon the magician, the headlines seemed to read.
The club who missed the top eight last year had suddenly - very suddenly - entered the premiership conversation as, with the exception of the Raiders in Round 1 (a bogey club for Cronulla) and the Storm in Round 6 (hardly a cause for concern), they blasted past all opposition in the first seven weeks of the competition.
Siosifa Talakai might have been the standout in that Round 7 clash against Manly, when the Sharks let in 22 unanswered second half points, but it papered over the cracks that were ever-present.
With some injuries starting to bite, the Sharks have since seen the wheels begin to fall off the wagon, losing to the Broncos, Raiders (again) and Roosters in the last five weeks to go with a pair of unconvincing wins over the Warriors and Titans.
The Sharks have hardly fallen away to a disastrous level, but some questionable coaching decisions, combined with Nicho Hynes not having a whole lot of support in attack, has led the Sharks to drift well away from the top four and have plenty of work to do in the coming weeks.
Hynes has been without doubt one of the form players in the competition, but he will need more from those around him - the likes of William Kennedy, Matt Moylan and the forwards, who have seemed to struggle holding the same defensive excellency that was present when Storm recruit Dale Finucane wasn’t sat on the sideline nursing injury.
Best player: Nicho Hynes
Best win: Round 2, vs Parramatta Eels, 18-16
Worst loss: Round 8, vs Brisbane Broncos, 16-7
