The NRL fixtures have been released for 2022, and so has the process of fans screaming blue murder as they realise their team will have to play last year's top teams twice.
But in NRL land, a fair draw is never a possibility because of the fact each team only plays eight teams twice.
Zero Tackle have ranked each team's draw on a sliding scale, awarding 16 points to play last year's minor premiers - the Melbourne Storm, 15 to play the Penrith Panthers who finished second and so on, all the way down to the last-placed Canterbury Bulldogs who attract just one point.
While some teams will move on the ladder this season following off-season signing sprees or the like, it's the fairest way to assess your team's draw.
We will go from the easiest to the toughest.
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16. Gold Coast Titans
Points: 192
The Titans kick-off their season with a clash against the Parramatta Eels, before moving on to play the Warriors, Raiders and Tigers, who all finished out of last year's top eight.
There are only three occasions throughout the 2022 NRL season where they play teams who finished in last year's top eight on back-to-back weeks, with a lopsided mix of double up games which will feature six of nine games against teams who finished in the lower half of the table.
Their only double up fixture against a top-four team will come when they play the Manly Sea Eagles, meaning they avoid all of the Storm, Panthers and Rabbitohs twice.
15. St George Illawarra Dragons
Points: 194
The Dragons have one of the competition's easiest draws this season, only taking on three teams who finished in last year's top eight on two occasions.
They will only be forced to play the Rabbitohs, Roosters and Titans twice, while also getting the Cowboys and Tigers twice out of last year's bottom four.
They start the season with the Panthers, Eels and Rabbitohs in their first five games, so they could be well behind the eight ball, but a finish to the season against the Cowboys, Sharks, Raiders, Titans, Tigers and Broncos in their final six means they should finish with a head of steam.
14. South Sydney Rabbitohs
Points: 195
The Rabbitohs will face old teammate Adam Reynolds in the opener, before taking on the Storm, Roosters and Panthers in back-to-back-to-back weeks, so it isn't going to take long to find out where they are at.
Despite that tough start, the season actually takes an easier twist for South Sydney, with our points scale setting them down as the third easiest draw.
While they will be forced to play the Storm and Panthers twice, they avoid the Sea Eagles, Knights and Titans out of last year's top eight.
13. North Queensland Cowboys
Points: 196
If there is a team that needed an easier draw, it might have been the Cowboys. Their record away from Townsville last year was abysmal, and by the end of the season, even their home record had fallen through the floor.
They will get a chance to start things of solidly against the Bulldogs and Raiders, both at home, before a Queensland derby against the Broncos. The Roosters break it up in Round 4, but then the Cowboys play the Warriors, Raiders (again) and the Titans all within the first seven weeks.
Amazingly, the Cowboys won't play the Rabbitohs until Round 24, and out of last year's top four, only play the Panthers twice avoiding Manly and Melbourne.
12. Newcastle Knights
Points: 198
The Knights just miss the top four when it comes to easiest draws for the season ahead, and it's not hard to see why the men from the Hunter will be happy with their list of matches.
They might start with the Roosters, Panthers and Sea Eagles in the first five weeks, but they avoid playing the Storm and Rabbitohs twice in 2022, and also have a cruisy run to the finish line, with the Bulldogs, Tigers, Broncos, Raiders, Titans and Sharks on the agenda in the final six weeks.
They also avoid having to travel to Melbourne this season, and in fact only leave New South Wales four times before Round 22.
=10. Penrith Panthers
Points: 199
The reigning premiers can never have an 'easy' draw. That just isn't the way it works. Every single team is out to get you.
The Panthers may sit tenth in this ranking, but face the Sea Eagles and Rabbitohs within the first four rounds, and will have to deal with the Storm, Rabbitohs, Roosters and Eels twice this season.
They will be fairly content with their run home though, given the Warriors and Cowboys are their final two games of the year.
=10. Cronulla Sharks
Points: 199
The Sharks will commence their season with matches against the Raiders, Eels, Dragons, Knights and Tigers, giving them what should be an ideal ground to launch their season with four teams outside of last year's top eight.
Things do get tougher from there with back-to-back clashes against the Storm and Sea Eagles, but all up, the Sharks certainly don't have the toughest of draws.
They will only play three teams out of last year's top eight in double up fixtures, and even then they avoid both grand finalists in the Panthers and Rabbitohs.
9. Manly Sea Eagles
Points: 201
The Panthers start their season with an incredibly tough two-week stretch against the Panthers in Penrith, and the Roosters at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
Things should get easier from there as they take on the Bulldogs, Raiders, Knights, Titans and Sharks over the next five weeks with a chance to establish a base form line to work off.
Their draw is right in the middle of the pack though, playing four teams who finished in last year's top eight and five who didn't as their double up games, with Storm, Roosters, Eels and Titans all appearing twice on their fixture list.
8. Wests Tigers
Points: 202
The Tigers, alongside the Raiders, are the owners of the quirkiest part of the NRL schedule this year, with those two teams not clashing until Round 25.
They also start their season in a ridiculously tough fashion, playing the Melbourne Storm out of the gates. They then take on the Knights, Warriors, Titans and Sharks across the first five weeks of the competition.
Their double up fixtures include the Rabbitohs, Roosters, Sea Eagles, Knights and Eels.
7. Melbourne Storm
Points: 208
The Storm have an extremely well-balanced draw, playing 14 clubs before they double up on anyone, with the Sea Eagles and Sharks their first in Round 16 and 17 (after a bye).
They start their season with games against the Tigers, Rabbitohs, Eels and Bulldogs, giving them a reasonable mix to ascertain a base form line.
Despite playing 14 of 15 clubs before they go against anyone for a second time, their last nine rounds will feature a tough run home, playing five out of last year's top eight, including the other three teams who wound up in the top four.
=6. New Zealand Warriors
Points: 212
The Warriors will kick their season off with an extremely comfortable run of fixtures, playing the Dragons, Titans, Tigers, Broncos and Cowboys in the first five weeks before testing themselves out against the Roosters and Storm on Anzac Day.
Combined with home games back in Auckland from Round 15 - five of them to be exact over their final ten matches - and the Warriors have been dealt a reasonable hand for 2022.
What isn't so reasonable is the fact they will have to play the Storm, Rabbitohs and Panthers twice, as well as the Titans.
=5. Parramatta Eels
Points: 212
The Eels kick-off the season with intriguing opening games against the Titans and Sharks, who will be returning to their Shire home ground for the first time in over two years.
Then the Storm will await them in Melbourne for Round 3, making it a less than ideal start to the season for the blue and gold, who will be under pressure following their results over the last 24 months.
They also play the Storm in Round 25, and with a double up list featuring the Panthers, Sea Eagles, Rabbitohs, Roosters and Storm, the Eels will need to be at their best from start to finish.
4. Canberra Raiders
Points: 213
The Raiders are also at the tough end of the fixture list for 2022, with the Storm and Panthers both appearing on their fixture list for 2022, as well as the Sea Eagles, Knights and Titans out of last year's top eight.
Starting with the Sharks, Cowboys and Titans should give fans an idea of where the Raiders are at though before back-to-back games against the Sea Eagles and Storm.
Three of four home games between Round 19 and Round 22, with the only away trip being to the Gold Coast, should also give Canberra a chance to build some momentum before the last push to the finals, or ahead of a knockout campaign in September.
=2. Brisbane Broncos
Points: 214
For a team who have finished in the bottom four twice in a row, the Broncos have an exceedingly tough challenge to get away from the bottom of the table in 2022.
They start their season with a clash against the Rabbitohs, then play a rejuvenated Canterbury outfit, before a Queensland derby against the Cowboys, while they also have the Roosters and Panthers in the first six rounds.
All up, they play six of last year's top eight twice, only missing the Sea Eagles and Panthers, while one of their few bottom eight sides will be Canterbury - in saving that, they play them twice in the first seven rounds when logic would say they may not have gelled.
=2. Sydney Roosters
Points: 214
The Roosters start their season with the Knights, Sea Eagles and Rabbitohs, making for a difficult opening to 2022, before they face the Cowboys, Broncos, Warriors, Dragons on Anzac Day and Bulldogs in consecutive weeks.
That will allow them to make up for any lost time at the start of the season, but they will need to find form in a hurry with an overall extremely difficult fixture.
The Roosters will be forced to double up against the Eels, Storm, Panthers, Rabbitohs and Sea Eagles during 2022.
1. Canterbury Bulldogs
Points: 215
While it must be taken with a grain of salt given every team has a higher points scale than the Bulldogs, Canterbury do have the toughest draw for the 2022 NRL season on these numbers.
They play four of last year's top six twice, including the Panthers and Rabbitohs, so even though they avoid the Storm twice and have five straight home games between Round 14 and 19, it's still a tall order for the Bulldogs to bridge the sizeable gap to the top eight in 2022.
