Sydney Roosters v South Sydney Rabbitohs
The Roosters will lose Blake Ferguson, Mitchell Pearce, Boyd Cordner and Dylan Napa to Origin duty. Mitch Aubusson should slot into the backline for Ferguson, while Pearce's position will be a battle between Mitchell Cornish and Connor Watson for a spot in the halves. Ryan Matterson and Isaac Liu will fill the voids of Cordner and Napa respectively.
No Origin players, no injuries and a big 28-point win over Penrith last week should all point to the fact the Rabbitohs will name an unchanged 17 for Friday's contest.
Penrith Panthers v Manly Sea Eagles
Mitch Rein and James Fisher-Harris will return to the starting line-up for Anthony Griffin, while Trent Merrin's availability is questionable given the fitness of Origin stars Tyson Frizell and Boyd Cordner. Should they both fail to be fit for Origin 3, expect Merrin to be the man called upon.
Jake Trbojevic will miss the match through Origin duty, but the Sea Eagles will have Daly Cherry-Evans available after he was sensationally overlooked for Origin selection. Darcy Lussick is the favourite to slot into Trbojevic's position.
Melbourne Storm v Parramatta Eels
The Storm will be a shadow of themselves this weekend, with six players out on Origin duty as well as other injury concerns. Billy Slater, Cameron Munster, Cooper Cronk, Cameron Smith, Tim Glasby and Will Chambers have all been selected for the Origin decider, while Kiwi stars Jesse Bromwich and Tohu Harris are both touch and go for Saturday's match. Nate Myles could make his club debut this weekend.
On the other side, Parramatta has no Origin worries and could be unchanged, although Manu Ma'u is in doubt for the weekend. Tepai Moeroa likely to start in his place if he is ruled out.
Canterbury Bulldogs v Newcastle Knights
The Bulldogs will be without Brett Morris, Josh Jackson and David Klemmer as they line up for NSW in Origin 3.
Dane Gagai is the Knights' lone Origin star, with Brendan Elliot tipped to replace him in the backline. Mitchell Barnett will likely front up for Newcastle, as long as he takes the early guilty plea from the judiciary.
The Broncos, Raiders, Sharks, Titans, Warriors, Cowboys, Dragons and Tigers all have the bye in round 18.
Comments are closed.