Nelson Asofa-Solomona’s return adds so much to that team. I know there has been a lot of talk about his fitness, but if he reads this column, he looks in fine fettle to me. He’s too big for me to pick a fight with anyway!
They just need their squad doing all their jobs. If they do, they’ve got the best spine in the competition.
I reckon the Storm will put more emphasis on their defence in this one and might squeak home in a close game.
Joey’s tip: Storm by 2
First try-scorer: Xavier Coates
Man of the match: Harry Grant
Golden green
If Ricky Stuart takes the Raiders deep into the finals this year, it will be his greatest achievement as a coach.
When Jack Wighton left, I thought they would be in the bottom four. But I reckon they had a seminal moment when Jamal Fogarty returned to pre-season training and thought, “right, this is my team now”.
The Raiders have surprised many with their fast start to the season.Credit: Getty
Their forwards are really grinding in the middle of the park, and when you have young talent coming through to go with the likes of Joseph Tapine and Josh Papali’i, it’s a pretty imposing pack. Englishman Morgan Smithies has been a sensational buy, too.
They’re such a well-balanced team, they look happy and are playing for each other, and with teenager Ethan Strange looking every bit a 10-year NRL player, Canberra have a huge chance of playing finals football under Stuart.
Kalyn the key
I nearly had two nervous breakdowns watching the Knights last week: one, when Kalyn Ponga kicked off and grabbed at his groin or hip flexor, and then towards the end of the game when they blew the last two plays.
Kalyn is beyond a superstar. He and Reece Walsh look at a different speed to everyone else on the field. But what they don’t talk about is his toughness.
To come back from all of those concussions and virtually being told to retire, he just plays his normal game.
None of us knew in that first half it was a hip pointer injury, which was a result of his desperation to stop Daniel Tupou.
Without Kalyn on those sweeping plays and set structure, Newcastle lack real punch.
For the Knights to make a run for the semis, they need Kalyn fit. That’s stating the absolute obvious. But against a Bulldogs team showing a bit more fight, a bit more class, you can see Canterbury are showing the way.
If Kalyn doesn’t play, I can’t see them beating the Dogs.
In a different league
Before I finish this week, I must give huge kudos to the NRL, its players, coaches and everyone involved in the game because the standard of play in the first six rounds has been phenomenal.
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There was one blowout last weekend, but the rest were all tight affairs. It’s compelling viewing. We have so many television and radio shows dedicated to the game, and interest is at an all-time high.
Let’s hope it continues long into the season.
