NRL Final week two: Preview
The second week of the National Rugby League Final is set to go over the weekend and the Canberra Raiders, Wests Tigers, Sydney Rooster and Penrith Panthers will all be fighting for spots in the semi-finals. The Raiders and the Roosters will be hoping to maintain their strong form, while the Tigers and the Panthers will be looking to reverse their fortunes from week one.
Preview
Canberra Raiders vs. Wests Tigers
The Raiders will host the Tigers at home at Canberra Stadium in week two’s first match-up on Friday night.
Canberra finished seventh in the standings at the end of the regular season and was forced to take on the second place Panthers in week one. However, the Raiders were in fine form to end the season and were able to carry over their strong play into the first week of the Finals with a victory over a heavily favoured Panthers side.
The Raiders will hope to continue their impressive play when they again assume the role of the underdogs at home this weekend to the Tigers.
The Tigers meanwhile finished third in the standings at the end of season, earning the right to play the Roosters in week one. However, the Tigers seemed off their game after the first half and allowed the Roosters to get back into the match, eventually losing in extra time. To add insult to injury the Tigers lost their best kicker, in Benji Marshall, to injury.
Marshall is said to be struggling with the injury, but is confident that he will be in the line-up on Friday. Nevertheless, if the superstar is not 100% it could greatly affect the Tigers' game plan.
The Raiders' strong form, plus the excitement generated by the home-town fans, will be working against the Tigers in week two. Nevertheless, the Wests should be able to contend with a more skilled roster.
The winner of the match will go on to play the St. George Dragons in week three.
Sydney Roosters vs. Penrith Panthers
The Roosters will be welcoming the Panthers to Sydney Football Stadium on Saturday for the second game of week two.
The Roosters finished sixth in the ladder and were forced to take on the Tigers in the first week of the finals. The Sydney-siders started off slow but managed to put the pressure on late, scoring in the final moments to push the game to extra time. The Roosters continued to dominate in the extra minutes scoring a game-winning try in the 100th minute.
Although the Roosters struggled through the majority of the second half of the season they managed to find their game in the last two rounds, pulling themselves out of eighth spot. The late season form coupled with the excitement of an extra time-win over the Tigers should play a major role in their battle with the Panthers on Saturday.
The Panthers finished the season in second place and earned the right to play the Raiders in week one. The Panthers drew the short straw running into one of the NRL’s hottest teams in the first week of the Finals. The Raiders late season form proved too much for the Penrith side as they suffered a two point loss to their guests.
The Panthers are capable of incredibly strong play and will have to ignore the Sydney supporters on the road in week two.
The winner of the match will take on the Gold Coast Titans in week three.
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