2025 Predictions

General Rugby League
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Will put up my ladder predictions later, but my thoughts about each team:

Brisbane Broncos: potential top 4 side if Madge can keep the egos in check. Should play finals.

Canberra Raiders: nuisance value. Could play finals, but won’t be serious contenders.

Canterbury Bulldogs: how they recover mentally from last year is a big factor. Could fall in a heap, could be a dark horse for the premiership.

Cronulla Sharks: will be in the finals, probably top 4. Need to find another level at the pointy end of the season if they want to challenge for the premiership.

Easts (Sydney) Roosters: probably the weakest they have looked in over a decade, but still enough quality to make the finals. Can’t see them as challengers though.

Gold Coast Titans: a finals side if they play to their potential - something we rarely see from Gold Coast teams.

Manly Sea Eagles: if they play to their potential, they are probably the one side that can seriously threaten Panthers & Storm. Need all their key players to stay fit to do it.

Melbourne Storm: deserve to be favourites, and barring a major injury crisis should make the big dance

New Zealand Warriors: a complete lottery. Anything could happen.

Newcastle Knights: need Ponga to remain fit to have any chance of making the finals. Adam O’Brian likely to be first coach to be axed.

North Queensland Cowboys: could finish anywhere, have the potential to be top 4, but aren’t consistent enough. If they have a slow start Todd Payten will be under pressure.

Parramatta Eels: a complete lottery. An untested coach with some new faces make them hard to pick.

Penrith Panthers: are coming back to the field, but still have the players to get the job done. There will be 7 other teams in the finals dreading facing the 4 time premiers.

Redcliffe Dolphins: the loss of Wayne Bennett & Jesse Bromwich will see them struggle to make any impact this year.

Souths Rabbitohs: the loss of Latrell Mitchell for the start of the season, makes it unlikely they will play finals

St George Illawarra Dragons: hard to read, probably mid table

Wests Tigers: the big improvers, not sure if they will improve enough to make the finals this year.

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Not sure about the Roosters and Sharks in your predictions @Mutley.

The Roosters look the most understrength I have seen them in some year, they might struggle to make the finals this year.

The Sharks depend heavily on how Nico Hynes performs this year, I don’t feel he will be any batter this year than last, I predict they will be making up the numbers in the finals this year.

I agree with the Titans, they are building to a good side, if they can keep the injuries down and string a good midseason together, they maybe booking a spot in the finals this year.

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Sharks look best when Trindall is controlling the game - something they cottoned on to late last season. Hynes has proven to be a dud buy, and they are losing a good young half (Atkinson) because of that mistake.

Roosters still have some quality players, but will struggle if (when) injuries hit, and won’t challenge the top teams at full strength.

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Yer agree with Steve, Roosters out, I would also take on Manly, they are 1 injury away from missing out.

I think the Dragons will be a smoky for the 8 this year.

Knights getting the spoon…no way

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I agree that Trindall needs to be the main mana t the Sharks, but without one of the halves not working it like rowing with one oar… just going around in circles. There was a part of the game in Vegas that Trindall capitalised on McLean leaving the field and to following reshuffle out on that wing, but apart from that, I didn’ see that much organisation, so far Hynes has live up to expectations of him (not a very high one at that).

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For what it’s worth, I reckon it will be Us, Storm and Sharks in the top 3.

Next best likely to be Dogs, Manly, Roosters, and Canberra.

I can see Brisbane going either way, Mcquire doesn’t have full control over team selections like he did for origin. He had a lot of big egos to get under control, before he can build a new culture. History shows teams have lean years and a lot of turnover when a new coach comes in to shake up the pot.

Similarity unsure about the Eels. Lots of turn over, new coach, Iongi is a talent for sure but he’s played what 1 first grade game. If they think we lost our soul with Luai, then what have the eels lost with Gutho?

The Cowboys could go good again if they play and perform consistently. Each year they have the team on paper, sometimes they perform, sometimes not.

On that note I am sick of reading the team list then making good predictions about the Titans.

As for the spoon, for me it’s between the Dragons and Souths. The loss of Murray will be too much for the bunnies, and Flanagan will learn that staking your side with old has beens is not the road to success

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Too wordy… I more a fan of #PEN5TH

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I prefer the shortened version:

“Strive for five”

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Or maybe;

“No Jive, Clive,
We get 5
I break out in hive
Muthaf***kka"

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With 1 game remaining in Round 1, likely a clear win by the $torm over the Moses-less slimies, I think some things are very clear at this early stage.
With 17 teams, I know that 8 have to make the 8, but at this stage I already have lines thru 10 not making the 8
warriors
roosters
tigers
knights
rabbits
dolphins
dragons
eels
cowboys
titans (not yet played)
And the raiders as likely to miss also.

So the “eight” in no part particular order will be Panthers/Sharks/Broncos/Dogs/SeaEagles/Storm plus whoever falls in from the rest.

27 weeks to sort the wheat from the chaff I guess.

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Well the last game further proved my point. The slimies were absolutely crap.
So the NRL are patting itself on the back about how great Rugba Leeg is & they have a comp with 11 teams that are useless, despite all the contrived attempts to bring the good teams back to the crap ones.
The only proper game in Round 1, competitive and skilled was us vs the gummies. The others were either one sided or two useless teams playing equally as bad.

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I have learned to never judge a season by the first round. We have had a habit on losing our Round 1 fixtures. I wonder what the other NRL fans made of those.

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Well Steve, the craziness of this weekends results sort of matched last weeks, so I may have gone off early with my comments.
Maybe things will settle a bit over the next little bit, but there is definitely a lack of quality teams at this point in time :flushed: