NRL Round 19 Melbourne Storm v North Queensland Cowboys Preview

We finally have our "Super Saturday" back in NRL land and we have a block buster game to kick it off. The Storm were shocked last week to not only lose to the Raiders at home, but to have 40 points scored against them. Admittedly they were missing Smith and Slater but that is still no excuse for the way that the Storm played. Normally, they are very controlled in their ball movement and strong in defence, but this game saw all of that thrown out the window. But it is a very tough task to play a top team like the Storm after they have suffered an embarrassing loss. That is what lies in front of the Cowboys in this game. They have had a very mixed season to date but will now look to consolidate a position in the Top 8 and make a charge towards the semi finals in September with a bit of momentum. They too have their fair share of injury concerns to contend with, but unlike the Storm, they aren't to key players within their squad. The Cowboys will relish the challenge of this game and if they are to do well at the business end of the season, this is a game that they must look to win. If not, they could find themselves without momentum and struggling to keep pace with the Top 8. So, will the Storm bounce back from last weeks shock loss and get their season back on track? Or will the Cowboys build some momentum and show the rest of the competition what they should look out for? This has all the marks of a great clash and its a shame not everyone will get to see it. But if you can, make the effort to get infront of a TV or listen to it on the radio.

Melbourne Storm
The biggest inclusion for this week is obviously Cameron Smith. I don't need to say too much about how they will be boosted by his return but it is amazing to see the stats around about the losses and the margin within them (stay tuned). The Storm have named the same team (including extended bench) that lost the game to the Raiders. The extended bench is a puzzling one and only suggests that there are some players within the team who under an injury cloud. Only time will tell leading into kickoff. There is one more points from last weeks game that must be raised. There were players in the Storm team who made mistakes which were very uncharacteristic of those players. For example, Widdop and Duffie at the back. No doubt they copped an almighty spray from coach Bellamy and rightly so.

North Queensland Cowboys
The Cowboys have a remarkably different look to the team that went down to the Warriors in NZ. This is because they were without their SOO for that match and will welcome them back this week with open arms. Thurston obviously steps back into the number 6 jersey and Brent Tate is named in the centres. As a result, Antonio Winterstein is moved back to the wing and Kalifa Faifai Loa is dropped altogether. Ricky Thorby makes was for James Tamou and Ashton Sims is relegated to the bench, along with Thorby, for the return of Matt Scott. This will be his first game in the Cowboys team since he was a late withdrawal against the Raiders due to the passing of his mother. The Cowboys have an extended bench of 6 and mid season tranfer Anthony Mitchell is named to come off the bench. There are a still players missing through injury and they may not return for the remainder of the season. This is probably the strongest side that the Cowboys will field so the momentum moving into the finals needs to be built now.

Recent History

Overall = Storm 18 - Cowboys 6

Last 5 games = Storm 4 - Cowboys 1

At AAMI Park = Storm 1 - Cowboys 0

Odds
TAB Sportsbet = Storm $1.50 Cowboys $2.55
Centrebet = Storm $1.53 Cowboys $2.57
Sportsbet = Storm $1.48 Cowboys $2.70
Betfair = Storm $1.47 Cowboys $2.58

Verdict

As mentioned above, you should alway be aware classy team that suffers an embarrassing defeat the previous week. But the Cowboys find themselves in the position of playing for an extended season and staying alive until September. This all makes for a very exciting contest. I think that the best thing to do for this game would be to sit back and relax while enjoying this game. There is no need to invest any money on this game unless you want a few try scoring bets. The upset by the Cowboys would definitely not surprise me, but for the sake of a tip, I will have the Storm. The Cowboys will have to play far more consistent football before I can tip them in a game like this. A win here though could make the competition take some serious notice of them.


Suggested Bet
Storm 1-12 @ $2.90


Halftime battle = Melbourne 1-4 @ $7 - This is a value option. If it is going to be a close game then it should be close at HT. But then again, all options in this market are valuable for the Storm. The could also get away to a good early lead and 9+ at HT is paying $3.25.


Dozen Start = Cowboys +12.5 @ $1.90 - The regular line offered on the match is 5.5 points but with this line on offer, you can chuck it into a multi if you don't want to pick a margin and believe that it will be a close game. It doesn't go against my "Suggested Bet", just a thought for people to consider. 


Good luck!
Scooby
@scoobystips