The Sharks season is on a momentary slide and one that everyone thought would eventually occur. But I would hardly say that a loss to the Dragons where they were understrength is counted as a slide. They still have Paul Gallen out through injury but he has said that should they need him, he will play through the pain. No surprise there with the toughness of this bloke. Hopefully they won't need him. This week, they are facing a yo-yo team in the Raiders and you can never be sure which team will show up for them. One week they beat the Storm by 40 and then the next they're losing to the Titans at home after having 32 unanswered points put on them after 50 minutes. Obviously this is due to their season pretty much being over but some players are also playing for pride (apart from future contracts). It must be hard for coach David Furner to get his young side up for a game each week when they really having nothing to play for. This definitely is evident in their play on the field. While they are still suffering their some injury woes, they should still be playing better than they currently are. The Sharks will look to bury them early. If they do get behind on the scoreboard, the Raiders will probably just give up. Although they haven't done it in recent weeks (fought back against the Dragons) it took the Titans to completely switch off for them to score some points. But at "Shark Park" on a Sunday afternoon where they are predicting rain (yes rain...surprise surprise!), It will take a big effort for the Raiders to get a win here. Then again which side will show up for them. You can be sure that the Sharks will be ready for this game. They have just been knocked out of the Top 4 and will not want to disappoint their home fans.
Cronulla Sharks
The Cronulla Sharks are being told by a lot of people that they are now on a slide. But things can definitely turn around with a good performance here. Unfortunately, they will still be without their inspirational captain Paul Gallen, but they have lost nothing with stand in skipper Wade Graham. It has been there for all to see, this young bloke is playing some great football. I will go down as saying that he will play representative football within the next two years. Jeremey Smith could be a late inclusion, but I would pay attention to my twitter feed for final team information. There is only one change to the team that lost to the Dragons, with Andrew Fifita moved back to the bench and Anthony Tupou promoted to the starting team after a horror run of late with injury. The Sharks also have named an extended bench with the one player that is expected to drop off the bench being Jon Green. They will be home and will want to put on a good show for their home fans.
Canberra Raiders
No matter which player is named for the Raiders in this game, fans and punters must be wondering which Raiders team will turn up for this game. They looked strong favorites going into the Titans clash but were put away early and only fought back late once the Titans switched off. Don't be fooled by that scoreline, it completely flattered the Raiders. Interestingly, coach David Furner has named a relatively similar team with only Joel Thompson an inclusion to the starting side. The bench also requires one player to drop off prior to kick off and that looks as though it will be Jarra Kennedy. One positive for the Raiders will be that they will not have rumor about their coach being sacked in favour of Ricky Stuart after it was revealed overnight that he has in fact signed on for the Parramatta Eels. Does that put their mind at ease and allow them to play good attacking footy? With this Raiders team you can never be sure.
Recent History
Overall = Sharks 31 - Raiders 26
Last 5 games = Sharks 3 - Raiders 2
At Toyota Stadium = Sharks 19 - Raiders 7
Odds
TAB Sportsbet = Sharks $1.45 Raiders $2.80
Centrebet = Sharks $1.45 Raiders $2.80
Sportsbet = Sharks $1.48 Raiders $2.70
Betfair = Sharks $1.47 Raiders $3.00
Verdict
It will be hard to go past the Sharks in this game simply because they have far and above been the greater football team this season. Not only that, they are playing with consistency. Something that the Raiders should look up the dictionary and try to understand the meaning of. Going by recent weeks, you can never be sure what Raiders team we will see today. It is also important that you are not deterred by the Sharks form of late either. With other results "going their way" in Round 20 already, a win here would move them into the Top 4, bust 1 point behind 3rd. They are also at home and would want to get a win in front of their fans who have stuck with them through the good and bad of their existence. It'll be a tough slog for the Sharks and they will be made to work for the win, but they should prevail having more to play for.
Suggested Bet
Sharks -6.5 @ $1.90
Winning margin = Sharks 7-12 @ $5.00 - The Sharks should get the job done in this game and should cover the line. In terms of being specific on the winning margin, I would consider this option only because the Raiders could have the potential to score some late points, no matter how far they are down by with minimal minutes left on the clock.
First Try Scorer = Ben Pomeroy @ $9 - No surprise that everyone has jumped on board with the rate that Pomeroy can score tries each week. There will be no difference this weekend with the Sharks trying to get the ball to him at every chance they get. He is definitely a hard person to stop when in possession.
Good luck!
Scooby
@scoobystips
Cronulla Sharks
The Cronulla Sharks are being told by a lot of people that they are now on a slide. But things can definitely turn around with a good performance here. Unfortunately, they will still be without their inspirational captain Paul Gallen, but they have lost nothing with stand in skipper Wade Graham. It has been there for all to see, this young bloke is playing some great football. I will go down as saying that he will play representative football within the next two years. Jeremey Smith could be a late inclusion, but I would pay attention to my twitter feed for final team information. There is only one change to the team that lost to the Dragons, with Andrew Fifita moved back to the bench and Anthony Tupou promoted to the starting team after a horror run of late with injury. The Sharks also have named an extended bench with the one player that is expected to drop off the bench being Jon Green. They will be home and will want to put on a good show for their home fans.
Canberra Raiders
No matter which player is named for the Raiders in this game, fans and punters must be wondering which Raiders team will turn up for this game. They looked strong favorites going into the Titans clash but were put away early and only fought back late once the Titans switched off. Don't be fooled by that scoreline, it completely flattered the Raiders. Interestingly, coach David Furner has named a relatively similar team with only Joel Thompson an inclusion to the starting side. The bench also requires one player to drop off prior to kick off and that looks as though it will be Jarra Kennedy. One positive for the Raiders will be that they will not have rumor about their coach being sacked in favour of Ricky Stuart after it was revealed overnight that he has in fact signed on for the Parramatta Eels. Does that put their mind at ease and allow them to play good attacking footy? With this Raiders team you can never be sure.
Recent History
Overall = Sharks 31 - Raiders 26
Last 5 games = Sharks 3 - Raiders 2
At Toyota Stadium = Sharks 19 - Raiders 7
Odds
TAB Sportsbet = Sharks $1.45 Raiders $2.80
Centrebet = Sharks $1.45 Raiders $2.80
Sportsbet = Sharks $1.48 Raiders $2.70
Betfair = Sharks $1.47 Raiders $3.00
Verdict
It will be hard to go past the Sharks in this game simply because they have far and above been the greater football team this season. Not only that, they are playing with consistency. Something that the Raiders should look up the dictionary and try to understand the meaning of. Going by recent weeks, you can never be sure what Raiders team we will see today. It is also important that you are not deterred by the Sharks form of late either. With other results "going their way" in Round 20 already, a win here would move them into the Top 4, bust 1 point behind 3rd. They are also at home and would want to get a win in front of their fans who have stuck with them through the good and bad of their existence. It'll be a tough slog for the Sharks and they will be made to work for the win, but they should prevail having more to play for.
Suggested Bet
Sharks -6.5 @ $1.90
Winning margin = Sharks 7-12 @ $5.00 - The Sharks should get the job done in this game and should cover the line. In terms of being specific on the winning margin, I would consider this option only because the Raiders could have the potential to score some late points, no matter how far they are down by with minimal minutes left on the clock.
First Try Scorer = Ben Pomeroy @ $9 - No surprise that everyone has jumped on board with the rate that Pomeroy can score tries each week. There will be no difference this weekend with the Sharks trying to get the ball to him at every chance they get. He is definitely a hard person to stop when in possession.
Good luck!
Scooby
@scoobystips
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