A big thank you to Alex for stepping and covering this week’s preview whilst I was travelling!
MILESTONES
Legitimately nil! No 100 of 50 gamers this weekend (poor Cam Guthrie and Sam Powell-Pepper are injured and stuck on 99)
GAME OF THE ROUND
Two of the most in form teams in the competition (apologies the Roughnecks who are also on a winning streak) are locking horns in a battle with long range repercussions. A win to the Taxmanian Devils will keep them 2 games clear in the top 2, with the coveted first week bye that comes with that position. A loss to the Devils will not be doom and gloom, but bragging rights/confidence should they meet again in finals cannot be ignored.
A win to Jordan, along with Callum Mills due back within the next few weeks, will show him that he’s heading the right way and can take it to anyone. It will keep the dream of rising up the ladder alive, though realistically he won’t make top 2, so it will just be about seeding for the elimination final. A loss to Jordan, and 5th spot on the ladder is his. The rest of the season will be a tune up for the meaningful games in August.
Last time they met Max comfortably accounted for Jordan by 260 points, though this was before the arms race that was the Soldiers fire sale, in which Jordan stocked up for the back end of the season.
Both teams have some talent on the bench with the bye round – however it does appear even on both sides, so that does not seem like a deciding factor for this match up. Port Vs Brisbane will be big with 12/44 players from this match up in that game. A nervous Saturday afternoon awaits for both coaches.
SNEAKY INTERESTING MATCHUP
While it’s only 8 Vs 9 on the ladder, this match has some surprisingly big implications.
A win to the Vipers, and they are still alive (though still needing other results to go their way) in the battle for 6th on the ladder. The Vipers have scored more points this year than the Chiefs currently in 6th place, so the team clearly has the talent to be in that spot, they have just been decidedly unlucky in multiple games this year. A loss, and the season is over for the team in neon green. The fan base would have been expecting more this year, and so a loss would have questions asked of coach Nathan. A win to the Midnight would raise the threat level of the 6th place Chiefs, as they (assuming a Chiefs loss to the Sparkles) would then take 6th spot on the ladder and be right there for the race to the finish line for the right to battle for a maiden premiership. A loss would make the run home that much harder, as the Chiefs would then be a win and percentage clear, and with only 6 games to go after this one, big moves up the ladder will become harder and harder.