Half the NRL season has now passed and the cream is starting to rise to the top. We have a new competition leader while another side has now won a sixth game in a row.
With the Origin series to take centre stage we take a look at how the ranks were affected in a round that saw first vs second and third vs fourth.
The Bunnies are red hot at the moment and an absolute joy to watch. Damien Cook is unashamedly my favourite player across the competition right now and is surely an Origin lock. The Burgess twins are demonising opponents and are finding the try line. Cody Walker and Adam Reynolds are marshalling their big men around with absolute class. Greg Inglis looked five years younger than his 2016/17 self. John Sutton has been wonderful as has Angus Crichton. There is a lot to like about those wearing red and green.
The form team of the competition have finally found some real form in their sixth straight win. Matt Moylan's six-try assists equalled the NRL all-time record and has repaid the faith shown in him by the Sharks coaching staff. Valentine Holmes and Jesse Ramien were almost untouchable out wide. Wade Graham's return has given the Sharks an entire new avenue of attack. They've gone under the radar over the past month and a bit but yesterday's performance has opened eyes to those wearing black, white and blue.
Tough on the Panthers to absolute whack the competition leaders but not move up too much the rankings, but they are a victim of circumstance here. The mountain men were incredible on Saturday night and really blew the red-hot red V off the park. James Maloney is an Origin certainty after yet another classy display. RCG is another whose name will be read out tonight. Isaah Yeo and CHN are the most underrated back rowers in the game. Tyrone Peachey is arguably the best utility in the game. What an effort in front of a huge crowd.
The Dragons were put to the sword on Saturday evening by a far more enthusiastic and overall better Panthers side. Gareth Widdop and Ben Hunt were kept very quiet, although Hunt spending time off the park did play its part in the Dragons struggling to find momentum. In truth the Dragons simply lost the middle, which is a worry considering so many Dragons are Origin hopefuls. For the first time in a long time the Dragons have fallen from the peak of the NRL ladder. Hardly panic stations yet.
Brisbane probably made it a litter harder for themselves than they needed to but ultimately collected two competition points on Thursday night. The 18-10, three tries to one win came on the back of a monster game from Corey Oates who ran for almost 250 metres. James Roberts was having an absolute blinder until injury ended his night and possibly his sky blue Origin jersey hopes. Anthony Milford looked ominous. Jamayne Isaako is a huge talent.
The Storm, sans Billy Slater, did just enough to win a pretty dour game on Friday night. Cameron Smith was massive on his return to the side following his week in the naughty corner. He was in absolutely everything and scored his side's only try for the evening. Cameron Munster's clutch, match-winning field goal, bodes well for Kevin Walters and Queensland.
The tri-colours survived a first-half scare to dust the Titans on Saturday afternoon in Gosford. After a poor first 40 minutes the Roosters ran riot in the second stanza. The home side scored four tries to none as all their attacking weapons fired. James Tedesco tore the Titans' middlemen to pieces and surely locked in his Origin spot. Blake Ferguson overcame a shocking first half error to run for over 200 metres. Latrell Mitchell is an absolute joy to watch.
The Warriors were absolutely pasted by the Bunnies in front of their own fans on Saturday evening. The positive is that this result came on the back of injuries to both Shaun Johnson and Mason Lino and the distraction of impending childbirth for RTS. Truthfully that's probably a cop out as the Warriors were pretty poor overall but with their top two halfback options sitting in the stands they can be somewhat forgiven for a lack of direction. Worrying result though.
The less said about the game as a whole the better but the Tigers captured a very, very important two competition points in their win over the Dogs. The three try to one win won't feature in too many highlight reels but the Tigers are sitting pretty following the win. Benji Marshall's pass of the season will certainly make plenty of replay segments this week. Mahe Fonua is a gift that keeps on giving.
Aidan Sezer's 79th minute field goal kept his side's season alive after delivering an incredible last minute win. The Raiders were gone for all money before launching an attack from their own end that ended up with Jack Wighton's try. Jarrod Croker's ability to land the clutch conversion provided the Green Machine with the momentum they needed to march up and kick the field goal. Incredible. Nick Cotric is an absolute machine.
Manly continue their up and down form after a crushing last-minute loss to the Raiders in the capital. The Sea Eagles had this game won but snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. DCE has put his name in Origin contention as of late but ultimately couldn't get his side home here. That last five minutes was crazy. Fun to watch but potentially season-ending for Manly. They needed to win this game.
Oh dear. For the second time in three seasons the Knights were pasted by the Sharks on their own turf. Honestly the Knights were never in the fight after being put to the Matt Moylan swung sword. There wasn't a whole lot to like about this performance as summed up by Nathan Brown's admission that Jesse Ramien's signing next season was the highlight yesterday. Obviously they are missing Mitchell Pearce but the Sharks crushed young Kalyn Ponga early and limited his involvement.
What a different story it could have been for the Gold Coast club after a huge opening 40 minutes. Unfortunately they didn't show up in the second half and were blown away. The introduction of Alexander Brimson has made this a far more exciting Titans outfit but they are still way too one dimensional to do any real damage. The opening 40 was brilliant and full of heart. The second 40 might as well have seen the Titans take their spot in the stands as spectators.
That last play in the Dogs vs Tigers game yesterday sums up the Bulldogs in 2018; dire and without direction. Yuck. The fight is there, the effort is there but the Dogs are the least potent side in the NRL right now by a mile. I lost count of how many horrible last tackle options they took, squandering possession and try-scoring opportunities. There is little doubt Kieran Foran is playing injured but what will it take to see wholesale changes in the game's most uninspiring spine?
The sight of Jonathan Thurston on the ground, head in hands, at full time sums it up for Cowboys fans. Their season is almost done before Origin I sides are even announced. It has been a shocking start to the season for a team that many, myself included, had as top four certainties. Michael Morgan's move to fullback has improved the side and TMM back at five-eighth has been positive. That said, considering the power in their forward pack, they're loosing too many battles in the middle.
Thursday night's 18-10 loss was an all too familiar tale for the Eels in 2018. They were good in phases, probably did enough to win the game, but made crucial mistakes that cost them competition points. Michael Jennings had a bit of a nightmare in dropping the ball in try scoring opportunities, twice. If he holds the ball on those two moments the game is very different. The move of Corey Norman to fullback seemed to energise the side. Clint Gutherson needs to touch the ball more in the halves.