THE RED ROOSTER

Conside my gob smacked. London were the better side and deserved the win. When Hull scored first in the second half and Oli Leyland the missed the conversion from bang in front. I was of the view that it's the hope that gets to you. But none of that London hot in front and crucially two scores in front before the Oli Leyland interception try sealed the deal. All things are of course relative and it is noteworthy that It's been Hull FC in both games where the side has looked competitive this season. Still credit to MIke Eccles and Ryan Sheridan for welding this side into a cohesive RL side. The only drawback is that the owner might see this result as vindication of his policy of not strengthening the side. This result means that London will not go winless in Super League thus season. The last club to do so being Halifax in 2003 who had two points deducted having beaten....London Broncos 24-22 at Griffin Park. All this and I got a free London clapper well worth a fiver.

As Michael Corleone put it GodfatherI III - "Just when I thought I was out they p[ull me back in again". This time with a £ 5 ticket on the half-way line - Ridiculous value. Mind you in typical Bronco fashion the Under 14 clash between Brixton Bulls and Brentwood Eels plugged on the twitter feed starts at 12:45pm with gates only opening at 1.00pm.... Anyway I am giving Broncos (2024) one last (Hull) try...

Phew, I needed the Titans to hold on following two of my tips going south on Saturday, Another example though of how injuries impct on the NRL with Brimson and Foran off sparking a late Cows revival that ended up just short. Yesterday, I felt that Wests lost it when Bateman did not come out for the second half. That saide needs a couple of players to steer them around and the Knights did a good job in slowing down the ruck. A more comfortable Knights win IMO than the commentators suggested. SGI v Souths yet again Zak Lomax being great against ordinary opposition yet not doing it against the better sides. Souffs had their chances in the game. BIG result was Sharkies win at Melbourne, When it was announced midway through the first half of Wests v Knights that Nicho Hynes was not playing I thought that was it for Cronulla. They proved me wrong and now need to be thought of as genuine contenders with a superb defensive performance. Albiet they were helped by the momentum swing when the NRL became the NFL and Harry Grant was binned for a "roughing the kicker" penalty. Not ruling the Storm out of the Premiership as there is still a long way to go this season. Roosters beating the underwhelming Wah's setting up a mouthwatering clash with sharkies inj the Magic round with all the games on SKY

Winners - Dolphins, Penrith Panthers,Brisbane Broncos, West Tigers, St George-Illawarra, Melbourne Storm, Sydney Roosters and Gold Coast Titans. Points - 342 Aways - 1 Poll - 1 or 2

Another round and five of the eight contests are very even. Dolphins v Manly Sea Eagles Surprsingly the bookies have the Silvertails as favourites in this contest despite the return for the Fins of Herbie Farnworth. Although Manly will be looking for a bounce back after being pillaged by the Raiders, the only thing that is predictable about the Dolphins is their unpredictablity. Silvertails Fin-nished? Penrith Panthers v Canterbury Bulldogs Nathan Cleary returns as the Penny Panthers sqaure off against the Dogs. Now I have been backing the Dogs as an improved outfit this season and I see no reason to change that view. However they are at Blue Bet but as Melbourne were to find out, these Dogs don't come to heel too easily and it should not be a blow out. Canterbury back in the Dog House? Paramatta Eels v Brisbane Broncos Two teams that need a win, Parra without Mitch Moses and Clint Gutherson who in many ways is the beating heart of that side. Brisbane by contrast though they will feel the absence of Adam Reynolds have proved they can win without him - Let's Go Broncos ? West Tigers v Newcastle Knights Played in Tamworth Australia's self-styled country music capital. The game is a real coin-flip. Api Koroisau is back and so is Jayden Sullivan to partner Lachlan Galvin against a Knights side welcoming back Tyson Frizzel and boosted by Dan Gagai spurning the Roosters. Two very evenly matched teams playing at a neutral venue. Api days for Wests? St George-Illawearra v South Sydney This game will be closer than people think. If It was at the 'gong then I wuld have little hesitation in going SGI but it's at Kogarah and a lot of Bunnies backers will be there and in Sam Tomkins mode "Souths will will a game soon" Maybe this one with the return of Latrell. The only way to silence the grumblers in the Burrow is to play to his and Cody Walkers potential and although pundits have been saying now is a good time for SGI to play Souths maybe when you think about it the reverse is also true. - Bunnies make the great leap forward? Melbourne Storm v Cronuilla Sharks The game of the round with the in-form Sharks travelling to a Melbourne side without Ryan Papenhuyzen and Jahrome Hughes but playing at home with Craig Bellamy as Coach. The other Craig. Fitzgibbon stung by Cronulla being give the "pretenders" tag. Though Sharkies lose Toby Rudolph they are in form. This could be the Golden Point game of the round - Opportunity Knocks for someone? Sydney Roosters v New Zealand Warriors Roosters seem to be in form at present and with players returning while the Wahs are on the crest of a slump. After thev excitement generated last year, I cannot think that there would have been too many people in the land of the Great White Cloud thinking the Wahs would be languishing in 14th spot come the end of round 9 and a similar cloud hangs over the fitness of Shaun Johnson - Woe for the Wahs? Gold Coast Titans v North Queensland Cowboys Another game in which you wonder if the bookies are playing attention recently, with the Cows favoured yet it's been Gold Coast who have played well in three titanic tussels. The Cows continue to beat themselves on a weekly basis, and Valentine Holmes inaccuracy from the kickjing tee is costing the Cowboys. - Titans Coasting to victory? Good luck with your tips.

Enjoyed that win for Kent, but you might be interested to know what Lancashire to their members about the sale Read between the lines and it's not a good read. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1JiwQId3R5s2S4B3FwZEY0OVRJb3y8715sGABT7ZhFVM/edit

Without further comment..... https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nrl-premiership/teams/dragons/this-cant-be-real-fans-erupt-over-bungled-special-nrl-jersey/news-story/213366dff80fabbed24959239dfc22e4

SGI still a work in progress but competitive in wet conditions. Once Sharkies applied pressure evenually the Dragons cracked. Because Shark Park is bang on Wooloware Bay when it rains it pours as I can testify. So here's hoping the fans dry out quick. Elsewhere it's not looking too flash for the Wah's as they suffer another defeat at Newcastle and in the larte game yesterday the fun team in the competiton, the Dolphins, inflicted more misery on the Cows who beat themselves as much as lose to the opposition this season.

I have been watching Lancashire v Kent. Typical Kent first innings performance, Decent start, middle order collapse followed by lower middle order revival. What surprised me was Lancashire matting like melting ice cream in getting rolled for 92. At 119-4 with the main "name" players out the Lancastrians need to cobble together a lead of 150-200 to give their bowlers a chance. Kent look a better balanced bowling attack in the game for the conditions, with Lancashire opting for two spinners and it was when the Lancastrian seam attack was worn down the we cashed in. Moving bnack to the "Dukes" ball, and now getting result wickets being prepared as in the two day green top prepared at Zummeset for the Essex Game. so Ciderabad changes from beiong a flat wicket taking spin where Leach and Bashir operate to being a trendy medium paced trundlers paradise. How does that help English Cricket?. Meanwhile the selling off of the family silver by Chief Executives who fail to consult their members, who like me in theory own 15 out of 18 counties, continues and anyone hoping for coverage of non -international English Cricket on pay TV before June might like to look at the SKY schedeule which apart from the opening double herader has no other domestic Blast fioxtures up to 30th June https://www.skysports.com/watch/cricket-on-sky

Not yet.... The worst thing about the Broncos are the patronising comments on SKY. "London will win a game sometime" And what a great second (unconverted) try. It's a lot like saying " Your house has burned down but the Garden Gnome is ok" A team of try- hards more suited to the lower half not the championship does not cut it. The ownership of the club needs to change by next season.

Every single round in this NRL season as a wowzer day and this was the day for Round Nine. Great comeback by Ricky's Raiders, but this result tells you more about Manly's premiership credentials. They should not have lost having built up a lead against a side as depleted as the Raiders were. Yes, they have a great backline but not such a great pack and seem to have a "mental flabbyness" about the team. Pretenders rather than Contenders, likely to extend their regular season by one week. As for the other game, one of the big questions has been is the big three really a big four with the Roosters spoken in nthe same breath as the Panthers, Storm and Broncos. Personally I need a bit more convincing on that in respect of the Roosters, but with the Injuries to Jessie Arthurs and more importantly Adam Reynolds that are long term it puts a question mark against the Bronx. Again I am not writing them off in Round 9, but the time has come forKevin Walters to earn his salary.

Leeds by 36 in a get right non-contest

Winners - Penrith Panthers, Manly Sea Eagles, Brisbane Broncos, Canterbury Bulldogs, Melbourne Storm, North Queensland Cowboys, Newcastle Knights and Cronulla Sharks. Points - 358 Home wins - 6 Poll - 3 or 4

Just leaving this opinion from The Roar here... Full-of-himself-prickly-and-easy-to-rile-is-there-any-point-to-nrl360-without-paul-kent

Interesting you mention that because I had an an animated Rabbitoh impressing on me at Olympic Park station that "it's not team first here, it's cody first and 'trell first and no-one stands up to them" and this was after the game they won . Part of the problem they have in attracting a new coach is the reluctance of experienced coaches to have to come in and muck out the Burrow with a side in need a of a rebuild due to both ageing players and problematic individuals needing to move on along with an board that has not covered itself in glory. The rot kicked in last year after the victory at Suncorp when there were a few people, myself included, who were tipping the Bunnies as premiership contenders. Things went downhill from there and continued this season. I would be surprised if Wayne Bennett came back, for apart from the fact that Benny's last premiership was 14 years ago. There a few fingers pointing in his direction regarding the origin of the poor work culture at Souths.