NRL 2022: How will Broncos, Cowboys and Titans fare in the run home? Predicted finish
There is still plenty at stake for the Broncos, Cowboys and Titans as the NRL regular season enters the final six weeks. Travis Meyn and Peter Badel analyse the key matches in the run home.
NRL
Don't miss out on the headlines from NRL. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Finals football is around the corner. With six weeks to go, the stakes are rising and Queensland rugby league fans can celebrate the return of the Cowboys and the Broncos to the playoffs after several nightmare seasons for both clubs.
But how will the run to the finals play out for Queensland’s 2015 grand-final rivals? Will the Cowboys crash? Can the Broncos make the top four? Will the struggling Titans finish with the wooden spoon?
TRAVIS MEYN and PETER BADEL dust off the crystal ball and crunch the numbers in the run home for Queensland’s NRL trinity.
Stream every game of every round of the 2022 NRL Telstra Premiership Season Live & Ad-Break Free During Play on Kayo. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >
NORTH QUEENSLAND COWBOYS
THE BIG THREE
Round 22 v Roosters – The Roosters have been below-par this season but with the finals on the horizon, big guns such as James Tedesco, Luke Keary and Joey Manu relish the big stage.
Round 24 v Rabbitohs – The Cowboys don’t have a great record at Homebush against Souths, losing six of nine games. If Latrell Mitchell keeps firing, the Rabbitohs will be hard to beat.
Round 25 v Panthers – A possible grand-final preview. Penrith will likely rest a number of stars with the minor premiership sewn up, so the Cowboys will have a glorious chance to make a statement for the finals.
ANALYSIS
At the start of the season, the Cowboys were widely tipped to win the wooden spoon. So the prospect of a top-two finish is a head-spinning scenario for the Cowboys, who are without question the feel-good story of the 2022 premiership.
But now the stakes are rising and this is the time of the season that will really examine whether Todd Payten’s resurgent Cowboys are genuine contenders or merely title pretenders.
North Queensland have a tough draw in the run to the playoffs with three consecutive away games, four of their final six on the road and a last-round blockbuster against defending premiers Penrith.
The Cowboys’ controversial last-second win against the Tigers last Sunday could ironically prove the two competition points that secures them a top-two finish.
Payten’s troops have been below par in the past fortnight and the Cowboys need an emphatic display on the road against the desperate Dragons this Sunday to ease any concerns about a late-season form slump.
The Dragons clash kickstarts a three-week stretch of away games with the Cowboys to travel to Bundaberg for a round 21 clash with Canterbury before returning to Sydney for a showdown with the Roosters at the SCG.
If the Cowboys are serious about winning the title, they will easily put away a Bulldogs side that cannot make the finals, but the Roosters shape as a danger game. Big guns James Tedesco, Luke Keary and Joey Manu are proven big-game players.
The Cowboys should comfortably dispose of the Warriors at home in round 23 before a daunting road trip to face the fast-finishing Rabbitohs. The Bunnies have a champion in Latrell Mitchell and if he is on, the Cowboys will find it difficult to stop him.
Their final-round clash against the Panthers will be a crucial opportunity to strike a psychological blow on the eve of the finals.
Penrith have the minor premiership wrapped up and may well rest several big guns, including brilliant halfback Nathan Cleary, opening the door for the Cowboys to seal a crucial top-two finish.
Cowboys coach Payten is confident his squad has the belief to challenge for the title.
“I don’t think we have overachieved because of the way we have won over time,” he said.
“Am I a little surprised? If someone said we could finish the season second, I would have raised my eyebrows, but the truth is we have done nothing yet.
“I know our best game is good enough to win games in the finals.
“We’ve manipulated our training and travel schedule around this next three-week period … we’ve spoken about the schedule and how important it is for us to maintain momentum.
“We have some belief that’s grown over time.
“Why can’t we give the premiership a nudge … Why not us?”
THE VERDICT
Predicted finish: 2nd – 38 points
BRISBANE BRONCOS
THE BIG THREE
Round 21 v Roosters – The Roosters have been an inconsistent team this year but a win here will set the Broncos up for a big finish to the year.
Round 23 v Storm – Melbourne has been Brisbane’s bogey team for many years but with the Storm on the slide there is an opportunity for the Broncos to turn the tide.
Round 25 v Dragons – The last-round fixture could have a massive bearing on the make-up of the top four. Depending how things pan out, a home final could be on the line.
ANALYSIS
The Broncos could hit the finals full of steam on the back of a dream draw to finish the regular season which could thrust them into the NRL’s top two.
The Broncos will start as favourites in nearly all of their remaining six games ahead of coach Kevin Walters’ first finals series in charge.
Having won their past three games, the Broncos will be looking to make it four straight when they host the last-placed Tigers at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday night.
They then hit the road next week to face the Roosters, a team that has been up-and-down all year, at the SCG, where the Broncos recorded a famous win last year.
The Broncos then have three straight home games at Suncorp against the Storm, Eels and Dragons.
While the Storm and Eels are Brisbane’s biggest bogey teams, they look to be a different proposition this year.
Melbourne is in the midst of a flat spot, having lost its past four matches to fall out of the top four.
The Eels are in a similar predicament, with the Broncos knocking them off last week in Sydney.
The Broncos then finish the regular season with a trip to Sydney to face the Dragons, who are on the cusp of the top eight.
If the Broncos finish the season undefeated, they will enter the finals on a nine-game winning streak. While that is unlikely and they will probably lose at least one game, on current form Brisbane deserve to be favourites.
With a top two spot on the line, Walters is trying to keep a lid on things at Red Hill following the past two years of bottom four finishes.
“We are coming from a long way back, so we’d be fools to get in front of where we actually are,” he said.
“We now have guys out there on the field who have been there in those big situations, that’s a huge help for us, there’s a lot of calmness and confidence in the team on the back of that.
“The atmosphere at the Broncos is to win premierships, not play finals, and that’s what we are about as a club. We have done some really good things at the Broncos this season but I’ve made it clear we’ve done nothing and won nothing yet
“The guys fully understand that we haven’t achieved anything when it comes to winning the big prize. We want to be challenging for premierships.”
THE VERDICT
Predicted finish: 4th – 36 points
GOLD COAST TITANS
THE BIG THREE
Round 22 v Manly – The Sea Eagles are a club in crisis and missing Tom Trbojevic. Can the Titans jag an important win on the Gold Coast?
Round 24 v Newcastle – The Knights are on the slide and this game presents as the Gold Coast’s best chance of climbing off the bottom of the ladder.
Round 25 v New Zealand – An emotional season-finale in Auckland could have huge ramifications for the wooden spoon battle.
ANALYSIS
The Titans are in a desperate battle to avoid bringing a second wooden spoon to the Gold Coast in three years.
The Titans head into Saturday’s clash against Canberra at Cbus Super Stadium sitting in 15th spot on the ladder, narrowly above the Wests Tigers.
If the Tigers weren’t robbed by the Bunker last Sunday, the Titans would be outright last as the only team with just three wins in 2022.
But the Bunker howler could prove to be the Titans’ saving grace as they embark on a final six weeks which could see them climb up the ladder.
While the Titans are outsiders against Canberra, this is a game they could jag a win in to snap an eight-game losing streak given the Raiders haven’t been overly convincing on the road.
All three of the Titans’ wins this year have come at home and they were gutsy in an 18-16 loss to Brisbane in their last start at Cbus.
If the Titans don’t beat the Raiders, they face a daunting task against the Storm in Melbourne next weekend where they will start rank outsiders.
They then return home to face Manly in another winnable match given the instability at the Sea Eagles before finishing the season with three very winnable games against the Dragons, Knights and Warriors.
While they have to travel to Wollongong to face the Dragons, the Titans return home in round 24 to host struggling Newcastle in a game which could help them edge ahead of Wests.
The Gold Coast finish their 2022 campaign with a trip across the ditch to face the Warriors in New Zealand.
Given the Warriors’ struggles over the past three years, this could be an emotional game and the home side will want to end the season on a high in front of their home fans.
But the Titans have plenty to play for, including avoiding the club’s third wooden spoon and first since 2019, when they won just four games.
With practically a full strength squad to choose from, coach Justin Holbrook has few excuses and said the Titans wanted to finish the year positively.
“We want to finish the season strongly,” he said.
“Inexperience can get you into trouble and we’ve learnt a hard lesson in that area this year.
“There’s a number of things that have affected us but it’s not major where we have to flip the club upside down. It’s about getting confidence and winning games.
“We will do our best to finish as strongly as we can.
“The future’s great. We’ve just got to get our current side firing.”
THE VERDICT
Predicted finish: 15th – 10 points
Stars snubbed in wild Kangaroos bombshell
Mal Meninga has dropped bombs on three of the biggest stars in the game as the Kangaroos coach announced his squad.
NRL fans crash Brockmann run, told off
After fans finished up at Accor Stadium, some ventured next door to pay Nedd Brockmann a visit, with one fan being told to quiet down.