NRL 2022 draw, analysis: Every club’s schedule rated, the big winners and losers
One club’s draw for next season stands head and shoulders above the rest, while the defending premiers have been handed a tough task in their bid for back-to-back titles.
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The 2022 NRL draw has been cruel to some clubs and kind to others. How did your club fare? Fatima Kdouh, Nick Campton and Chris Honnery rate every club’s season schedule.
STORM
After two years of playing away from their home, the Storm have been gifted a footy feast in Melbourne to launch their season. Five of their opening seven games will be played at AAMI Park in a huge outcome for both the club and their supporters. They start the year on the road against the Tigers (13th) before a string of blockbusters in Melbourne against the Rabbitohs (runners-up), Eels (6th) and the Bulldogs (16th) for the return of Josh Addo-Carr. More than half of their draw will be against last year’s top-eight sides though, including two games against premiers Penrith and two games against runners-up South Sydney.
GRADE: C
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PANTHERS
Nathan Cleary’s shoulder isn’t the only thing standing between Penrith and back-to-back titles after the defending premiers were handed one of the tougher draws for 2022. As well as taking on Manly in round one, the Panthers face South Sydney in what will be a highly anticipated grand final rematch in round four. Panthers fans will then be treated to the ‘Battle of the West’ against Parramatta in round nine. Penrith have two five-day turnarounds between rounds five and eight and take on top-eight sides Eels, Storm, Rabbitohs, Roosters and Knights twice. Penrith end the season with two tough games against the Storm and Rabbitohs.
GRADE: C
RABBITOHS
New South Sydney coach Jason Demetriou is facing a baptism of fire in the opening month of the season, with the grand finalists to take on the Storm, Roosters and Panthers in the first month of their campaign. The chance to avenge the grand final loss against the Panthers will come in round four in an away game in Penrith. South Sydney will end the regular season with a tough run of games against Parramatta, Penrith and a blockbuster round 25 clash against arch rivals, the Roosters, as the Rabbitohs look to go one better in 2022.
GRADE: C
SEA EAGLES
Manly are only at home twice in the first eight weeks of the season, and face the Panthers and Roosters in a tough start to the year for Des Hasler’s side, but the Sea Eagles only face last year’s grand finalists (Penrith and South Sydney) once each. They play Melbourne twice, and the second meeting comes just after Origin II, meaning superstar Tom Trbojevic is a chance of being rested. On the plus side, the Sea Eagles won’t leave Sydney between rounds 13 and 21, which will ease the workload on the likes of the Trbojevic brothers during the representative period.
GRADE: B
ROOSTERS
The Sydney Roosters start the season with home games against the Knights and Sea Eagles before facing Souths away and then a Queensland road trip to Townsville and Brisbane. Trent Robinson’s side face the Eels, Panthers, Storm and Rabbitohs twice but will only leave Sydney twice in the last 11 weeks of the regular season. From round four to round 13 they play just two teams who made the finals in 2021 but face a tough stretch in the midst of the Origin series when they play the Storm, Eels and Panthers back-to-back from round 14 to 16.
GRADE: C
EELS
An absolute horror show for Brad Arthur’s side as they look to end the longest premiership drought in the competition. They have got two matches against the Panthers, Storm, Sea Eagles, Roosters and Rabbitohs, and to cap it all off their run to the finish line looks a very tough one. In the final six weeks of the competition they play Penrith, Manly and South Sydney back-to-back and finish the regular season against Melbourne. The Eels showed they can compete with the best last season and they will have plenty of chances to prove it again as they look to win their first comp since 1986.
GRADE: D
KNIGHTS
It’s a tough start for coach Adam O’Brien and his Knights – they have got the Roosters, Storm, Panthers, Sea Eagles and Eels all in the first eight weeks and they will play Penrith, Manly and the Tricolours twice over the course of the year – but after that things flatten out a little. They will have a very handy run into the finals, facing just one 2021 top-eight side (Gold Coast) in the final six weeks of the competition, which should give them plenty of momentum if they are in the playoff hunt and ready to give their big local fanbase something to cheer about.
GRADE: B
TITANS
The Titans have a favourable draw with only 10 games of the 25 scheduled to be played against last year’s top eight sides. They kick-off their season against Parramatta (6th) at CommBank Stadium in Sydney. They then have an eight-round stint in the middle of the season where they won’t leave Queensland, which includes a round nine clash against the Roosters in Mackay. Their run home includes games against Melbourne, Manly, Dragons, Newcastle and the Warriors. Having scraped into the top eight in 2021, the Titans will be hoping to already have a finals berth booked before the challenging end-of-season run.
GRADE: B
SHARKS
Rookie NRL coach Craig Fitzgibbon has been handed a month of winnable games to start Cronulla’s campaign, with the greatest resistance likely to come from the Eels in round two. The Sharks will play 2021 top-eight sides Melbourne, Manly, Newcastle and Gold Coast Titans twice. On the flipside, they take on the bottom eight teams Warriors, Bulldogs and Raiders twice. The first real test of Fitzgibbon’s coaching steel will come in round six when the Sharks travel to AAMI Park to meet the might of Craig Bellamy’s Melbourne. The shire club also face three five-day turnarounds.
GRADE: C
RAIDERS
After missing the finals this year, Canberra will be desperate to be part of the playoffs in 2022. The Raiders will have to overcome a tricky draw which sees them face plenty of top-line competition such as the Storm, Panthers and Sea Eagles twice through the year. Ricky Stuart’s side will host just one home game at night during the winter (a round 21 clash with premiers Penrith) which should give the Green Machine’s crowd numbers a serious boost and they will also be seeing plenty of country NSW with matches scheduled in Mudgee (against Manly), Wagga Wagga (against Melbourne) and Dubbo (against Souths)
GRADE: C
DRAGONS
St George Illawarra are facing a tough start to the season, taking on Penrith, Parramatta and South Sydney in the first five weeks of the competition but the good news for long-suffering Dragons fans is they will only play two of last year’s top-four twice. They have also got a handy run into the end of the season, playing just one top-eight side (Gold Coast) in the last six weeks of the competition. Coach Anthony Griffin comes into the season under pressure and he should like what he sees in this draw as his team looks to make some noise in the competition.
GRADE: B
WARRIORS
The Warriors have been handed one of the softer starts and finishes to the season. The Warriors will only have to play one top-eight side – the Gold Coast Titans – in the first five weeks of next season and take on the Bulldogs, Cowboys and Titans heading into the finals. After spending the best part of two years away from New Zealand, the side will return to Mt Smart Stadium in round 15 to take on defending premiers Penrith. Nathan Brown’s men take on the Dragons, Raiders, Tigers, Cowboys and Sharks – who all finished outside of the top eight in 2021 – twice.
GRADE: B
WESTS TIGERS
The Tigers will open their campaign against the Storm, in a match that could set the tone for the rest of the side’s season. Coach Michael Maguire is facing immense pressure to keep his job and wins against Newcastle, Warriors and Titans in the first month will be crucial in determining the coach’s future at Concord. With three five-day turnarounds and taking on top-eight finishers the Rabbitohs, Sea Eagles, Eels, Knights twice, the Tigers face a tough road to the finals. In their favour are two matches against wooden spooners Canterbury along with North Queensland, St George Illawarra, the Warriors and Cronulla.
GRADE: C
BRONCOS
The Broncos have been handed a bumper home draw to kick-off their 2022 premiership campaign. Seven of their first 10 games will be played on Queensland soil – including a round four clash with the Warriors in Redcliffe and their Round 10 Magic Round “away” game against Manly at Suncorp Stadium. Their season opener is against 2021 grand finalists South Sydney but after that they play the Bulldogs (16th), Cowboys (15th) and the Warriors (12th) in their opening month of football. They also only play the 2021 premiers Penrith once during the regular season.
GRADE: A
COWBOYS
Typically one of the most travelled teams, the Cowboys won’t leave Queensland until Round 6 in 2022. The draw also favours the wide-travelling North Queensland supporter base with seven of the Cowboys 12 home games to be played on a Saturday afternoon/evening in Townsville, with the remaining games to be on a Friday night and Sunday afternoon, meaning no Thursday night matches. They launch their season against the wooden spoon Bulldogs before games against the Raiders (10th), Broncos (14th) and Roosters (5th). It’s set to be a tough finish for the season though, with their last fortnight to be against both grand finalists South Sydney (Round 24) and the Panthers (Round 25).
GRADE: B
BULLDOGS
Canterbury coach Trent Barrett faces a tough six weeks to kick-off his side’s campaign. Two winnable matches against the Cowboys and Brisbane to open the season. That will be followed by a gruelling four weeks against Manly, Melbourne, Penrith and Souths. Barrett will need to rely on every bit of his coaching smarts to ensure the tough month does not derail yet another Bulldogs season. In some respite, the Bulldogs take on bottom-eight sides the Cowboys, Broncos, Sharks and Tigers twice. Pressure will be on recruits Josh Addo-Carr, Matt Burton, Brent Naden, Braidon Burns and Tevita Pangai Junior to turn things around at Belmore.
GRADE: D
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Adam Reynolds (Brisbane) v Souths
Round one Friday March 1, 8.05pm at Suncorp Stadium
Brisbane have invested their future in Adam Reynolds as they look to quickly turn the club back into a contender. His first test will come against his former side South Sydney at Suncorp Stadium on the opening Friday night of the season. Reynolds against the Rabbitohs. Who would have thought?
Grand final rematch Penrith v South Sydney
Round four Friday April 1, 8.05pm at BlueBet Stadium
There was no love lost between Penrith and South Sydney in the aftermath of last year’s grand final. The Rabbitohs were disappointed with the loss and seething at the abuse of Jai Arrow during the game. Tensions were then inflamed when a video emerged on social media of Viliame Kikau mocking the Rabbitohs by singing their song “Glory Glory to South Sydney.” Stay tuned for fireworks.
Josh Addo-Carr (Bulldogs) v Storm
Round four Sunday April 3, 4.05pm at AAMI Park
Josh Addo-Carr spent years at the Melbourne Storm where he scored tries for fun and helped the club forge a dynasty. He left for the chance to secure a payday. His first game against Melbourne will be compulsive viewing as will the reaction to Addo-Carr from the Storm faithful.
Penrith v Storm
Round 10 Saturday May 14, 7.45pm at AAMI Park
There is genuine hatred between Melbourne and Penrith, the two sides having built one of the code’s great rivalries in recent years. The animosity was amplified after the Panthers tossed the Storm out of last year’s finals series.
Jackson Hastings (Wests Tigers) v Manly and Daly Cherry-Evans
Round nine Saturday May 7, 3pm at 4 Pines Park
When Jackson Hastings was signed by the Wests Tigers, the first instinct was to check out when he played Manly. Hastings left the Sea Eagles three years ago in a blaze of controversy, having been banished to NSW Cup amid claims of a fight with Cherry-Evans while in Gladstone.
Opening of new Sydney Football Stadium
Round 25 Friday September 3, 7.55pm (to be confirmed)
The $700 million redevelopment of the Sydney Football Stadium is slowly taking shape and we are now only months away from the city finally having a world-class stadium with all the mod cons. The first game at the new ground should be a belter when arch rivals the Roosters take on South Sydney.
George Burgess (St George Illawarra) v Thomas Burgess (South Sydney)
Round five, Saturday April 9, 5.30pm at Stadium Australia
The twins will reignite their backyard rivalry when they square off. We may see them go up against each other in the Charity Shield but it will be nothing like the NRL proper.
Craig Fitzgibbon (Sharks) v Roosters
Round 12, Saturday May 28, 7.35pm at PointsBet Stadium
Fitzgibbon is a Roosters life-member. He won a premiership as a player and played a hand in their recent success as an assistant coach. He has long been earmarked as a coach in-waiting. Now he gets his chance to prove himself.
Latrell Mitchell (South Sydney) v Joey Manu (Roosters)
Round three, Friday March 25, 8.05pm at Stadium Australia
The bad blood between the two teams exploded during the finals series. Mitchell was sin-binned and suspended for the rest of the season after a sickening shot on one-time friend Manu. Manu fractured his cheekbone and headed to hospital. This followed a hostile earlier season clash between the two sides.
Warriors v Titans
Round two, Saturday March 19, 3pm at Cbus Super Stadium
The Warriors imploded in their final regular season match this year when they faced the finals-bound Titans. Matt Lodge was suspended and stuck his middle finger up to heckling Titans fans. Teammates Jazz Tevaga and Kane Evans were also sin-binned as was Gold Coast’s Jarrod Wallace.
Paul Vaughan, Matt Dufty (Canterbury) v Dragons
Round 12, Sunday May 29, 2pm at Belmore Sports Ground
The BBQ boys in Paul Vaughan and Matt Dufty will play with a point to prove. Dufty was shown the door by his junior club who opted against re-signing him. Vaughan was axed for hosting the now infamous BBQ at his house. Both are only on one-year deals.
Adam Elliott (Raiders) v Bulldogs
Round nine, Friday May 6, 6pm at GIO Stadium
Elliott had a chequered career with the Bulldogs.
He played 101 top grade games for the club but his stint was plagued by off-field headlines.
Elliott eventually paid the ultimate price when he was sacked by the club.
Raiders threw him a lifeline.
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