NRL SuperCoach 2019: Wilfred’s fearless predictions Round 2

Bounce back game from James Tedesco, Kalyn Ponga to go large and John Bateman to flop as the second most purchased player.

Round 1 is in the history books now and what a week it was. So much drama from a SuperCoach perspective, with the full gamut of highs and lows across the eight games.

Predictions-wise, I would say I got two right and another two half right, which is a pass mark for Round 1. The first three rounds of the season are always interesting, so let’s take a look at Round 2.

1. Captain Pick – James Tedesco

I felt like I nailed this prediction last week before updates on Monday totally dragged me down. We can’t complain though, us Fifita captainers, as he was held up over the line and 63 isn’t that bad overall. I’m sure SJ, Teddy and Ponga captainers wouldn’t have minded 63. This week, I’m going to put a bold call out there — James Tedesco is not in anybody’s good books right now but I’m backing him for a bounce back against a questionable Sea Eagles’ defence.

James Tedesco is set for a bounce back game. Picture: Brett Costello

Teddy has a history of massive scores against the Sea Eagles and he also has a decent record of putting up a bigger score after a low one; it’s almost like he’s disappointed in his own performance the week prior and makes sure to turn up the week after! I’ve got the orange armband on him at the moment.

2. Stud of the Week – Kalyn Ponga

Kalyn Ponga is set to go large.

I get that plenty were disappointed with Ponga last week — myself included — but the reality is he scored 38 without doing anything. He still looks unsure of himself on the field, but from a SuperCoach perspective, if he drops 40ish in base without doing much, he is putting up keeper scores with just one or two decent attacking stats.

This week he takes on the distracted, dishevelled Panthers and goes against the new right side half of Maloney? There’s definitely potential there for Ponga to go large, and I’m backing him to do so this week.

3. Flop of the Week – John Bateman

To be absolutely clear, I don’t think he’ll be a total flop. He’ll still be around 50 or so — what I’m trying to do is temper expectations. I would be surprised to see him score over 60 again, for starters, given the Storm (his opposition for this week) are notoriously difficult to score SuperCoach points against.

The best way to beat the Storm is to swing the ball to the edges, and keep away from the middle of the park where the likes of Cameron Smith, Jesse Bromwich and Dale Finucane can wrestle you to death. If the Raiders do this, obviously Bateman won’t touch the ball and get to run the ball anywhere near as much as he did last week.

In any case, I’m either right in my prediction, or I’ll be wrong and he scores great in my team this week. That’s what we call “hedging your bets”, folks!

4. SuperCoach Gold Mine

Unfortunately, an unexpectedly defensively-minded affair for the Knights and Sharks last week put to bed any chances of me nailing this prediction, but at least it was another dry weather game (albeit across the ‘dutch’) which took out the top scoring honours.

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This week, I’m expecting the Sea Eagles and Roosters to put on some points, although how many of those points are scored by the Sea Eagles remains to be seen.

I would have had no hesitation nominating this game if Tom Trbojevic had been playing, but I do think with how many SuperCoach relevant players in the two squads, there should still be some points put on the board.

5. Upset of the Round – the Bulldogs

I got off to a good start with this prediction last week with the Eels doing the job for me, but this week I’m going against them. Crazy of course, given how bad the Bulldogs were against the Warriors. But I suspect the Bulldogs were made to look worse by how good the Warriors were, as they were no doubt riding an emotional high given the events in the 48 hours leading up to that game.

On the flipside, the Eels were convincing for periods against the Panthers but the reshuffle caused by the injury to Nathan Brown, plus the suspension of Michael Jennings, leaves them a little bit more suspect than it might appear on the surface. Plus we know how inconsistent some of the Eels players (I’m looking at you, Mitch Moses) can be, based on their history!

Round 2 kicks off tonight

The Rabbitohs and Dragons faced off recently in the Charity Shield but this is the real deal now, and you’d hope the Dragons will be ready to play. The Rabbitohs are looking like legitimate contenders again this year though so they will be very hard to beat. I’m looking forward to a great game!

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