NRL round 3: 8 things we learned from Eels v Bulldogs and Sea Eagles v Raiders

Reuben Garrick is on his way back to ‘gun’ status, Corey Horsburgh is still worth the investment and a rookie Bulldog could be a handy cheapie until Matt Burton returns from injury. Here are eight things we learned from Sunday in round 3.

Reuben Garrick is on his way back to ‘gun’ status, Corey Horsburgh is still worth the investment and a rookie Bulldog could be a handy cheapie until Matt Burton returns from injury.

See the big SuperCoach takeaways below and scroll down to replay our live coverage.

Manly v Raiders SuperCoach scores.

SEA EAGLES v RAIDERS

1. Gun Garrick is back

Look, it’s one Sunday afternoon at Brookie and a lot went his way, but Reuben Garrick sitting on 96 at halftime was a blessing for many a SuperCoach.

To finish on 160? Well, he might be back to “gun” status.

With four tries, six successful conversion attempts and a couple of line and tackle breaks, there’s 35 per cent of players who enjoyed an extremely happy Sunday.

A tip of the hat to the 0.7 per cent of owners who captained him.

Reuben Garrick scored 160. Picture: Jeremy Ng/Getty Images

2. Tom is a star, Nicolson still a target

The circumstances couldn’t be less ideal but popular trade-in target Tom Starling was a very busy man.

He was credited with 40 tackles by halftime, resulting in 45 SuperCoach points to lead the Raiders, but he finished on 53 after a fairly quiet second stanza.

Matty Nicholson finished with 41 points, a fair bit fewer than his 98 in his NRL debut but a score that makes him a bona fide target rolling into a clash with the Cowboys.

3. Saab like a Saab

A brief moment of silence for the 6191 SuperCoaches who brought in Jason Saab.

The towering winger finished on just 24 points, a far cry from his twin centuries to start the season.

The 11,123 SuperCoaches with him in their squad enjoy the last laugh given his break-even of -54 results in a hefty price rise.

Corey Horsburgh still scored well despite being sin binned. Picture: Jeremy Ng/Getty Images

4. A man called Horse

10,767 SuperCoaches brought in dual position forward Corey Horsburgh only for the man called Horse to get sent to the sin bin.

Still, he managed to score 48 in another typically strong display which reinforced why he should remain a target for coming weeks.

When you consider that score carries the minus-eight for the bin plus 10 minutes off the field, it’s a fairly strong return.

Eels v Bulldogs SuperCoach scores.

EELS v BULLDOGS

1. It’s all about that base, for Lomax

The guy is priced at $773,800 but destined to come down a bit, but is he worth the investment?

His 82 points were all base, coming primarily from a combination of hit-ups, tackle breaks, and a line break. – and lost four points after missing two conversion attempts.

It was a massive workload, but is he running the ball 30-odd times for almost 300m every week?

One to consider.

Zac Lomax could be worth the investment.

2. Iongi can stay, for now

The most popular cheapie in the game is on his way to a big price increase and despite not being a major factor for the first 40 minutes, could be kept a bit longer.

The introduction of the flex role has helped shore up Iongi’s place in plenty of teams, and while the conditions didn’t suit, he’s shown enough to be a cheapie kept for a fair while longer.

3. Bailey watch

Bailey Hayward is a second-rower in SuperCoach but he wore the No.6 on his back with Matty Burton out.

Could he become a short-term cheapie?

At $300,900 he’s pushing the definition of what a cheapie is, but the 64 points he racked up against the Eels, and with Burton’s absence over the next few weeks, it’s worth pondering.

Sitili Tupouniua had an error-riddled game. Picture: Matt King/Getty Images

4. Doggies fail to fire

Former SuperCoach darling Reed Mahoney finished with just 31 points, Sitili Tupouniua has 29 in an error-riddled display, and Toby Sexton lands on 28.

All three were well off their predicted scores as the Eels put Canterbury on the back foot in the second half of their clash at a soggy CommBank Stadium, and it might force some SuperCoaches to act.

Tupouniua, in particular, might find himself on the chopping block.

He beat his BE of just 1 so is guaranteed a price rise on his $425,800, but his first-round 103 drops out this week, and he’ll need a monster performance to maintain his price.

Originally published as NRL round 3: 8 things we learned from Eels v Bulldogs and Sea Eagles v Raiders