Round 16: Bulldogs v Sharks preview
Two teams, each with two straight wins, fight to keep their respective streaks alive
With the representative round now in the past, the run home for all NRL clubs truly begins this weekend. This Saturday afternoon will see two teams with plenty to play for clash at Commbank Stadium in Parramatta, as the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs host the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks.
The Bulldogs had some reasons to be hopeful about their 2022 campaign leading into it, with some great signings over the past year, but Canterbury quickly fell into losing ways. The blame fell to their head coach, Trent Barrett, who quit back in May. Now under interim coach Mick Potter, the Bulldogs have won two in a row, and are sitting in 13th place on the ladder, just three wins outside the top eight.
Their last outing saw a convincing win for the Canterbury outfit against a struggling Tigers side. The 36 points to 12 victory renewed hopes of an admittedly unlikely late finals surge for Potter's side.
Big efforts from their star signings Matt Burton and Josh Addo-Carr were the standouts for Canterbury, but it was their fullback Jake Averillo's performance that has Bulldogs fans the most excited.
Averillo has been given the opportunity by Mick Potter to play at fullback, chosen over the more experienced Matt Dufty, and so far he has not disappointed. Averillo will start in the number 1 jersey again this weekend, with the Bulldogs sticking with the same 17 as their last outing. Matt Burton will be backing up from Origin, named to start in the five-eighth role.
The Cronulla Sharks have also won their last two matches, and will be just as keen as Canterbury to keep their streak alive.
Taking their home game to Coffs Harbour in round 15, they managed to fight their way to an 18-10 victory over the Titans. Playing another team towards the bottom of the ladder this weekend, the Sharks will be looking for a repeat.
Their recent wins have lifted Cronulla back into the top 4, although they're even on points with two other teams. A top 4 finish would be a massive result for the Cronulla club, but there's still a lot of work to be done between now and the end of the season.
Helping them get there is their lack of injury concerns, with Braden Hamlin-Uele being the only player with a long term injury on their roster.
Sharks coach Craig Fitzgibbon has named the same 17 to take to the field this weekend as he did back in round 15. Siosifa Talakai and Nicho Hynes return from a successful blues camp, and they will play against their team mate from last week Matt Burton.
Ronaldo Mulitalo spent his rep round with the New Zealand test side as they downed Tonga, and he has been named on the wing.
In round 7 of last year, the Bulldogs were able to pull off an 18-12 upset over the Sharks for Canterbury's first win of the season.
Last meeting: Round 19 2021 - Bulldogs 24 Sharks 44
Who to watch: Matt Burton is riding high after an outstanding Origin debut for NSW on Sunday. Arriving as a key signing for the Bulldogs at the start of this year after playing a crucial, albeit minor, role in the Panthers premiership campaign in 2021, he has taken some time to find his feet. But as the season has progressed, he has looked more and more at home at Canterbury.
Now, with talk over NFL scouts and many rumours swirling about where he could be headed in the coming years, Burton will want to keep his form going. There are also question marks over his Origin spot for the deciding game despite his strong performance due to the plethora of centres at Brad Fittler's disposal. A strong performance this weekend is crucial to both his future and Canterbury's hopes of keeping their short winning streak alive.
Cronulla Sharks captain Wade Graham has been named in the second row for this weekend's clash, which will be just his 7th game of the 2022 season. Injuring himself in a pre-season trial match against the Bulldogs, he didn't get back onto the field until round eight. Since then, he has been a very consistent worker for the Sharks, with the former NSW and Australian representative arguably being one of the Sharks best.
Having been at the club since 2011, and taking over as captain when Paul Gallen retired, Graham has over 250 NRL appearances at just 31 years of age. The amount of minutes he can get through this Saturday could have a major impact on the result of the game.
The favourite: The Cronulla Sharks are the strong favourites to get the job done and make it three in a row since their bye.
My tip: The Bulldogs are on a roll and Cronulla have shown throughout the season that they can be inconsistent, so an upset might be on the cards here. Bulldogs by 4.
