NRL Round 1: Winners and Losers

With Round 1 of the 2019 NRL Season in the books, we name the winners and losers of the weekend’s matches.

Winner: Jahrome Hughes and The Storm

One of our players to watch, Jahrome Hughes, played as well as you could expect of the successor to Billy Slater. Those are legendary shoes to fill, especially when it seems he wasn’t Bellamy’s first choice until Scott Drinkwater was injured in a trial game. The other winner from this game was the Storm, and how they manage to stay consistent through every player departure. From Greg Inglis to Cooper Cronk, and now Billy Slater, Bellamy and Smith find ways to win.

Loser: Anthony Seibold’s System (for now)

Like in his first year with the Rabbitohs, Seibold’s complicated system will take time for his players to master. The Broncos were solid against a more well-oiled machine in the Storm. But at times they looked lost, particularly in attack. To make matters worse, James Roberts looks set for a lengthy stint on the sidelines after injuring his back. Milford and Nikorima have a lot of work to do over the next few weeks. If they don’t grasp Seibold’s system quickly, the team could struggle more than many expected.

Winner: Knights’ Off-season Recruits

The Knights proved their off-season spending spree was worth it, with their new recruits performing extremely well as a whole. Long have Newcastle been bullied by other teams, especially Cronulla. However, with a new look squad, including a beefed-up forward pack, the Knights were able to hold their own against the Sharks.

Edrick Lee was one standout who made multiple crunching try-saving tackles. Despite giving away a penalty try, Lee went from villain to hero with a long-range intercept try that won the game for the home side.

David Klemmer, Tim Glasby and James Gavet provided the Knights with a formidable middle, that went toe-to-toe with the proven Sharks’ forward pack.

Kurt Mann also energised his new team when he was injected into the game, and showed his dummy-half switch may very well pay off.

Loser: Shaun Johnson

You have to feel sorry for Johnson this week. He was forced out of his hometown club, where he played for the first eight seasons of his career. That club, the NZ Warriors, looked better off without him. He also struggled to inject himself into his new side, the Cronulla Sharks, in a tough loss. On top of all this, Johnson has lived in the shadow of his electric rookie season where he carried the Warriors to the 2011 Grand Final. If the Warriors make the top eight and the Sharks miss out, criticisms about unfulfilled potential will only amplify.

Winner: The Warriors

With the departure of Shaun Johnson, many picked the Warriors to be a bottom three team in 2019. The Warriors dominated the Bulldogs by 34 points and look like the team that made the top eight last season. Debutant half, Adam Keighran, played well. And Blake Green controlled the game, taking the pressure off his young halves partner. Captain, Roger Tuivasa-Sheck, picked up where he left off from his Dally M winning season.  

Loser: The Bulldogs

Speaking of teams picking up where they left off last season, the Bulldogs look poised to miss the eight unless they drastically improve. It may be time for Dean Pay to experiment with the squad to see what he has in guys like Nick Meaney and Rhys Martin. Lachlan Lewis needs some help!

Winner: The Teams Whose Coaches Abandon Them

Rabbitohs and Tigers fans are feeling the warm embrace of justice this week. Both fan bases rightly felt abandon when their coaches (Anthony Seibold and Ivan Cleary respectively) walked away for better jobs after only one season. Seibold and Cleary both lost in round one, and their former teams won. The grass is always greener in bigger markets and better facilities.

Loser: Teams With Players Suspended in Controversy

Over the offseason, the NRL stood down Dylan Walker and Jack De Belin after they appeared in court to for separate transgressions. Both their teams lost this weekend. The Manly Sea Eagles struggle to score points against the Tigers, and could’ve used Walkers attacking flair on the edge. The Dragons conceded 24 points to the Cowboys without De Belin, perhaps their best defensive player. This season looks like an uphill battle for two teams that unexpectedly lost a star player without time to recover before the opening round.

Winner: Morgan and Moses

Michael Morgan and Mitchell Moses share more than just the same alliterated initials: they both play the same position, 2018 was a season to forget for the pair, and in round 1 of the new season, the two played excellently. Both halves steered their team around the park well, and took control to help their respective teams get the win. The departure of Corey Norman should give Moses clarity on his role at the Eels. Similarly, the loss of Jonathan Thurston may actually prove beneficial to the Cowboys, with Morgan able to take the reigns again, as he did in 2017, when they made the Grand Final.

Loser: Big Forward Packs

The Raiders’ huge forward pack in recent seasons has seemed intimidating, but rarely did it provide the menace or results needed. After shedding a couple of hundred kilograms with the departure of ‘big boppers’ Shannon Boyd and Junior Paulo, a refined forward pack lined-up against a huge Titans middle. As if the curse of big forward packs transferred to the Gold Coast along with Boyd, the Raiders’ sleeker forwards largely dominated their opponents. The Titans forwards made multiple handling errors, and looked uninspired for large parts of the game. When Ryan James is forced to the second row, questions should be asked. Are the new front rowers actually worthy of shifting James or have they been picked on size alone? There are lessons to be learned from the mistakes of Canberra.

Winner: English Imports

On the flip side, the Raiders’ forward pack was bolstered by new English recruits, who looked decent in their first outing. Ryan Sutton only played limited minutes, but John Bateman was very impressive in his NRL debut. With English pair Josh Hodgson and Elliot Whitehead already asserting themselves as some of Canberra’s best players, talent in the Northern-Hemisphere is obviously being monitored by Ricky Stuart and his staff, and is proving quite a resourceful talent pool.

Loser: The Titan’s Halfbacks

Ashley Taylor’s ruling out of the Titans’ clash with the Raiders before the match was a cruel blow for the Gold Coast side. Despite losing their most influential player, Garth Brennan’s selection of AJ Brimson on the bench, provided the Titans with a player who could slot straight into the halves, with the returning Tyrone Roberts moving from five-eighth to halfback. However, only 10 minutes into the game, Roberts’ night was ended by an Achilles injury, leaving the home side without a proven halfback for the rest of the game. Should the pair be unavailable for the next few weeks, the acquisition of Ryley Jacks from the Storm could be very valuable.