Bulldogs v Sea Eagles NRL tips & best odds | Finals Week 1

Bulldogs v Sea Eagles top picks

NRL Finals Week 1: Canterbury Bulldogs v Manly Sea Eagles match preview

The final game of week one for the NRL Finals is a clash between the Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs and the Manly Sea Eagles at Accor Stadium. The winner of this match will go on to play the Panthers in Penrith at BlueBet Stadium in week two.

These two sides met a fortnight ago, and it was the Sea Eagles who fought hard through injury to secure a win by 12 points at this ground.

A bounce-back from Canterbury will be critical this weekend after a 38-point loss to the Cowboys to finish the regular season.

Meanwhile, Manly will also be looking for a return to winning ways after Cronulla belted them by 20 points in round 27 at 4 Pines Park.

Coach Anthony Seibold will welcome back superstar fullback Tom Trbojevic to Manly’s starting side after suffering a shoulder injury two weeks ago. Tolutau Koula has been shifted into the centres, and Clayton Faulalo dropped to the reserves as a result. The rest of the side remains unchanged.

Bulldogs head coach Cameron Ciraldo is still without star winger Josh Addo-Carr after an ankle injury, before standing himself down for an off-field issue this week.

In good news, Ciraldo will welcome back Jeral Skelton (leg) on the wing, Bronson Xerri (suspension) in the centers, and Matt Burton (concussion) at five-eighth. Jacob Kiraz will return to the wing, accommodating Xerri and Skelton. While Drew Hutchison, Eli Clark, and Johnathon Sua have all dropped out of the 17.

Bulldogs v Sea Eagles NRL team lists

Canterbury Bulldogs

1. Connor Tracey
2. Jacob Kiraz
3. Bronson Xerri
4. Stephen Crichton
5. Jeral Skelton
6. Matt Burton
7. Toby Sexton
8. Max King
9. Reed Mahoney
10. Samuel Hughes
11. Viliame Kikau
12. Jacob Preston
13. Jaeman Salmon
14. Bailey Hayward
15. Kurtis Morrin
16. Harry Hayes
17. Josh Curran

Manly Sea Eagles

1. Tom Trbojevic
2. Tommy Talau
3. Tolutau Koula
4. Reuben Garrick
5. Lehi Hopoate
6. Luke Brooks
7. Daly Cherry-Evans
8. Taniela Paseka
9. Lachlan Croker
10. Matthew Lodge
11. Haumole Olakau’atu
12. Karl Lawton
13. Jake Trbojevic
14. Ben Trbojevic
15. Josh Aloiai
16. Ethan Bullemor
17. Nathan Brown

Canterbury Bulldogs v Manley Sea Eagles betting predictions

The Bulldogs opened as -117.65 favourites to win this match, but odds have fluctuated since Manly named Trbojevic to start at fullback. The home side are now +100 outsiders to advance to week two of the finals at PlayUp.

The Sea Eagles have won four of their last five matches against the Bulldogs. Manly’s last two wins have come at this ground, and three of the wins have come when they started as favourites in the match. While history and recent form may be stacked against Canterbury, they have shown themselves this season to be a resilient side who can perform well under pressure. Backing the Bulldogs to beat the Sea Eagles at +100 odds with Neds could be the biggest upset and best value bet of the weekend.

The return of Bulldogs five-eighth Burton will come as an enormous boost to the side generally, but also their left-edge attack with second-rower Viliame Kikau. Last weekend Sea Eagles captain Daly Cherry-Evans struggled defensively against the Sharks, missing three tackles which ultimately led to a brilliant Briton Nikora try. If Burton can expose Cherry-Evans’ defensive issues again, +275 is a great value price with the top NRL bookmakers for Kikau to score a try.

Accor Stadium has recently been a high-scoring ground for finals games, with each of the last five games recording 44 points or more in the match. Each of the last three appearances for these two sides have also been high-scoring, with more than 44 points scored. Expect this to be another high-scoring affair on Sunday (-111.11).

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