Dragons vs Sea Eagles NRL Round 3 betting tips – Friday 26/3/2021

Dragons vs Sea Eagles betting preview

Teams who start the season 0-3 rarely go on to make the NRL finals, so for the Manly Sea Eagles it is virtually a do-or-die clash down in Wollongong this Friday night. In 2019 their first two performances left a lot to be desired before they smashed the Warriors in round three to set up their season. While it isn’t uncharted territory for Des Hasler’s men, they’ve filled absolutely no one with confidence in the opening fortnight and yet somehow are sitting at $1.95 in the head-to-head betting.

The St George Illawarra Dragons put together a good performance to get the win against the Cowboys, and it was on the back of a breathtaking display from Ben Hunt. When he is running the football regularly, he is a nightmare to defend, and if the Saints are to get their second win in a row, it will come off the back of the former Bronco.

Key matchup: Ben Hunt vs Daly Cherry-Evans

Without naming him personally, Des Hasler was critical post-game of Daly Cherry-Evans’ performance against the Rabbitohs. If the Sea Eagles are to have any chance on Friday night, the skipper needs to be the horse pulling the wagon. Manly have struggled to generate points and DCE is largely to blame with no Tom Trbojevic in the side, while Ben Hunt is fresh off a big performance and full of confidence. Anthony Griffin is a maligned head coach by many, but you can’t dispute he has gotten the best out of Ben Hunt at NRL level. These two clubs are mediocre across the board and rely far too much on their halfbacks to deliver results, but the winner in this game simply boils down to who gets the better of this matchup.

St George Illawarra Dragons betting info

Zac Lomax and Mikaele Ravalawa proved a handful for North Queensland last start, but it might not be such smooth sailing this time around. Look to Jack Bird and Cody Ramsey as tryscoring options as they go against Jason Saab and Moses Suli, who both looked all at sea against the lethal left of South Sydney. The Dragons aren’t clinical and won’t win big, so the 1-12 margin at $3 is the market to be looking at.

St George Illawarra Dragons

1. Matthew Dufty
2. Cody Ramsey
3. Jack Bird
4. Zac Lomax
5. Mikaele Ravalawa
6. Corey Norman
7. Ben Hunt
8. Blake Lawrie
9. Andrew McCullough
10. Paul Vaughan
11. Josh Kerr
12. Tariq Sims
13. Tyrell Fuimaono
14. Poasa Faamausili
15. Trent Merrin
16. Daniel Alvaro
17. Brayden Wiliame

Manly Sea Eagles betting info

Following two lacklustre performances to kick their season off, trying to find some tryscorers for the Manly side is akin to pulling random names out of a hat. Their attack has been woeful, and it’s hard to see that improving in the space of a week. Dylan Walker at fullback has been an abject failure, and the halves have struggled behind a badly beaten forward pack. The Saints are a little vulnerable around the ruck close to the line, and we think the big unit Taniela Paseka could be one to keep an eye on as a value pick for anytime tryscorer.

Manly Sea Eagles

1. Dylan Walker
2. Jason Saab
3. Brad Parker
4. Moses Suli
5. Reuben Garrick
6. Kieran Foran
7. Daly Cherry-Evans
8. Taniela Paseka
9. Lachlan Croker
10. Martin Taupau
11. Jack Gosiewski
12. Josh Schuster
13. Jake Trbojevic
14. Cade Cust
15. Morgan Boyle
16. Sean Keppie
17. Josh Aloiai

Dragons vs Sea Eagles betting prediction

The Dragons will win a second consecutive game but could then easily lose their next four against the Knights, Warriors, Roosters and Eels. Manly will keep it reasonably close, so the 1-12 margin looks the goods for us.

Dragons vs Sea Eagles same game multi

The Dragons at the -1.5 line with Cody Ramsey to score the first try gets you $13.75 odds at Sportsbet.com.au.