NRL 2020 Betting Update: Roosters drift as Panthers prowl

Eight rounds of the 2020 NRL Premiership have come and gone, with recent weeks proving that rugby league footy can be an unpredictable beast. Contenders have staked their claims, while others have drifted further towards the treadmill of mediocrity. Here are the latest NRL futures odds from Sportsbet.

Roosters premiership odds drifting

The good news for Sydney Roosters fans is they are paying $3.50 for the premiership.

The bad news is they’ve drifted from $3.25 following their loss to the Storm at Suncorp Stadium.

Many believe it was as good a game as there’s been in years, and no one would argue it was the most unpredictable.

While this will do nothing to deter many from riding the Roosters to their third-straight title, take a minute to reflect on what a monumental performance this was for Melbourne.

Without Cameron Munster for at least another two games, one of which will be the Raiders in Canberra, it was two points that probably felt like four.

It keeps them at a firm $6 to win the premiership, but those who backed them for the minor premiership will be feeling reasonably confident they can get to the top by round 20.

The Storm may not be playing in Melbourne for a while, but their fantastic record at Suncorp Stadium suggests that is an obstacle they can overcome.

Manly burn top four hopes

A controversial 14-12 loss from the Manly Sea Eagles has thrown a cat amongst the pigeons for their top four hopes this season.

Already without Tom Trbojevic and Dylan Walker, the dissent from Addin Fonua-Blake and Jake Trbojevic toward referee Grant Atkins could mean two of their best forwards are missing for a number of weeks.

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Having tumbled to ninth on the back of the loss, upcoming games against the Dragons, Eels and Cowboys shape as tricky tests for Manly with so many guns out.

The Sea Eagles could quickly lose touch with the top four, while you can certainly expect their premiership odds to blow out over the next fortnight.

Panthers on the precipice

They’ve threatened for years to contend for the premiership, but it feels like the $7.50 on offer for the Penrith Panthers to win it all in 2020 is more than just hype.

The half-time deficit against a hungry Tigers outfit proved to be no hurdle for the Panthers, who controlled the second half to win 19-12 and remain just one point off first place. As has been spoken about before, they would be leading the competition but for a rotten 10-minute spell against the Eels a few weeks back.

Penrith have all the ingredients of premiership winners: a good halfback and a creative hooker, a physically relentless forward pack, strike power out wide and hard-working wingers.

If you aren’t a believer in their flag credentials, you should absolutely believe in their minor premiership hopes.

Having dealt with the Tigers, the Panthers now face only Parramatta, Wests and Cronulla out of the current top eight. Better yet, they still have to face the Titans, Warriors, Broncos and Bulldogs – the top four in wooden spoon betting.

Melbourne will make it a fight to the finish, but Penrith’s friendly schedule means it is their minor premiership to lose.

Who will win the wooden spoon?

Is it bad to be enthralled by a race for the NRL’s worst team?

At the moment, it’s a ding-dong battle between the two southeast Queensland clubs with the Brisbane Broncos having not won a game since the competition resumed in late May.

While the Gold Coast Titans are objectively a pretty ordinary side, it’s at least easy to understand why they aren’t successful.

Looking at the Broncos down at 14th on the ladder, the conclusion is that it should never have happened.

What makes this even more interesting is Brisbane take on the Canterbury Bulldogs this weekend with the loser likely to finish the round in last place.

If Brisbane can stop the rot, they’ll move two wins clear of the bottom; if they lose, however, the $5 price for them to have the most losses will shorten even more.

The $2.40 on offer for Canterbury is genuinely teasing given how hard they try each week. Brisbane are more talented, but another poor showing will give the Bulldogs an enormous chance to win on the road.