NRL Round 10 – Raiders v Dragons match preview

Round 10, Sunday 17th May, 2015, 2pm EST, at WIN Stadium, Wollongong, NSW.

TV: Fox Sports

Weather: Fine, 19 Degrees

NOT even the experts could have predicted at the start of this season that the Canberra Raiders and St George Illawarra Dragons would be two of the in-form teams heading into round 10.

The Dragons suffered only their third loss of the season last Monday night when their six-game winning streak was broken by last year’s Premiers, the South Sydney Rabbitohs. Locking horns for most of the game, Souths got the edge at the finish by 16 points to 10, with the Dragons losing no admirers with a gutsy performance.

Coming off a huge 40-point victory over the Gold Coast Titans last week, Ricky Stuart’s Raiders are sitting pretty in the top eight, equal with South Sydney, in fifth position.

The Raiders have been one of the surprise packets this season and will be looking for their sixth straight win on Sunday, having only suffered three losses so far in 2015.

The Raiders clearly have an edge over the Dragons. They have won 16 of their 25 encounters and have recorded three victories at WIN stadium from six matches played.

Team Changes:

St George Illawarra Dragons – Unchanged since Monday’s game. Keep a close eye on Josh Dugan who is slowly returning to full fitness and is vying for the fullback spot on the NSW Origin team.

Canberra Raiders – Sam Williams suffered a horrible collapsed lung last week and will be replaced at halfback by Mitch Cornish.

Raiders v Dragons odds

Head to Head

Dragons ($1.52) at crownbet.com.au
Raiders ($2.70) at sportsbet.com.au

Line Betting

St George Dragons (1-12) $3.05 at crownbet.com.au
St George Dragons (13+) $2.85 at sportsbet.com.au
Canberra Raiders (1-12) $4.00 at crownbet.com.au
Canberra Raiders (13+) $6.65 at crownbet.com.au

The Dragons are heavy favourites to bounce back after their loss on Monday night. The line is +5.5 to the Raiders and punters can get $1.96 with crownbet.com.au.

First Try-Scorer

Crownbet.com.au has some enticing first try-scorer markets, with Dragons winger Jason Nightingale a short-priced favourite to cross the white line first.

Jason Nightingale (Dragons) $9.00
Peter Mata’utia (Dragons) $10.00
Josh Dugan (Dragons) $12.00
Euan Aitken (Dragons) $12.00
Jordan Rapana (Raiders) $13.00

Bottom Line:

The half and full time markets are always great value for punters, however St George fans will only get $1.95 with sportsbet.com.au for the Dragons to lead from start to finish.

Canberra fans who think the Raiders can continue their winning ways can score $9.00 for a Dragons/Raiders half/full time double. The Raiders have also been well supported to lead for the entire match, paying $3.60, while juicy odds of $7.50 are available for punters who believe they will get run down in the second half.

Some great first-try scorer and overall winner markets are also up for grabs, with Crownbet.com.au offering $15 for Josh Dugan to score the first try and the Dragons to secure the win.

Raiders playmaker Blake Austin, who is in terrific form, is paying $23 to score the first try and the Raiders to be victorious.

This game is extremely important for both teams heading into the origin period, with several players in contention for representative jerseys.

Punters would be wise to stick to the 1-12 margin for either side.