NRL Round 6 betting preview – St George Illawarra vs Manly

April 18, 2019 4:30 pm.by Michael Maguire

2019 NRL odds and betting tips

St George Illawarra Dragons – $1.45 at Sportsbet
Manly Sea Eagles – $2.75

Saturday’s NRL Premiership fixture in Wollongong sees two teams aiming at four wins on the trot.

Having lost their first two games of the season, the St George Illawarra Dragons scraped a pair of one-point triumphs before hammering Canterbury 40-4 last weekend.

That result saw them leap back into the top eight, where many pundits expect them to stay for the remainder of the campaign.

Coach Paul McGregor is sticking with an unchanged 17 for this weekend’s bout against the Manly Sea Eagles.

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Des Hasler’s men also started the season with back-to-back losses followed by a trio of victories.

The last of those was an impressive 26-18 win at Newcastle, with Daly Cherry-Evans converting five of six goal attempts in his 200th NRL appearance.

The Sea Eagles will celebrate another milestone match on Saturday when Jake Trbojevic brings up his century.

Like the Dragons, Manly have named the same squad that got the job done in round five.

Dragons vs Sea Eagles first tryscorer tips

Odds courtesy of Sportsbet.com.au

Jordan Pereira NRL odds Jordan Pereira
First tryscorer – $8.50
Two or more tries – $5.50
Anytime tryscorer – $1.83

Pereira has lit up the St George Illawarra wing with five tries already this season – one fewer than competition leader Cody Walker. Sportsbet has him as the outright favourite in all the major tryscoring markets, and with good reason.

Manly skipper Daly Cherry-Evans Daly Cherry-Evans
First tryscorer – $20
Two or more tries – $23
Anytime tryscorer – $3.75

If you are going back a Sea Eagle in the tryscorer betting, why not go for gold? DCE is in excellent form and has already crossed the line twice in 2019, so the $3.75 quote for the Queenslander to score a try at any stage looks well worth a punt.

Key stats and betting trends

St George Illawarra have firmed steadily after opening at $1.55 with Sportsbet
Manly’s price started at $2.46 and blew out as far as $2.87 before settling
The Sea Eagles have a slight edge in average points for (21.8) and average winning margin (14.3)
Both of these teams have secured wins in extra time this season

Best bets for St George Illawarra vs Manly

There is little to separate these two on form.

Manly are playing good, tough footy and have the advantage in several key stats after five rounds, but can they do enough to upset the Red V’s talented playmakers?

Ben Hunt and Corey Norman are forming a fine partnership in the halves, while skipper Gareth Widdop continues to set the tone from fullback.

The Dragons’ forwards are also doing the job, especially Paul Vaughan, so they should be too strong at home after a big win last time out.

St George Illawarra Dragons by 1-12 points – $3.10 at Sportsbet