NRL Round 6 Review: Roosters crow as Raiders stumble again

Some flag fancies were humbled over the weekend, while a few potential climbers made serious statements of intent. Let’s look back at the key moments and betting results from round six of the 2020 NRL Premiership.

Panthers stocks rising after win over Storm

We asked the question last week if more stock should be put into a great 60 minutes from the Penrith Panthers against Parramatta in round five or the horror 10 minutes which cost them the two points.

It proved to be the former and the Panthers have now moved into $13 at Sportsbet to win the NRL Premiership as a result.

Unfortunately, the lion’s share of the money was on the Melbourne Storm, leaving the punters scratching their heads and the bookmakers breathing a sigh of relief.

One thing the bookies got absolutely spot on was the line of 35.5 total points, with unders sneaking home by a struck match.

With the condition of the Campbelltown Stadium surface and the cold winter nights ahead, this certainly looks to be a trend.

Parra do matter despite loss to Roosters

We all probably thought this anyway, but it appears the Parramatta Eels are legit players in the 2020 NRL title race.

The 14-point margin might make it look as if there is more distance between them and the Sydney Roosters, but that score line flattered the defending premiers.

Parra have pushed back to $5 from $4.75 after their first loss of the season, while the Roosters now sit as the prohibitive favourite at $3.25.

Raiders reeling from second loss in three games

Were the punters too quick to crown the Canberra Raiders as favourites for the flag three weeks ago?

There was good reason after their big win over Melbourne, but since then they’ve been smashed by the Knights, tested by the Tigers and humbled by a Manly side hit with a huge injury stick.

In the last fortnight, the Raiders have scraped together a combined 20 points in attack despite many believing the new rules favoured them the most of any team.

Is it just a blip on the radar or a sign of things to come? Canberra now sit at $8 for the premiership when just three weeks ago those odds were close to half of that price.

Sharks in calmer waters after gritty win over Bulldogs

Canterbury made them work hard for it, but the Cronulla Sharks can breathe a little easier following their two-point win.

Last week we pointed out they were $13 for the wooden spoon, but they’ve drifted back to $15 after Gold Coast’s loss to St George Illawarra.

The Sharks come up against their bogey team this week, although Manly will be missing Moses Suli, Tom Trbojevic, Martin Taupau, Jorge Taufua, Dylan Walker and possibly Brad Parker.

The Sea Eagles have only lost 26 of the 104 meetings between the two clubs, but that injury toll gives the Sharks an enormous chance for back-to-back wins.

However, when you factor in the reputation of Des Hasler-coached teams when their backs are against the wall, this game is packed with intrigue, and the $1.56 price for the Sea Eagles is hard proof of this.

Crunch time for Tigers after nervy finish against Cowboys

A 34-0 first half would have left Wests Tigers fans falling over themselves.

But only winning 36-20 over the Cowboys would have annoyed those same fans and, by all reports, the players as well.

Wests were stunned by the Titans a few weeks ago and now face a similar situation as they head into their clash with Canterbury as heavy favourites.

Round six didn’t tell us too much about the Tigers despite such brilliance in the first half, but watch this space after round seven.

Best and worst bets of NRL Round 6

To the punter who threw $17,500 on under 45.5 points between the Titans and Dragons, you must feel like you’ve stolen a return of $30,625.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, the $9,000 at $2.50 for Canterbury placed after nine minutes of play was brave to say the least.