NRL Thursday Sydney vs. Brisbane betting, Milford & Mitchell tips

Thursday, April 6, 2017, 7.50pm AEDT, Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane, Watch on Fox Sports.

TWO teams looking to bounce back after disappointing round five losses meet at Suncorp Stadium on Thursday night as the Broncos host the Roosters.

The Roosters were absolutely stunned by the Sea Eagles, despite taking the lead in the opening quarter of an hour. A Dylan Walker try in the last minute of regulation time sealed the brilliant win for the Sea Eagles, as the Tricolours failed to stop his brilliant 45-metre run.

The Broncos lost to the Bulldogs in a match that was theirs for the taking.

In horrible conditions at ANZ Stadium the visitors took the lead early in the match through a rare Sam Thaiday try, but failed to cross the line again. It was a bitter blow for a team that could not afford to lose.

The Brisbane Broncos now find themselves in an unfamiliar position outside the eight, but have a great run of fixtures coming up. After Thursday night the Broncos play two of the strugglers of 2017 in the form of the Rabbitohs and the Titans.

The home side will need to overturn a poor run of form against the Roosters at home however.

Brisbane has not beaten Sydney at home at Suncorp Stadium since 2003.

Anthony Milford predictions

Tip: Anthony Milford to score the first try (+1200 at Sportsbet.com.au)

The dynamic Milford has been the common denominator in both Brisbane wins this season, and the former Raider is one of the genuine line-breaking players in the Broncos’ line up.

Fellow mercurial talent Corey Oates is the main elect in the first try scoring market, but we think Milford is the Broncos’ best option heading into Thursday.

If the 22-year-old gets an opportunity to exploit the Roosters defence early in the match we think it the first try scorer title is his for the taking.

Latrell Mitchell predictions

Tip: Latrell Mitchell to score a try at anytime ($2.30 with Sportsbet.com.au)

One of the constants from the Roosters so far this season has been the sensational scoring form of dynamic teenager Latrell Mitchell.

The talented youngster currently leads the NRL for tries scored in the season, and has crossed the line in three of the five matches his side has played thus far.

It is hard to imagine the Roosters can mount a true challenge to the Broncos without Mitchell playing a big role, and his best way to impact the game is to score tries.

This is one of the best bets of the weekend in the NRL – Latrell is a try scoring machine and should get on the board for punters again on Thursday night.

Match predictions

Match result: Brisbane Broncos to win ($1.84 with Sportsbet.com.au)

Line betting tip: Brisbane Broncos -1.5 (-111.11 with Sportsbet.com.au)

Bonus bet: Brisbane Broncos to score the first try ($1.90 with Crownbet.com.au)

Despite the Roosters far superior record in 2017, we think the Broncos are the team to beat on Thursday night.

They need to bounce back after a disappointing loss last week to the Bulldogs, and they get the perfect opportunity to do so in the standalone fixture.

While it is hard to split the teams on paper, one bet we are very confident in is an investment on the Broncos to score the first try. In the opening five weeks of the season Brisbane has crossed the line first in every single game.

The $1.90 at Crownbet.com.au for the Broncos to score the first try looks to be a sound bet.

The Broncos’ record belies how great they have been this season. The undefeated Storm and the Cowboys beat Brisbane by a collective three points, while their wins have come against last year’s premiers the Sharks and the top-four Raiders.

Conversely, the Roosters have had a relatively soft draw.

Three of the teams they have defeated are in the bottom six sides on the ladder, while their win against Panthers was marred in controversy due to contentious referee decisions that directly impacted the outcome.

The Broncos will have steeled themselves for this one. We are expecting a statement game on Thursday from the northerners. We are backing the Broncos to break the 14-year hoodoo in style.