Prop bets and line punting for Roosters vs. Broncos, NRL Thursday

Brisbane Broncos vs. Sydney Roosters. Thursday, September 1, 7.50pm, Suncorp Stadium

Ladder position:
Broncos: 5th
Roosters: 15th

Season record:
Broncos: 14-9
Roosters: 6-17

Head-to-head odds:
Broncos: $1.25
Roosters: $4

Points spread line:
Broncos -12.5 ($1.90) at Sportsbet
Roosters +12.5

IT felt like yesterday that the Brisbane Broncos were in doubt of making the finals, but after rattling off four consecutive wins, the boys from Brisbane are back on track for September football.

The Broncos last loss came against the Roosters, who they face again on Thursday night.

Since that loss, the Broncos have since defeated two top-four teams – the Bulldogs and Storm – and bring superior form into the match.

Making it even harder for the Roosters is the loss of Sio Siua Taukeiaho after the Kiwi representative went down with an ACL injury. Add that to the loss of Boyd Cordner and the Roosters forward pack is in tatters.

The back line, which features the likes of Blake Ferguson, Latrell Mitchell and Mitchell Pearce, still poses a threat, but it’s the battle up front which has been worrying the Broncos this season and the Roosters won’t make inroads there.

The history between these two sides has been relatively close. The edge goes Brisbane’s way 17-15. The Roosters have a good winning record at Suncorp (four from seven) which could help them this Thursday night.

Broncos vs. Roosters points spread betting

Sportsbet.com.au has the line set at 12.5, which should favour both sides of the coin.

The Broncos won their last two games by 10 points and both wins came against top-four sides. The Roosters are sitting in 15th position, but they are by no means a cellar-dweller outfit. Sydney had a horrific start to the season, but has since improved and is playing solid league.

This game could go either way on the points spread and it could come down to a late try for either team. We expect the Broncos to finish the game strongly as the Roosters forward pack tires and they could pull away late for a 14-16 point victory.

It’s a close one, but we’re siding with the Broncos -12.5 ($1.90) at Sportsbet.com.au

Broncos vs. Roosters team list and tryscorer market

The Broncos name an unchanged team from that which defeated the Melbourne Storm last week.

1. Darius Boyd – $14
2. Corey Oates – $6.50
3. Tom Opacic – $14
4. James Roberts – $11
5. Jordan Kahu – $8.50
6. Anthony Milford – $9.50
7. Ben Hunt – $20
8. Josh McGuire – $46
9. Andrew McCullough – $34
10. Adam Blair – $46
11. Sam Thaiday – $26
12. Matt Gillett – $18
13. Corey Parker – $41
14. Jarrod Wallace – $41
15. Jai Arrow – $34
16. Alex Glenn – $20

Corey Oates continues to score at a high rate and the bookmakers have him short in the market again. The Broncos winger is $6.50 to score the first try on Thursday night and although the odds are short, he’s a great chance to score the opening try.

Tom Opacic had his best game of the season last week against the Storm and he could be the smokey for first try scorer. The young centre has played just seven games this season and scored four tries and has an error count of only two.

The economical player is on the improve this season and $14 at CrownBet.com.au looks like good value in this game.

The Roosters have called upon Nat Butcherand Mitchell Frei to cover for Boyd Cordner and Sio Siua Taukeiaho.

1. Blake Ferguson – $20
2. Daniel Tupou – $14
3. Dale Copley – $18
4. Shaun Kenny-Dowall – $20
5. Latrell Mitchell – $14
6. Connor Watson – $26
7. Mitchell Pearce – $26
8. Jared Waerea-Hargreaves – $61
9. Jake Friend – $51
10. Dylan Napa – $61
11. Ryan Matterson – $26
12. Aidan Guerra – $41
13. Isaac Liu – $56
14. Sam Moa – $61
15. Kane Evans – $46
16. Mitchell Frei – $46
17. Nat Butcher – $46

Latrell Mitchell has had a great rookie season and he’s a good chance at $14. The young winger has scored 14 tries from 23 games this season and he is able to play in multiple positions.

Mitchell has been able to avoid injury unlike some of his teammates which is credit to him and the $2.40 at Sportsbet to score at anytime during the game looks a good bet.

Connor Watson has also looked threatening in the five-eighth position. The youngster has scored only four tries this season, but as the season has progressed he has looked more dangerous running the ball to the line. He could get rewarded with a try and he’s paying $4.20 to do so.