Storm vs Roosters NRL Friday best bets & odds – Rd 24, 2022

Friday night football couldn’t be much bigger as two NRL Premiership contenders clash in Melbourne when the Storm host the Sydney Roosters in round 24.

The Storm ripped through the Broncos in Brisbane last weekend, belting them by 48 points in a most dominant performance. Meanwhile, the Roosters proved how large the gap is between the top and bottom sides in the NRL as they demolished the Tigers by 66 points at the SCG.

These two clubs are building towards the finals series and will be aiming to dethrone the Penrith Panthers, who will return to full strength in the post-season. Whoever comes away with this win will put themselves in the box seat to take down the minor premiers.

Plenty of changes have been made between these two sides that will alter the style in which they play. For the Storm, Felise Kaufusi returns from personal leave to push Tui Kamikamica back to the interchange bench as Nelson Asofa-Solomona is named to start in the front row. Tyran Wishart has been ruled out of the match with a syndesmosis injury, and that keeps Chris Lewis on the bench with Tom Eisenhuth and Josh King.

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For the Roosters, Lindsay Collins and Siosiua Taukeiaho have been named to return from their respective injuries via the interchange bench, which pushes Tyrell May and Oliver Gildart back to the reserves. Drew Hutchison has also been named in the reserves with Paul Momirovski named to start in the centres, although it is not unlike coach Trent Robinson to make late changes to his starting line-up.

In 44 head-to-head clashes between these two clubs, the Storm have won on 26 occasions with the last two results alone going the way of Melbourne by a total score of 72-18. The Storm have won eight of the last 10 matches between these two sides, by long and short margins, suggesting they have multiple ways of beating the Roosters. If the Tricolours are to change that record in their favour, they will have to improve on their 33% winning strike rate in Melbourne – something that clubs competition-wide have struggled to do.

Since team lists dropped on Tuesday afternoon, the money has been with Melbourne. Their head-to-head odds have been wound in from $1.62 to $1.55 at Marantelli Bet, and they could come in even further by kickoff.

The Roosters do not lack talent or power in the middle of the field with the team that’s been named to travel to Melbourne; however, with the long list of injury concerns the Roosters have, the tougher this game is in the middle, the more they may struggle. Melbourne at AAMI Park is a different beast, and with the form of the Storm, they are the clear pick in this match and should cover the -5.5 line at generous odds of $2.

Not many players have the ability to display the amount of raw power that Justin Olam does in the Melbourne centres, with some players labelling him the toughest player to tackle in the NRL. For the Roosters’ left-edge defence, Angus Crichton will have the monumental task of monitoring Olam throughout the match to cover for the likes of Luke Keary and Momirovski (should he actually start for the Roosters). Olam will surely be the Storm’s go-to man as they try to isolate him against smaller defenders in attack, so he is one of the great value plays at $2.40 to score at any time.

Should the Storm attack the Roosters’ left-edge defence as much as expected, Olam will not be the only scoring threat on that side of the field. Whether he plays fullback role or five-eighth, the Roosters will be desperate to stop Cameron Munster impacting the game. However, Munster has shown time and time again he will rise to big occasions with the rarest ability to do freakish things on the rugby league field. Should the Storm find success on their right-edge attack, Munster will score at some point during the match – that pays $3.05.

Key matchup: Brandon Smith vs Victor Radley

This battle between the lock forwards will be most intriguing as the two will be teammates from 2023 onwards. Known for their sheer aggression and white-line fever, both players put their heads where most wouldn’t put their foot and are prepared to do whatever is needed for their respective teams to win. Both players have a passing game that make attacking football much easier for those around them, while they can also get over the advantage line and create a fast play-the-ball for others to work from. Anything could happen if these two butt heads, as either could win or lose the game for his side.

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