Which Queensland NRL team will shine brightest in 2023?

With all four Queensland teams getting off to a flying start last weekend, fans and experts across the state are debating which club will take out the NRL bragging rights for 2023.

Wayne Bennett’s Dolphins arrived with a bang, ambushing the well-fancied Sydney Roosters and forcing critics – many of whom claimed they would struggle to win a game this season – to eat humble pie.

Bennett is the master of the old-fashioned ambush, and didn’t he love dishing it out to a few journalists over some of their articles published before the season kicked off?

The Brisbane Broncos caused another major upset by inflicting a disturbing win over back-to-back premiers Penrith, while the Titans and Cowboys made it a special weekend for Queensland rugby league fans.

Ladbrokes spokesman Tom Hackett told BettingSite.com.au this week that interest was building in who would be Queensland’s top dog in 2023.

“At the moment the Cowboys are favourites at $1.85 ahead of Brisbane at $2.15, followed by the Titans at $8 and new franchise Dolphins $21 outsiders of the quartet,” said Hackett.

“But the Broncos have been big firmers in our ‘top Queensland side’ market and they continue to be the most polarising side in the NRL from a betting perspective.

“They have also been the most popular side in ‘to make the top eight’ betting but, remarkably, they have been just as popular in betting to miss the top eight.

“There would be a few punters nervous after the Dolphins’ shock round one win.

“A number of Ladbrokes punters took the $1.10 on offer for them to miss the top eight – including one bet of $5,000.”

With the four Queensland sides settled in the top eight – Titans (2nd), Dolphins (3rd), Broncos (7th) and Cowboys (8th) – the foundations have been laid for the upcoming 12 derby clashes between the four clubs.

The first of these battles comes up at Suncorp Stadium on Friday night when Brisbane go head-to-head with arch-enemies North Queensland, the club which denied them a premiership with an epic golden-point victory in the 2015 NRL Grand Final.

That blockbuster will be followed by the ‘Battle of Brisbane’ in the first of many grudge matches between the Broncos and the newcomer Dolphins – a game that should pack out Suncorp Stadium and produce a State of Origin atmosphere.

It will pit Bennett against the club he built from scratch and took to six premierships – a club now coached by one of his favourite players, Kevin Walters.

Walters played 237 games for Bennett’s Broncos and together they shared in five premierships (1992, ’93, ’97, ’98, 2000).

They also shared in a sixth premiership with Canberra in 1987.

Brisbane will play three of their home games at the Gabba in the middle of the season to accommodate the FIFA Women’s World Cup being played at Suncorp Stadium.

Origin will also play a big part with all four clubs expected to hand over players for representative duties, making it even more interesting to pick the ultimate Queensland champion.

The other 10 Queensland derby clashes are:

• Round 4 – Cowboys v Titans at QCB Stadium, March 25
• Round 6 – Cowboys v Dolphins at QCB Stadium, April 7
• Round 7 – Titans v Broncos at Cbus Super Stadium, April 15
• Round 8 – Dolphins v Titans at Suncorp Stadium, April 23
• Round 17 – Broncos v Titans at Suncorp Stadium, June 25
• Round 18 – Broncos v Dolphins at Gabba, July 1
• Round 19 – Titans v Dolphins at Cbus Super Stadium, July 9
• Round 22 – Titans v Cowboys at Cbus Super Stadium, July 30
• Round 23 – Cowboys v Broncos at QCB Stadium, August 5
• Round 26 – Dolphins v Cowboys at Suncorp Stadium, August 25

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