Five Metre Gap: Rd 26 Wrap
Like the way of the five metre gap in defence, looking at the points you may have missed from round 26 of the NRL. The final weekend of the regular season.
Perennial finals team Melbourne Storm capped their regular season with a 15-8 triumph in Brisbane and have now won three of their last four games in the regular season by conceding no more than eight points in each victory. The last fortnight has seen them concede only one try in each game. The Storm went a similar path last season losing one of their last four but in their wins conceded no more than 12 points. However they were bounced in the first week of the playoffs by the Bulldogs. Craig Bellamy’s side have the luxury of a second chance this year should they fall to the Roosters on Friday night.
Second-placed Brisbane will be hoping playmaker Ben Hunt is available for their game against the Cowboys as his five tries coupled with Anthony Milford (four) have combined for the most in-form halves combination in terms of tries scored in the last month. Hunt’s back complaint and possible omission could be compounded after the injury to replacement Ashley Taylor. Bulldogs winger Curtis Rona has dotted down five times in four games. Elsewhere in the top try-scorer ranks Kyle Feldt of the Cowboys and the Roosters Brendan Elliot, who didn’t feature in round 26, have averaged at a try a game for the last month.
To get their sides into scoring positions in the finals it may be some surprising players if they can replicate their round 26 form. Paul Carter in 48 minutes gained the most metres (130) of any South Sydney player, not just forwards, to go with his 23 tackles. The Gold Coast discard can prove useful on the edge and out of dummy half so could be key for Michael Maguire’s side if he is retained for their elimination encounter. Internationals Matt Scott and James Tamou are the ‘go to’ Cowboys forwards but it was backrower Gavin Cooper who caught the eye as North Queensland kicked clear of the Titans in the second half on Saturday night to win 42-12. Cooper, 30, ran for 211 metres, broke five tackles and scored the first of the Cowboys five tries in a 15-minute period late in the game to seal the win.
Melbourne’s tackle tactics may attract plenty of attention but their own consistency on attack has played a large part in them making the finals in fourth. The Storm have had the best completion rate in the last month toping 85% as they beat Brisbane but not dropping below 76%. The minor premier Sydney Roosters have improved this figure in the past month up until their win on Friday over South Sydney going 69 %, 77%, 89% before dropping back to 77% as they thrashed Souths. Perhaps unsurprisingly the Broncos have been amongst the most consistent completing between 76 % and 86 %. St George Illawarra hadn’t gone above a 73% completion rate until this weekend’s 32-20 golden point triumph over the Tigers. They finished Saturday night’s game at 83% completing 18 from 21 sets in the second half and the additional period combined. The best near perfect game for finals qualified sides came from the Cowboys in round 24 when they beat the Warriors 50-16. On that occasion Paul Green’s side failed to complete only four of their 40 sets for a 90% rate.
St George Illawarra confirmed their finals spot at ANZ Stadium with a dramatic win but their defensive record in the last month tells us they could reasonably expect to exit next weekend. Paul McGregor’s side play at the same venue against the Bulldogs on Saturday night in the first elimination game and the joint-venture franchise has conceded 25.5 points per game in their last four fixtures. If you think that is bad I hope you aren’t a Souths fan. They have shipped an average of 31.75 points per game in the last month. The reigning premiers meet Cronulla in the second elimination encounter which will be played on Sunday at Allianz Stadium.
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Hamish Neal
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