Game one is at Armidale's Bellevue Oval between the New England Nomads and the Inverell Saints. The Nomads haven't beaten the Saints since 2006. This week is their best chance since then to seek out some revenge on the Saints. The Nomads bounced back in a big way in round 3, after losing to the Narrabri Eagles in round 1, beating the Cats by 125 points. Hopefully the injuries to Weston Whitby are behind him as at his best he is devastating, as shown by his 12 goal rampage against the Cats. The Saints came back to earth with a thud in round 2 at the hands of the Swans and a 50 point margin. Yet they too beat the Cats and by 99 points. Saints Coach, Nick Baird, is having trouble getting the same players to be on ground from week to week due to injuries and work commitments. If he can get his best team on the oval this week then maybe they will be able to sneak a win against the Nomads. The Nomads though have recruited well this year and have plenty of numbers to choose from. With players like the Pearce boys in the middle of the ground Nomads Coach Brendan Meehan has the luxury of leaving Whitby close to goal and I don't think the Saints have anyone to go with him since regular fullback Shaun Mansbridge moved to Victoria.
Prediction: Nomads to beat the Saints for the first time in 5 years by 46 points.
The match of the round is most definitely game 2 between the Tamworth Kangaroos and the Narrabri Eagles. Being at Tamworth's No. 1 Oval this gives the Kangaroos the upper hand. The Eagles are 3 wins from 3 attempts this year and sit 1 game clear on top of the Essential Energy TAFL Ladder. The Kangaroos are 2 from 2 after having the bye in round 1, but have an almost 18% better percentage than the Eagles. So if the Eagles win they will gain a 2 game break on the rest of the competition, and if the Kangaroos win they will go to the top by percentage. The Kangaroos were pressed a little by the Bulldogs last round but they still knew how to win and new coach Tim Cotter is putting his own stamp on the team. This game is their big test to see if they can win the big games. Eagles Coach, Phil Dennis, will be happy with the start to their season but knows how important it is to win these games to boost his player's confidence even higher. The Eagles also have a boom recruit to rival the Nomads goal kicking ace, Whitby, in Tim Cooper. Cooper kicked 10 goals against the Swans and the Kangaroos will need to cut his supply up field or it could hurt them big time.
Prediction: I am really tossing the coin on this one because it is in Tamworth. Tails the Eagles by 6 points.
The last game is down at the Cattery in Muswellbrook. The Cats take on the Tamworth Swans and this could be their big chance to open their winning account for 2011. The Cats have copped 2 floggings on their round trips to the Saints and the Nomads and the Kangaroos beat them by 58 points in round 2 at the Cattery. So saying that the Cats could win here is a bit odd. The Swans have had a roller coaster ride this year too. They have copped 2 ten goal hidings from the Bulldogs and the Eagles with a 50 point win over the Saints in between. The Swans go from one extreme to the other and this makes it very hard to get a gauge on them. Even though the Cats have been well beaten so far this year they have shown a big improvement over their last few years. If the Cats can get their best team on the ground this week and the Swans struggle to get a full team down the highway then there could be a big night at the Cattery on Saturday night. It could also be doubly big night if they win as in the past week the Cats have been announced as the first club in the Essential Energy TAFL to be awarded Bronze level accreditation as part of the AFL Quality Club Program. Well done Cats.
Prediction: I'm going out on a limb here and am tipping the Cats to get choccies by 10 points.
Last Modified on 24/05/2011 06:47