Sports / Rugby
A quick look at some of the teams in the upcoming 2019 NRL season
31 Jan 2019 at 11:09hrs | Views
A Quick Look at Some of the Teams in the Upcoming 2019 NRL Season There's no question that 2018 was the year of the Roosters. The Sydney-based outfit outclassed, outwitted and outperformed every other NRL team up until the grand final and then proved that they could do the business on the big stage. After such a dominant season, it would seem foolish to back against them retaining their crown. However, after one of the most controversial and dramatic pre-seasons in recent memory, the 2019 season promises to be much more unpredictable as the last. Without further ado, we've put a few teams under the microscope and attempted to predict what could be in store for them during the upcoming NRL season.
Source: NRL - National Rugby League via Facebook
Newcastle Knights
On recruitment alone, it would appear that the Knights will make it back into the top eight this season - what happens after that, however, is anyone's guess. The return of Mitchell Pearce along with the additions of Tim Glasby, Jesse Ramien and David Klemmer has certainly bolstered a squad which already looked half decent on paper. Throw in the resurgence of Tautau Moga and the emergence of young talent Kalyn Ponga and the Knights have some of the best squad depth throughout the league. On paper, Nathan Brown has all the tools at his disposal to make a real fist of things this season. Whatever happens, the Knights will certainly be an interesting watch this season if nothing else.
Sydney Roosters
A quick perusal of the records will indicate that retaining the NRL crown is even more difficult than landing the top prize itself in the first place. With that being said however, the Roosters are favourites at around 16/5 in the NRL betting to once again reign supreme in 2019 - on current evidence, it's difficult to disagree with this assessment. After adding England's all time try scorer Ryan Hall, NSW backrower Angus Crichton and Brett Morris to the ranks, you could argue that the Roosters are stronger when they were last year. This is a frightening prospect for the rest of the teams in the league considering how dominant they were last year and it's once again difficult to see past them for the finals at the very least.
South Sydney Rabbitohs
Much has been made of the signing of Wayne Bennett for the Rabbitohs. Is he over the hill? Can he still coach at the highest level? Can the current roster buy into his way of playing? There's no doubt that the Rabbitohs have the players at the club to compete for the top spots; they have just been missing that extra bit to get to them over the line in recent years. It is our opinion that Bennett will give the team that extra lift and couple of percent that they need and the 2019 season could well be a very promising one for the Rabbitohs.
The 2019 Season Promises to Be One of the Most Intriguing Yet
With so many big names moving to different teams (and in some cases different sports!), the upcoming season promises to be a fascinating watch. Benny Barba is back. Shaun Johnson is a Warrior no more and David Klemmer will cross the white line as a Knight. If this isn't enough to whet your appetite then you're watching the wrong sport. Roll on March.
Source: NRL - National Rugby League via Facebook
Newcastle Knights
On recruitment alone, it would appear that the Knights will make it back into the top eight this season - what happens after that, however, is anyone's guess. The return of Mitchell Pearce along with the additions of Tim Glasby, Jesse Ramien and David Klemmer has certainly bolstered a squad which already looked half decent on paper. Throw in the resurgence of Tautau Moga and the emergence of young talent Kalyn Ponga and the Knights have some of the best squad depth throughout the league. On paper, Nathan Brown has all the tools at his disposal to make a real fist of things this season. Whatever happens, the Knights will certainly be an interesting watch this season if nothing else.
Sydney Roosters
A quick perusal of the records will indicate that retaining the NRL crown is even more difficult than landing the top prize itself in the first place. With that being said however, the Roosters are favourites at around 16/5 in the NRL betting to once again reign supreme in 2019 - on current evidence, it's difficult to disagree with this assessment. After adding England's all time try scorer Ryan Hall, NSW backrower Angus Crichton and Brett Morris to the ranks, you could argue that the Roosters are stronger when they were last year. This is a frightening prospect for the rest of the teams in the league considering how dominant they were last year and it's once again difficult to see past them for the finals at the very least.
South Sydney Rabbitohs
Much has been made of the signing of Wayne Bennett for the Rabbitohs. Is he over the hill? Can he still coach at the highest level? Can the current roster buy into his way of playing? There's no doubt that the Rabbitohs have the players at the club to compete for the top spots; they have just been missing that extra bit to get to them over the line in recent years. It is our opinion that Bennett will give the team that extra lift and couple of percent that they need and the 2019 season could well be a very promising one for the Rabbitohs.
The 2019 Season Promises to Be One of the Most Intriguing Yet
With so many big names moving to different teams (and in some cases different sports!), the upcoming season promises to be a fascinating watch. Benny Barba is back. Shaun Johnson is a Warrior no more and David Klemmer will cross the white line as a Knight. If this isn't enough to whet your appetite then you're watching the wrong sport. Roll on March.
Source - Tom Bewes
