Check out the match preview and prediction for the round 6 clash between the Wests Tigers and St George-Illawarra Dragons.
MATCHDAY NEWS
MATCHDAY SCHEDULE
Wests Tigers Vs St George-Illawarra Dragons
Venue: Campbelltown Sports Stadium, Sydney
Date: Sunday 14 April, 4:05pm AEST
MATCHDAY TEAM NEWS
Tigers: 1. Jahream Bula, 2. Charlie Staines, 3. Solomona Faataape, 4. Justin Olam, 5. Junior Tupou, 6. Jayden Sullivan, 7. Aidan Sezer, 8. Stefano Utoikamanu, 9. Apisai Koroisau, 10. David Klemmer, 11. Isaiah Papali’i, 12. Alex Seyfarth, 13. Fonua Pole, 14. Jake Simpkin, 15. Alex Twal, 16. Justin Matamua, 17. Asu Kepaoa, 18. Solomon Alaimalo, 19. Josh Feledy, 20. Tony Sukkar, 21. Kit Laulilii, 22. Brandon Tumeth
Dragons: 1. Tyrell Sloan, 2. Zac Lomax, 3. Moses Suli, 4. Jack Bird, 5. Mikaele Ravalawa, 6. Kyle Flanagan, 7. Ben Hunt, 8. Francis Molo, 9. Jacob Liddle, 10. Hame Sele, 11. Luciano Leilua, 12. Jaydn Su’A, 13. Tom Eisenhuth, 14. Jesse Marschke, 15. Blake Lawrie, 16. Jack de Belin, 17. Raymond Faitala-Mariner, 18. Ben Murdoch-Masila, 19. Christian Tuipulotu, 20. Michael Molo, 21. Toby Couchman, 22. Mathew Feagai
Referee: Grant Atkins
Embed from Getty ImagesMATCHDAY PREVIEW
In what shapes as one of the more intriguing battles in round 6, the Tigers will play host to the Dragons at Campbelltown Sports Stadium, with both sides looking to bounce back from tough losses in round 5.
For the Tigers, Benji Marshall has made several forced changes off the back of a brutal injury toll from last week’s 26-16 loss to the Dolphins.
John Bateman is out after failing his HIA last week and is replaced by Alex Seyfarth in the back row. Samuela Fainu is in the same boat after failing his HIA as well. Justin Matamua and Asu Kepaoa come onto the bench as replacements. Jake Simpkin is another new face on the bench, replacing Latu Fainu who is out with a hamstring injury.
It was an ill-disciplined performance from the Tigers last week, so ball security will be a strong focus for Benji this week if they’re to get the win here. We’ve seen the Tigers hang tough in games this year and pull out some surprising results, but this time they’ll need to do it in front of their home fans who have found a renewed sense of spirit.
Aidan Sezer was a standout with his kicking game last week, but the Tigers will need Jayden Sullivan to stand up against his old club as well to force the issue and keep the Dragons under the pump in attack.
For the Dragons, Hame Sele returns from a calf injury in the front row, which moves Jack De Belin to the bench and Michael Molo drops out of the side.
Jack Bird has been named despite appearing to pick up a lower leg injury in last week’s loss to the Knights. Tom Eisenhuth starts at lock after moving to the bench on gameday last week.
It wouldn’t be a surprise to see the same happen again, with Raymond Faitala-Mariner a possibility to slot in at lock again come kick-off.
The good news for the Dragons is the weather is forecast to be much better than the hurricane-like conditions they endured in Newcastle. It was clear that had an effect on their ball handling and the general flow of their attack was off the pace as a result.
With dry conditions expected, we should see the Dragons move the ball more freely. The last time these two teams met was in a pre-season trial where Mikaele Ravalawa and Moses Suli ran riot over the Tigers right-edge defence.
The matchup against Charlie Staines and Solomona Faataape favours them on that side, so expect the Dragons to try and exploit that size advantage again.
Head-to-head stats can be found at Round 6 Number Crunch.
MATCHDAY PREDICTION
Tigers by 2 points.
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