{"id":442345,"date":"2025-03-03T21:09:31","date_gmt":"2025-03-03T22:09:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/?p=442345"},"modified":"2025-03-03T23:13:03","modified_gmt":"2025-03-03T23:13:03","slug":"dual-sport-rookie-closes-in-on-debut-after-contract-upgrade","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/?p=442345","title":{"rendered":"Dual-sport rookie closes in on debut after contract upgrade"},"content":{"rendered":"

While four sides have already begun their 2025 NRL season in Las Vegas, the rest of the competition will get underway this week. \ufeff<\/p>\n

Penrith overcame fellow title contenders Cronulla in their first game, while the Raiders sent a statement to their rivals with a dominant win over the Warriors.<\/p>\n

Looking forward to the remaining six games,\ufeff there will be plenty of tough selection decisions facing coaches, with injuries and suspensions already causing dramas.<\/p>\n

READ MORE:<\/strong> 'Sensory overload': Highs and lows from NRL's Vegas takeover<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

READ MORE:<\/strong> Raiders hit with Vegas hangover as stars face suspension<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n

READ MORE:<\/strong> NFL star kicked out of stadium after blowing Viking horn<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Here's an early look at who will line up for your club in round one. \ufeffTeams will all be confirmed at 4pm on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

Watch the 2025 NRL premiership live and free on Nine and<\/strong><\/em> 9Now<\/strong><\/em><\/a>.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

THURSDAY<\/h3>\n

Sydney Roosters vs Brisbane Broncos, Allianz Stadium (8pm)<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Mark<\/p>\n

Roosters predicted team:<\/strong> 1.<\/strong> James Tedesco 2.<\/strong> Daniel Tupou 3.<\/strong> Mark Nawaqanitawase 4.<\/strong> Robert Toia 5.<\/strong> Dominic Young 6.<\/strong> Sandon Smith 7.<\/strong> Chad Townsend 8.<\/strong> Lindsay Collins 9.<\/strong> Connor Watson 10.<\/strong> Naufahu Whyte 11.<\/strong> Angus Crichton 12.<\/strong> Victor Radley 13.<\/strong> Siua Wong 14.<\/strong> Zach Dockar-Clay 15.<\/strong> Nat Butcher 16.<\/strong> De La Salle Va'a 17.<\/strong> Blake Steep<\/p>\n

Roosters team news:<\/strong> Spencer Leniu will miss the first two rounds due to suspension, opening the door for Naufahu Whyte to start at prop. Sam Walker and Brandon Smith will both miss the first half of the season as they recover from ACL injuries.<\/p>\n

Broncos predicted team: 1.<\/strong> Reece Walsh 2.<\/strong> Selwyn Cobbo 3.<\/strong> Deine Mariner 4.<\/strong> Gehamat Shibasaki 5.<\/strong> Jesse Arthars 6.<\/strong> Ben Hunt 7.<\/strong> Adam Reynolds 8.<\/strong> Patrick Carrigan 9.<\/strong> Cory Paix 10.<\/strong> Payne Haas 11.<\/strong> Brendan Piakura 12.<\/strong> Jordan Riki 13.<\/strong> Kobe Hetherington 14.<\/strong> Billy Walters 15.<\/strong> Corey Jensen 16.<\/strong> Jack Gosiewski 17.<\/strong> Xavier Willison<\/p>\n

Broncos team news:<\/strong> \ufeffKotoni Staggs (quad) will miss the first month of the season due to injury, with Gehamat Shibasaki likely earning a spot in the centres. Ben Hunt will partner Adam Reynolds in the halves due to Ezra Mam's suspension.<\/p>\n

FRIDAY<\/h3>\n

Wests Tigers vs Newcastle Knights, Campbelltown Stadium (6pm)<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Fletcher<\/p>\n

Tigers predicted team: 1.<\/strong> Sunia Turuva 2.<\/strong> Jeral Skelton 3.<\/strong> Starford To'a 4.<\/strong> Adam Doueihi 5.<\/strong> Charlie Staines 6.<\/strong> Lachlan Galvin 7.<\/strong> Jarome Luai 8.<\/strong> Terrell May 9.<\/strong> Api Koroisau 10.<\/strong> Fonua Pole 11.<\/strong> Samuela Fainu 12.<\/strong> Alex Seyfarth 13.<\/strong> Alex Twal 14.<\/strong> Tallyn Da Silva 15.<\/strong> Royce Hunt 16.<\/strong> Jack Bird 17.<\/strong> Sione Fainu<\/p>\n

Tigers team news: \ufeff<\/strong>Jahream Bula (shoulder) remains in doubt for the season opener, which could see Sunia Turuva fill in at fullback. Brent Naden (knee) is sidelined long-term, with Adam Doueihi likely to play in the centres. Jarome Luai didn't feature in either of the side's trial fixtures, but should be named in the No.7 jumper.<\/p>\n

Knights predicted team: 1.<\/strong> Kalyn Ponga 2.<\/strong> James Schiller 3.<\/strong> Dane Gagai 4.<\/strong> Bradman Best 5.<\/strong> Greg Marzhew 6.<\/strong> Fletcher Sharpe 7.<\/strong> Jack Cogger 8.<\/strong> Jacob Saifiti 9.<\/strong> Phoenix Crossland 10.<\/strong> Leo Thompson 11.<\/strong> Dylan Lucas 12.<\/strong> Kai Pearce-Paul 13.<\/strong> Tyson Frizell 14.<\/strong> Jayden Brailey 15.<\/strong> Jack Hetherington 16.<\/strong> Brodie Jones 17.<\/strong> Mathew Croker<\/p>\n

Knights team news:<\/strong> \ufeffNo major changes expected from the team that belted the Roosters in the trials, with Jack Cogger and Fletcher Sharpe all but locked in to get the first crack in the halves for Newcastle this season.<\/p>\n

Dolphins vs South Sydney Rabbitohs, Suncorp Stadium (8.05pm)<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Dolphins predicted team: 1.<\/strong> Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow 2.<\/strong> Jamayne Isaako 3.<\/strong> Jake Averillo 4.<\/strong> Herbie Farnworth 5.<\/strong> Max Feagai 6.<\/strong> Kodi Nikorima 7.<\/strong> Isaiya Katoa 8.<\/strong> Daniel Saifiti 9.<\/strong> Jeremy Marshall-King 10.<\/strong> Felise Kaufusi 11.<\/strong> Kulikefu Finefeuiaki 12.<\/strong> Max Plath 13.<\/strong> Tom Gilbert 14.<\/strong> Ray Stone 15.<\/strong> Kenny Bromwich 16.<\/strong> Mark Nicholls 17.<\/strong> Connelly Lemuelu<\/p>\n

Dolphins team news:<\/strong> \ufeffJack Bostock (leg) will miss a fortnight of action, opening the door for Max Feagai to slot in on the wing. Tom Gilbert is back on deck after an extended absence and will lead the Dolphins this season. Tom Flegler (neck) remains sidelined for an indefinite period as doubts remain over his NRL future.<\/p>\n

Rabbitohs predicted team: 1.<\/strong> Jye Gray 2.<\/strong> Isaiah Tass 3.<\/strong> Campbell Graham 4.<\/strong> Jack Wighton 5.<\/strong> Tyrone Munro 6.<\/strong> Cody Walker 7.<\/strong> Jayden Sullivan 8.<\/strong> Sean Keppie 9.<\/strong> Peter Mamouzelos 10.<\/strong> Davvy Moale 11.<\/strong> Keaon Koloamatangi 12.<\/strong> Jai Arrow 13.<\/strong> Tallis Duncan 14.<\/strong> Jamie Humphreys 15.<\/strong> Tevita Tatola 16.<\/strong> Siliva Havili 17.<\/strong> Lachlan Hubner<\/p>\n

Rabbitohs team news:<\/strong> Injury carnage struck a couple of weeks ago, with skipper Cam Murray (Achilles) out for the year and Latrell Mitchell (hamstring) \ufeffalso sidelined. Tallis Duncan will likely start at lock, with young gun Jye Gray at fullback. In some more positive news, star centre Campbell Graham (hand) was a full participant at training on Monday morning and looks set for an early return. New recruits Jayden Sullivan and Jamie Humphreys are locked in a battle to play halfback, with English import Lewis Dodd unavailable due to suspension. Tevita Tatola (foot) is making his way back from a lengthy layoff and may be named on the bench.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/twitter.com\/mrchrisnico\/status\/1896335814529098233?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw<\/a><\/p>\n

SATURDAY<\/h3>\n

\ufeffSt George Illawarra Dragons vs Canterbury Bulldogs, Kogarah Oval (5.30pm)<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Dragons predicted team:<\/strong> 1.<\/strong> Clinton Gutherson 2.<\/strong> Tyrell Sloan 3.<\/strong> Moses Suli 4.<\/strong> Valentine Holmes 5.<\/strong> Mat Feagai 6.<\/strong> Kyle Flanagan 7.<\/strong> Lachlan Ilias 8.<\/strong> Toby Couchman 9.<\/strong> Damien Cook 10.<\/strong> Emre Guler 11.<\/strong> Luciano Leilua 12.<\/strong> Jaydn Su'A 13.<\/strong> Jack de Belin 14.<\/strong> Jacob Liddle 15.<\/strong> Raymond Faitala-Mariner 16.<\/strong> Ryan Couchman 17.<\/strong> Hame Sele<\/p>\n

Dragons team news: \ufeff<\/strong>No major changes expected from the side that lined up in the Charity Shield. There is still a bit of mystery surrounding the wing spots however, with the likes of Tyrell Sloan, Sione Finau, Mat Feagai and Christian Tuipolotu all in the mix. Front-rower Francis Molo won't play as he remains in a messy contract standoff. Hame Sele, Ryan Couchman and Loko Pasifiki Tonga Jr are all in contention for bench spots.<\/p>\n

Bulldogs predicted team: 1.<\/strong> Connor Tracey 2.<\/strong> Blake Wilson 3.<\/strong> Bronson Xerri 4.<\/strong> Stephen Crichton 5.<\/strong> Marcelo Montoya 6.<\/strong> Matt Burton 7.<\/strong> Toby Sexton 8.<\/strong> Max King 9.<\/strong> Reed Mahoney 10.<\/strong> Sam Hughes 11.<\/strong> Viliame Kikau 12.<\/strong> Jacob Preston 13.<\/strong> Kurt Mann 14.<\/strong> Bailey Hayward 15.<\/strong> Jaeman Salmon 16.<\/strong> Kurtis Morrin 17.<\/strong> Daniel Suluka-Fifita<\/p>\n

Bulldogs team news:<\/strong> \ufeffStar winger Jacob Kiraz (back) is out indefinitely after struggling to train during pre-season, which should see young speedster Blake Wilson get a spot out wide. Josh Curran (suspension) won't feature in Canterbury's first game, while Sitili Tupouniua is still another week or two away from playing due to an undisclosed injury.<\/p>\n

Manly Sea Eagles vs North Queensland Cowboys\ufeff, Brookvale Oval (7.35pm)<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"John<\/p>\n

Sea Eagles predicted team: \ufeff1.<\/strong> Tom Trbojevic 2.<\/strong> Lehi Hopoate 3.<\/strong> Tolu Koula 4.<\/strong> Reuben Garrick 5.<\/strong> Jason Saab 6.<\/strong> Luke Brooks 7.<\/strong> Daly Cherry-Evans 8.<\/strong> Siosiua Taukeiaho 9.<\/strong> Jazz Tevaga 10.<\/strong> Taniela Paseka 11.<\/strong> Haumole Olakau'atu 12.<\/strong> Ben Trbojevic 13.<\/strong> Jake Trbojevic 14.<\/strong> Jake Simpkin 15.<\/strong> Nathan Brown 16.<\/strong> Josh Aloiai 17.<\/strong> Ethan Bullemor<\/p>\n

Sea Eagles team news:<\/strong> Tommy Talau (hamstring)\ufeff won't be available, with Jason Saab and Lehi Hopoate expected to start on the wings. New recruit Siosiua Taukeiaho impressed in the trials and will start at prop, while Jazz Tevaga is in line to play hooker with Lachlan Croker (knee) out of action for at least the first month.<\/p>\n

Cowboys predicted team:<\/strong> \ufeff1.<\/strong> Scott Drinkwater 2.<\/strong> Braidon Burns 3.<\/strong> Jaxon Purdue 4.<\/strong> Viliami Vailea 5.<\/strong> Murray Taulagi 6.<\/strong> Tom Dearden 7.<\/strong> Thomas Duffy 8.<\/strong> Jordan McLean 9.<\/strong> Reece Robson 10.<\/strong> Sam McIntyre 11.<\/strong> John Bateman 12.<\/strong> Jeremiah Nanai 13.<\/strong> Reuben Cotter 14.<\/strong> Karl Lawton 15.<\/strong> Coen Hess 16.<\/strong> Griffin Neame 17.<\/strong> Sam McIntyre<\/p>\n

Cowboys team news:<\/strong> Thomas Duffy looks set to earn first crack in the No.7 jumper this year. John Bateman will fill the void left by Heilum Luki (knee) in the back-row, while veteran forward Coen Hess will be back on deck after missing the entire 2024 campaign.<\/p>\n

SUNDAY\ufeff<\/h3>\n

Melbourne Storm vs Parramatta Eels, AAMI Park (4.05pm)\ufeff<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Storm predicted team: 1.<\/strong> Sua Faalogo 2.<\/strong> Will Warbrick 3.<\/strong> Jack Howarth 4.<\/strong> Nick Meaney 5.<\/strong> Xavier Coates 6.<\/strong> Cameron Munster 7.<\/strong> Jahrome Hughes 8.<\/strong> Stefano Utoikamanu 9.<\/strong> Harry Grant 10.<\/strong> Josh King 11.<\/strong> Shawn Blore 12.<\/strong> Eliesa Katoa 13.<\/strong> Trent Loiero 14.<\/strong> Tyran Wishart 15.<\/strong> Joe Chan 16.<\/strong> Tui Kamikamica 17.<\/strong> Alec MacDonald<\/p>\n

Storm team news: \ufeff<\/strong>Ryan Papenhuyzen (knee) remains in doubt for the season opener, but back-up fullback Sua Faalogo (hamstring) should be good to go. Nelson Asofa-Solomona (suspension) remains out until round three, with new recruit Stefano Utoikamanu expected to start in the front-row.<\/p>\n

Eels predicted team:<\/strong> \ufeff1.<\/strong> Isaiah Iongi 2.<\/strong> Sean Russell 3.<\/strong> Viliami Penisini 4.<\/strong> Zac Lomax 5.<\/strong> Jake Tago 6.<\/strong> Dylan Brown 7.<\/strong> Mitchell Moses 8.<\/strong> Joe Ofahengaue 9.<\/strong> Joey Lussick 10.<\/strong> Junior Paulo 11.<\/strong> Bryce Cartwright 12.<\/strong> Kelma Tuilagi 13.<\/strong> J'maine Hopgood 14.<\/strong> Ryley Smith 15.<\/strong> Ryan Matterson 16.<\/strong> Jack Williams 17.<\/strong> Wiremu Greig<\/p>\n

Eels team news:<\/strong> Mitchell Moses (foot) is racing the clock for round one and if he's ruled out, expect to see Ronald Volkman slot in at halfback. Zac Lomax and Isaiah Iongi will both play their first official game for the club, while Josh Addo-Carr (suspension) is still two weeks away from returning. Shaun Lane (knee) is also in doubt for the Eels. Ryley Smith is looming for a debut off the bench after the former Australian U19s cricketer impressed at dummy-half during the pre-season and earned a contract upgrade.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

While four sides have already begun their 2025 NRL season in Las Vegas, the rest of the competition will get underway this week. \ufeff Penrith […]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":442347,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/442345"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=442345"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/442345\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":442352,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/442345\/revisions\/442352"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/442347"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=442345"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=442345"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=442345"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}