NRL Power Rankings Round 2

1 Bulldogs - Climbed off the canvas to defeat South Sydney. One of only three teams to go unbeaten through two rounds.

2 Storm - Made a sad-sack Gold Coast side look foolish. Impressive start to the year.

3 Knights - Who would have thought they'd have a perfect record after a fortnight?

4 Tigers - Bounced back against NZ. Had to do it the hard way.

5 Dragons - Shock loss to the Sharkies. Would be lower if Weyman's injury was long-term.

6 Roosters - Learned a valuable lesson against a pumped-up Manly: talent alone won't get it done.

7 Broncos - Stunned Canberra in the nation's capital. Should be unbeaten after two rounds.

8 Raiders - Came crashing back to earth this week. Not panic stations, but not the sort of effort an elite team should put forth.

9 Cowboys - Didn't take care of business at home against a rampant Newcastle. Must be more consistent after fighting their asses off against Brisbane.

10 - Penrith. Wow. Just, wow.

11 Eels - The muppets who ignited Penrith's season. Got a great win in NZ, then folded like a deck of cards against the Panthers.

12 Sharks - Brave win against the Dragons. Would be higher if they weren't the Sharks.

13 Manly - Muscled up in the second half to shock the Roosters. Big injury/suspension list will continue to test them.

14 New Zealand - Ambushed by the Eels, run down by the Tigers. Not panic stations, but disappointing.

15 Gold Coast - No disgrace to lose first-up to the defending premiers, but were soft against Melbourne. Need to show more.

16 South Sydney - Oh dear. Twice they've coughed up match-winning leads. Remain the dumbest team in the comp. Half-fit Greg Inglis doesn't help.

NRL Power Rankings

1 Dragons: The defending premiers went to a very tough place to win and got one. No catastrophic injuries.
2 Bulldogs: Took down many people's pick to win the whole thing first up. New faces were impressive, although Josh Morris' knee injury is a blow.
3 Roosters: Impressive victory against the Bunnies, especially without Dally M winner Todd Carney.
4 Raiders: No Dugan, no Orford? No worries. Swept aside the Sharks in a match where plenty were tipping an upset.
5 Eels: The Steve Kearney era began with a shock win across the Tasman. Jarryd Hayne's imposing form is a great sign.
6 Cowboys; Thurston and Bowen shone as the Townsville side broke their Brisbane hoodoo.
7 Knights: Plenty had the Novocastrians getting a win over Penrith, but not like THAT.
8 Storm: Didn't come out breathing fire after not playing for point since last May, but ground out a victory.
9 Tigers: Not at their best against the Dogs, but are sure to bounce back.
10 Titans: Seething publicly about Boyd's controversial try and hopefully in private about losing at home.
11 Broncos: A lot of people are predicting gloom and doom this year, but they were one straight conversion from winning.
12 Warriors: Ambushed first-up at home. Need to do a lot of work under the high ball.
13 Rabbitohs: They lost on the scoreboard and in the mental battle. With Burgess and a number of other forwards hurt, are these the same fragile (in every sense of the wordBunnies) as last year?
14 Sharks: Had a chance to start the season on the right foot ... and got rolled by plenty. Could be a long year.
15 Sea Eagles: They lost Jamie Lyon for a month, looked lost in attack and made a heap of simple errors. Tough month coming up.
16 Panthers: Oh dear. To roll over and play dead first-up, at home against a moderatley-talented Knights means the signs for 2011 are darker than Penrith's black jerseys.

2011 NRL Preview - Sydney Roosters and West Tigers

For a league fan, the night before kick-off is just like Christmas Eve: you spend the night tossing and turning, waiting for the presents to come. Instead of one jolly old fat man in a red suit, there’s 16 teams full of heroes ready to deliver the presents. One lucky set of fans will get the best pressie of all – not on Christmas, but the October Long Weekend – a grand final win. Another poor set of fans will get the wooden spoon, others bags full of disappointment, some glorious hope for the future. An unexpected gift – a new superstar, a heartwarming redemption tale, an amazing moment – is bound to turn up under the tree or on our TV screens. I’m going to bed extra early – the earlier I fall to sleep, the earlier I’ll see some footy.

Oh, today’s predictions – two teams that played one of the great finals in history last season – 2010 runners up Sydney and the West Tigers, who came within a kick of joining them in the grand final. I suspect the Roosters will drop off the pace this year – for off-field reasons – while the Tigers will be right there when it’s all said and done.

Sydney Roosters

Home Ground: Sydney Football Stadium

Coach: Brian Smith

Premierships: 12 (1911, 1912, 1913, 1923, 1935, 1936, 1937, 1940, 1945, 1974, 1975, 2002)

2010 finish: 6th

First five rounds: Rabbitohs (h), Sea Eagles (h), Bulldogs (a), Wests (h), Warriors (a)

IN: Anthony Watts, 24, hooker (North Queensland Cowboys), Justin Carney, 22, wing (Canberra), Lama Tasi, 20, prop (Manly), Mark Riddell, 30, back row/hooker (Wigan Warriors - Super League).

OUT: Ben Jones (North Queensland Cowboys), James Aubusson (released), Lopini Paea (Catalans Dragons - Super League), Nick Kouparitsas (Harlequins - Super League).

Why they can win it: Young side shocked everyone by going from wooden spooners to the grand final last year. The young core of Todd Carney, Mitchell Pearce and Shaun Kenny-Dowall should only get better. Old hands such as Braith Anasta and Anthony Minichiello only have so many chances left. Surely Brian Smith WILL win a premiership one day …

Why they can’t: Todd Carney is back on the drink. He has already been deregistered for a season as a result of alcohol-fuelled atrocities, but became the redemption story of the century when he won the Dally M Medal during last year’s tea-totaling season. Carney’s DUI is a dark sign of things to come, which could be the distraction that runs the Roosters off the road.

Prediction: 10th

Wests Tigers

Home Ground: Leichhardt Oval, Campbelltown Stadium, ANZ Stadium, Sydney Football Stadium

Coach: Tim Sheens

Premierships: 16 (1915, 1916, 1917, 1919, 1920, 1924, 1930, 1934, 1939, 1944, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1952, 1969, 2005)

2010 finish: 3^rd

First five rounds: Bulldogs (a), Warriors (h), Raiders (h), Roosters (a), Rabbitohs (h)

IN: Evander Waitoa, 18, halfback (Wellington), Jacob Miller, 18, halfback (Sydney Roosters), Marika Koroibete, 18, wing (Fiji), Mosese Fotuaika, 18, prop (Keebra Park), Ratu Tagive, 18, wing (Canterbury-Bankstown), Teqele Nayarvovo, 19, wing (Otahuhu Leopards - New Zealand).

OUT: David Gower (St George Illawarra), Daniel Fitzhenry (Retired), Tame Tupou (Redcliffe).

Why they can win it: They are many pundits’ pick to win it all this year. Benji is the best player in the game, Farah one of the three best hookers, Chris Lawrence dynamic in the three-quarters, Gareth Ellis arguably the best Pom going around. They play a vibrant and attacking brand of footy but show the grit to knuckle down when it counts.

Why they can’t: Injury to either Marshall or Farah would be a disaster. Underwhelming offseason-recruiting. Some fellow contenders have made great strides in the offseason while the Tigers have stood pat.

Prediction: 3rd

The plan that could lead to an FFA Cup

As I wrote yesterday, the FFA has a lot of problems with the A-League. A lot of them will be forgotten on Sunday, when the best football team the competition has seen, Brisbane Roar, host arguably the best club, Central Coast Mariners.

I’ll be doing a bigger preview later on it week, but I see the Roar winning 3-1 to complete a well-deserved league-grand final double and leave the boys from Gosford ruing yet another grand final defeat. 

It’s a long way down the track, but if Ange keeps his Brisbane team together they could become the first Australian team to win the Asian Champions League. The way they have played this year has been phenomenal and an amazing advertisement for the world game in this country.

What hasn’t been a great advertisement is a sad-sack league campaign full of midweek games and clubs getting closer to the brink of folding – or in the case of the North Queensland Fury, being killed off.

There is also one gaping, yawning hole in the domestic scene that needs to be filled, ASAP.

That would be the lack of a nationwide, knockout competition, colloquially known as the cup. Every football league and nation worth its salt has one – England’s FA Cup is the only football tournament on the planet – except maybe the UEFA Champions League - that rivals the World Cup for name recognition.

And with the domestic league and the Socceroos restricted to pay TV at the moment, name recognition is something football in Australia sorely needs. That’s not a knock on Fox or the FFA by any stretch, just fact. If you don’t have Foxtel or Austar, you aren’t seeing the game played at the highest level in this country.

Commentators, players and fans are all begging for a knockout competition to run parallel to the A-League.

Even the AFL is planning a knockout competition for the near future. It would be a travesty for the world game here if a rival code were the first to introduce a format that belongs to football.

There are lots of questions about how to get a cup competition up and running in Australia, such as the disparity of the state organisations, sheer geographical distances involved and financial pressures.

I have a naïve, but potentially workable, solution.

Obviously, we’d need a naming rights sponsor and a television deal. Also, I think it’s only fair the FFA help subsidise the travelling costs for the smaller clubs. A cash prize (doesn’t have to be huge, but something) would also be a must. If the FFA are as good at selling football as they need to be, this should be a snap. After all, a new, ground-breaking, unifying competition would be good news at a time the sport is crying out for it.

In the first year, I'd have a 32-team draw - enough for five extra games a season - with the A-League clubs entering the draw in round one. The FFA and state associations can work out the timing, but ideally, it would be in the same window as the A-League, with the final on the weekend between the end of the league and the start of the finals series. That would make it a showpiece event at the time of year where football is not battling cricket or the winter sports for attention.

To cut costs and ensure the state league clubs get to tackle their elite intra-state counterparts, I'd divide the 32 teams into five pools (take a deep breath, it's still a knockout comp): Victoria, NSW/Capital Football, Nthn NSW/Qld, WA/NT and SA.

A diagram version of the draw – based on the Australian A-League sides (No Wellington 

Phoenix, they should be playing in the NZ domestic Cup) and the winners/top fives of the assorted state leagues I could find - can be found here. Be sure to right click! It's a bit rough and made from a dodgy excel template generator, but you'll get the picture. You gotta scroll to worksheets 10 and 11 too. Sorry.

In round one, teams would only be able to be drawn against teams from the same pool - that would create the chance of some A-League sides copping each other early, thus opening up the draw for the underdogs. It would also increase the chance of a state league power facing to their intra-state A-League counterparts. For example, Sydney FC v Sydney United might be more meaningful and well-supported than Sydney FC versus a state league team from, say, South Australia, at least in the opening stages.

I'd also have any games involving state league clubs against A-League clubs at suburban stadiums or regional venues to help the gate of the smaller outfit.

The pools would be:

NSW: Sydney FC, Central Coast Mariners (A-League), the top five NSW state league sides and the champions of the Canberra-based Capital Football. (4 games)

Victoria: Melbourne Victory, Melbourne Heart (A-League), the top five Victorian State League clubs and the title holders from Tasmania. (4 games)

Queensland/Nth NSW: Brisbane Roar, Gold Coast United, Newcastle Jets (A-League), the best team in the Northern NSW league and the best four from Queensland. (4 games)

South Australia: Adelaide United and the three best clubs in SA. (2 games)

Western Australia: Perth Glory, two WA teams and one from the Northern Territory. (2 games)

The draw would remain be restricted to the pools for the round of 16, with another in-pool draw. This would be aimed at reducing the travel costs of the smaller clubs and fostering the intra-state rivalries between A-League sides and their state league counterparts. Again, I’d like to see games played at suburban or regional centres, rather than the big grounds.

At the quarter-final stage, the draw would be thrown open with all the teams left standing against each other, same as the semi-finals.

I’d have the semi-finals played as double header at the same ground to a) give the best chance of a full house and magical atmosphere and b) encourage massive media coverage and ease the logistical pressures.

The ground I’d pick would be AAMI Park in Melbourne, which I’d also like to see host the final – Australia’s answer to Wembley, if you will.

The possibilities - and benefits - are obvious.

“Old soccer” would meet “new football” in the one place it matters – on the pitch. Save the quality example of the Melbourne Victory and Melbourne Heart, who will play in the next Mirabella Cup against the Victorian state league clubs, there isn’t a lot of this going on.

Former NSL clubs would get a lifeline back to the elite and a chance to celebrate their proud and vibrant histories in a meaningful fashion.

There could be a live midweek press conference to draw the rounds – imagine people from Melbourne Knights or Sydney United huddled around their TV sets, finding out they’d be playing Melbourne Victory or Sydney FC the following weekend! Or the uproar if Newcastle Jets cop Gold Coast United in round one!

There should be specific weekends – sorry, match days – spliced into the league schedule where these games could be played, a la the FA Cup. In lieu of league games, TV could cover these. Or, once the current deal is up, sell the cup as a different package – I’m sure SBS would snap this up in a heartbeat.

Cup competitions provide the obvious romance of an underdog knocking off a big team, although while this comp is in its infancy I’d have draws decided by 30 minutes each way, then penalties, to save time/expense of replays.

Rubbing shoulders in a competitive situation with the biggest clubs in the land would show lower clubs what it would take to become elite at player, coaching, admin and supporter levels. This in turn could get them ready for a B-League – which I hope comes in the next 10 years - or expansion – which I hope comes when the time is right and all clubs are on a solid footing.

Having A-League clubs playing all their games away - or if drawn against another top-flight side, in a country/regional venue - would take elite football and footballers to places that don’t get a lot of A-League at the moment. And there’s plenty of places that don’t. Ask the potential fans in Canberra. Or Western Sydney. Or Wollongong. Or Geelong. Or Hobart. Or now, sadly, Townsville. 

Of course, it would also fulfil one of the requirements for Australia to win another

Asian Champions League spot.

I don’t often go begging for feedback – but I’d like it on this one. Click here to send me your responses and ideas.

2011 NRL Previews - Dragons and Rabbitohs

It was another sleepy day in NRL land – perhaps it’s the calm before mercifully, the footy starts. Only two sleeps and four teams to go! However, be warned, there's plenty of time for atrocities, drama, scandal and downright boneheadedness to emerge before a tackle is made in anger.

Today, I look at the two most successful clubs in rugby league history – the St George Illawarra Dragons and the Russell Crowe-owned South Sydney Rabbitohs. 

The Dragons ended 31 years of premiership torment with a crushing win over Sydney Roosters in last year’s grand final. With that demon dead-and-buried, people are looking around for the next team that has a hoodoo to break and guess what? It’s South Sydney, who haven’t won the big one since 1971 – 40 years! The Dragons are likely to be right there again this year, while the Bunnies have their best chance since at least 1988.

There's another little subplot here - South Sydney, along with the Brisbane Broncos, the soon-to-be-privatised Newcastle Knights and the loving arms of retirement - are strong contenders to lure supercoach Wayne Bennett away from the Red V.

St George Illawarra

Home Ground: WIN Stadium/WIN Jubilee Oval

Coach: Wayne Bennett

Premierships: 16 (1941, 1949, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1977, 1979, 2010)

2010 finish: 1st

First five rounds: Titans (a), Sharks (a), Warriors (a), Knights (a), Bulldogs (h)

IN: Adam Cuthbertson, 25, back row/prop (Cronulla), Daniel Penese, 21, backrower (Penrith), David Gower, 25, prop (Wests Tigers)

OUT: Jarrod Saffy (Melbourne Rebels - Super Rugby), Beau Henry (Newcastle Knights), Neville Costigan (Newcastle Knights), Kalifa Fai-Fai Loa (North Queensland Cowboys), Jeremy Smith (Cronulla), Michael Lett (Canterbury-Bankstown), Luke Priddis (Retired), Ricky Thorby (North Queensland Cowboys), Junior Paulo (Penrith).

Why they can win it: Have clearly been the most consistent and well-coached team of the past two seasons and showing little sign of slipping in 2011. Already collected a heap of silverware, winning the Charity Shield and World Club Challenge. Half Ben Hornby and centre Matt Cooper both have one big season left in them, while Darius Boyd, Brett Morris, Jason Nightingale and Jamie Soward are getting better and better. Mark Gasnier has the benefit of a full NRL offseason, adding yet another dimesnion to their attack. Up front, Michael Weyman will shoulder the load, along with the likes Dan Hunt and Ben Creagh.

Why they can’t: Recent history tells us repeating as premiers is impossible. EVERYONE will be up to knock off the Dragons, making for a testing season. The losses of Jeremy Smith and Neville Costigan cast questions over the Dragons ability to handle the rough-and-tumble in the middle of the park. There’s also the uncertainty over the small matter of where Wayne Bennett might be coaching next season.

Prediction: 2^nd

South Sydney Rabbitohs

Home Ground: ANZ Stadium

Coach: John Lang

Premierships: 20 (1908, 1909, 1914, 1918, 1925, 1926, 1927, 1928, 1929, 1931, 1932, 1950, 1951, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1967, 1968, 1970, 1971)

2010 finish: 9th

First five rounds: Roosters (a), Bulldogs (h), Eels (a), Sea Eagles (h), Wests (a)

IN: George Burgess, 18, prop (Bradford Bulls), Greg Inglis, 23, centre (Melbourne Storm).

OUT: Colin Best (Cronulla), Luke Capewell (Gold Coast Titans), Jaiman Lowe (Melbourne Storm), Beau Champion (Melbourne Storm).

Why they can win it: Amazing pack. Luke Stuart, Issac Luke, Roy Asotasi, Sam Burgess, David Taylor, Ben Lowe, Scott Geddes, Ben Ross and Eddy Pettybourne – all named in the round one side – are as imposing a forward pack as any going around. If they stay fit, healthy and motivated, they could lay the platform for many a Bunnies’ victory – even the end of the 30-year premiership drought.

Why they can’t: For every tick in the forwards column, there’s a question mark in the backs. Sutton at his best is an awesome pivot, but halves partner Sandow goes missing too often. Wesser is too small and too old. Inglis, the unquestioned headline act, had a horror offseason. Souths were the dumbest team in the comp last year, shooting themselves in the foot when said foot was on the opposition’s throat.

Prediction: 8th

The FFA ...

Last week, Australian domestic football suffered another hammerblow when the FFA decided to pull the pin on the North Queensland Fury.

The Townsville-based club was, along with Gold Coast United, admitted during the first wave of A-League expansion in 2009.

However, the Fury succumbed to crippling debts - and the governing body's weariness of propping them up - after just two years.

Expansion, which has always been part of the grand plan for the rebooted national competition, has so far been a poisoned chalice.

North Queensland's fellow new boys, Gold Coast, have so far been one of the most poorly supported in the league's brief history and have been dogged by crowd caps and constant rumours about their future.

The second wave has been even worse - a second Sydney side was supposed to join Melbourne Heart this season. However, the team, Sydney Rovers, wasn't ready in time. The FFA decided to stagger the expansion, with Rovers to debut in 2011-2012. Disaster struck when the Rovers consortium was unable to raise the required capital (sound familiar?) and had their provisional licence revoked.

With the Fury's demise, the competition is back to 10 teams for next season, the same number as 2009-10 and two - TWO! - less than planned for 2011-12.

On top of that, the FFA continues to hold a major stake in the Brisbane Roar and only found owners for Adelaide recently.

Earlier in the season, Newcastle was days from folding until mining magnate Nathan Tinkler saved the day.

Sydney FC, the league's only team from Gosford to Melbourne, has been written off as a basket case.

Now, there are fears Wellington Phoenix could fold because its owner owes taxes to the New Zealand government and can’t secure loans to pay the bills.

So, what to do?

The FFA won't contemplate expansion again until the existing clubs are on a solid footing.

That means deserving areas such as Canberra, Sydney's west and Wollongong will have to wait. A solid foundation is better than jumping in too early and having new clubs sink.

Ten clubs. Half of what your garden-variety European league boasts - and with no relegation or promotion.

Some pundits believe promotion/relegation could be the key to the game's growth, but we barely have an A-League, let alone its 'B-League' equivalent.

The only eligible clubs - heavyweights from the state leagues - would find the step up impossible.

Scratch promotion and relegation. It’s not going happen any time soon.

As for the league this season, it has dragged on. Every team played 30 games, including an inordinate number of poorly subscribed midweek fixtures.

The FFA would hate to read this, but the league should be cut back to 18 games next year, under the traditional play each team home-and-away format. Give the fans a chance to miss you. Play only on the weekend.

That would mean with the month-long finals only 22 weeks of football each year - hardly enough to satisfy the all-important sponsors and television interests.

The solution? The long-awaited FFA Cup.

Watch this space - an idea will be here tomorrow.

2011 NRL Previews - Parramatta and Penrith

Except for my favourite club, Manly and the NRL getting into a petty slanging match about the comparative punishments of Brett Stewart compared with those of Todd Carney and Benji Marshall following their respective preseason ‘atrocities’, today was relatively quiet on the rugby league front. I’m not going to write much about the Manly-league stoush, except to say Manly are wrong to chip headquarters. Look after your own backyard, boys. Carney is alleged to have been .002 over the limit of a full licence holder and has told that he will be gone for good if he slips up again. Benji has been accused of bopping some drunken muppet in the mouth after a tasteless, race-based tirade.

Those alleged offences are not in the same ballpark as what Stewart was accused – and acquitted - of.

Manly have already claimed they want to be the most hated team in the comp and paraded their players in front of slick cars last week to prove it. Sooking about stuff that should be dead-and-buried might help the mighty maroon-and-whites get the hatred they crave, but it doesn’t do the team or the club any good.

All the clubs officially named their round one sides today, except for the Show Ponies South Sydney, who unveiled their team last week. Here are all the squads for the first weekend of the long-awaited 2011 season.

Today, I look at two clubs from the game’s western Sydney heartland – two sides that are fierce rivals and boast proud histories. However, I fear the most these sides – Parramatta and Penrith – can hope for this season is local bragging rights.

Parramatta Eels

Home Ground: Parramatta Stadium

Coach: Stephen Kearney

Premierships: 4 (1981, 1982, 1983, 1986)

2010 finish: 11^th

First five rounds: Warriors (a), Panthers (h), Rabbitohs (h), Cowboys (h), Storm (a)

IN: Brad Murray, 20, halfback (Sydney Roosters), Carl Webb, 29, prop (North Queensland Cowboys), Casey McGuire, 30, hooker (Catalans Dragons - Super League), Chris Hicks, 33, wing (Warrington Wolves - Super League), Chris Walker, 30, centre/wing (Catalans Dragons - Super League), Eni Folau, 18, centre/wing (Easts Tigers - Queensland Cup), Jordan Atkins, 27, wing (Gold Coast Titans), Paki Afu, 20, prop (Canterbury-Bankstown), Paul Whatuira, 29, centre (Huddersfield Giants - Super League), Reni Maitua, 28, back row (Suspension).

OUT: Nathan Cayless (Retired), Eric Grothe (Retired), Feleti Mateo (Warriors), Krisnan Inu (Warriors), Kris Keating (Canterbury-Bankstown), Jonathan Wright (Canterbury-Bankstown), Timana Tahu (Released).

Why they can win it: Jarryd Hayne. Daniel Mortimer, if he can recover from his crippling case of second year syndrome. Looked the team to beat before a ball was kicked last year, but were disappointing. 2011 is the year to atone.

Why they can’t: Look at their recruitment – it looks like a 2005 NRL reunion show! Most of the players the Eels have brought in were at one stage gun, or at the least very good, NRL players. Now, the Eels camp resembles a place where NRL careers come to die.

Prediction: 9th

Penrith Panthers

Home Ground: Centrebet Stadium

Coach: Matthew Elliott

Premierships: 2 (1991, 2002)

2010 finish: 2nd

First five rounds: Knights (h), Eels (h), Sharks (h), Broncos (a), Raiders (h)

IN: Arana Taumata, 21, five-eighth (North Queensland Cowboys), Coedi Towney, 19, fullback (The Entrance - Bundaberg Red Cup), Dayne Weston, 24, back row/prop (North Queensland Cowboys), Michael Worrincy, 24, back row (Bradford Bulls - Super League), Nafe Seluini, 20, utility (Warriors), Brendon Gibb, 22, back row (Norths Devils - Queensland Cup), Junior Paulo, 27, prop (St George Illawarra), Tim Winitana, 23, centre (Canterbury-Bankstown), Yileen Gordon, 23, centre/back row (Canterbury-Bankstown).

OUT: Wade Graham (Cronulla), Frank Pritchard (Canterbury-Bankstown), Gavin Cooper (North Queensland Cowboys), Josh Bateman (North Queensland Cowboys), Maurice Blair (Melbourne Storm), Daniel Penese (St George Illawarra).

Why they can win it: Penrith will be keen to prove last year’s second-placed finish wasn’t a flash in the pan. Lachlan Coote and Michael Jennings are dynamic. Petero Civoniceva remains the biggest, baddest bopper in the game. Luke Walsh has a decent kicking game.

Why they can’t: Frank Puletua’s defection has robbed them of a potential match-winner. They were brutally exposed at the end of 2010 when they went out of the play-offs in straight sets. Many, many people have written them off after attracting a bunch of cast-offs, head cases and plodders for the new season. I concur.

Prediction: 15th

2011 NRL Preview - Warriors and Cowboys

Today, two teams that have a bit in common - they came into the competition as part of rugby league's brave new world in 1995, both made a grand final only to lose and have been up-and-down during their respective histories. One will probably have a good season, the other is my pick for the dreaded wooden spoon.

New Zealand Warriors

Home Ground: Ericsson Stadium

Coach: Ivan Cleary

Premierships: Nil

2010 finish: 5th

First five rounds: Eels (h), Wests (a), Dragons (h), Sharks (a), Roosters (h)

IN: Krisnan Inu, 23, centre (Parramatta), Feleti Mateo, 26, five-eighth/back row (Parramatta), Shaun Berrigan, 32, hooker (Hull FC), Steve Rapira, 22, back row (North Queensland Cowboys).

OUT: Brent Tate (North Queensland Cowboys), Siuatonga Likiliki (Newcastle Knights), Ian Henderson (Catalans Dragons - Super League), Elijah Niko (Melbourne Storm), Patrick Ah Van (Bradford Bulls - Super League), Mark Ioane (Canberra), Nafe Seluini (Penrith), Steve Price (Retired), Jesse Royal (Retired).

Why they can win it: Big, angry pack of forwards. Pretty slick backline. If the new faces of Inu, Mateo and Berrigan are at their best, the Warriors will be one of the most formidable and dangerous teams in the comp. Big if. The sheer mention of Manu Vatuvei’s name sends a chill down the spine of rival wingers.

Why they can’t: Inconsistent. Can’t win across the Tasman. Look the goods so often, only to slip up when it counts(last year’s finals, anyone?)

Prediction: 7th

North Queensland Cowboys

Home Ground: Dairy Farmers Stadium

Coach: Neil Henry

Premierships: Nil

2010 finish: 15^th

First five rounds: Broncos (a), Knights (a), Storm (h), Eels (a), Titans (h)

IN: Antonio Winterstein, 22, wing (Brisbane Broncos), Ashton Sims, 25, prop (Brisbane Broncos), Ben Jones, 20, centre/five-eighth/hooker (Sydney Roosters), Blake Leary, 20, back row (Melbourne Storm), Brent Tate, 28, centre (Warriors), Dallas Johnson, 28, back row (Catalans Dragons - Super League), Dominic Walsh, 19, centre (Gold Coast Titans), Gavin Cooper, 25, back row (Penrith), Kalifa Fai-Fai Loa, 20, centre (St George Illawarra), Lancen Joudo, 22, hooker (Cronulla), Rick Thorby, 25, back row/prop (St George Illawarra), Tariq Sims, 20, prop: (Brisbane Broncos).

OUT: Steve Rapira (Warriors), Anthony Watts (Sydney Roosters), Luke O'Donnell (Huddersfield Giants - Super League), Ty Williams (Retired), Carl Webb (Parramatta), Nick Slyney (Released), Willie Mason (Hull Kingston Rovers - Super League), Arana Taumata (Penrith), John Williams (Cronulla).

Why they can win it: That Jonathon Thurston can play a bit. Fai-Fai Loa could be a revelation catching Thurston’s insane cut-out balls and using lighting footwork to make defenders look foolish.

Why they can’t: Neil Henry could well be the first coach sacked after the season starts. He has virtually a new team to incorporate, which is good after a sad-sack side was only saved the wooden spoon by the naughty boys in Melbourne. However, the new faces look like scraps and cast-offs from other clubs. Sometimes, one man’s trash is another man’s trash.

Prediction: Unless someone has been cooking the books again, they will get the spoon this year.