Roosters vs Sea Eagles

Matchup - The battle of the halves will be massive, but both teams have very different forward packs. The Roosters pack is physical whereas Manly's pack is subtle, very subtle. This will decide the game.

Key men - The centres for both teams. They are the focal point of their teams attack and are four very good NRL players. Much of the defensive work will start with these lads as well.

Keep an eye on - Shaun Kenny-Dowall's return to form. Last year was up and down for SKD but he's looking back to his best.

Verdict - Manly <12. I said it in the podcast so have to roll with it, they're starting to click and put together a solid team out each week.

Dragons vs Broncos

Matchup - Gareth Widdop vs Josh Hoffman. Both play 6 but have very different roles, yet they are both equally important. The Broncos need Hoffman to help out as he is a dangerous ball runner and use his left boot wisely while everything the Dragons do goes through Widdop.

Key men - Leeson Ah Mau and Ben Creagh. A lot of the Broncos attack goes down the edges with Alex Glenn, Sam Thaiday and Matt Gillett looking good recently as well as Ben Barba chiming in. Ah Man and Creagh will need to be very strong on defence in their opening shift.

Keep an eye on - Much like SKD, Gerard Beale is another kiwi centre who is finding a great vein of form.

Verdict - Broncos <12. Two form teams, but the Broncos have too much strike power especially with Barba finding his feet.

Bulldogs vs Storm

Matchup - Josh Reynolds vs Ben Hampton. Reynolds has looked awesome so far this season and Hampton will be up against someone who likes to dominate physically and mentally.

Key men - Will Chambers and Mahe Fonua. Not only will the be up against very good centres in Josh Morris and Tim Lafai but they'll have to do a lot of work against Frank Pritchard and Tony Williams as well.

Keep an eye on - Young Tonumaipea coming up against Chase Stanley who is usually a centre. Tonumaipea should have the advantage and is in some hot form.

Verdict - Storm <12. Big clash in Perth, but the Storm should return from the West as winners thanks to the fact they have shown an ability to win in any situation so far this season.

Warriors vs West Tigers

Matchup - There's a few - Tomkins vs Tedesco, Johnson vs Brooks etc. But I'm going to go with the bench men. The Warriors bench offered plenty against the Cowboys and the Tigers benchers are four physical, aggressive, mobile young men.

Key Men - Chad Townsend and Braith Anasta. The supporting cast who will play a massive role in taking over the attack when they need to.

Keep an eye on - The use of Thomas Leuluai. Nathan Friend isn't one who needs a break and the Warriors are a bit light in genuine forward replacements. Don't be surprised to see Friend and Leuluai on the field at the same time.

Verdict - Warriors <12. I think the Warriors are at the start of the 'settling in' phase and if they can limit the Brooks/Tedesco combo then they should go alright.

Eels vs Panthers

Matchup - Hard to pin point one, but the battle of the edge players will be awesome to watch. The Eels have bigger lads like Kenny Edwards and Manu Ma'u where the Panthers have quicker lads like Lewis Brown and Elijah Taylor. A battle of styles.

Key men - Nathan Peats offers excellent dummy half play and needs to scoot out of dummy half as much as possible to get his lads rollin'.

Keep an eye on - Well it has to be Chris Sandow. The return of Sandow will make the Eels a very dangerous team.

Verdict - Eels <12. Sandow will add another dimension, making Jarryd Hayne a lot better and those around him play with a bit more enthusiasm.

Rabbitohs vs Raiders

Matchup - Joel Reddy/Bryson Goodwin vs Jarrod Croker/Matt Allwood. Two guys who are pretty much battlers against some in form centres.

Key man - Jack Wighton is in it for the long haul, but he needs to start stepping up to help Terry Campese or else the Raiders become a bit predictable.

Keep an eye on - Apisai Koroisau who repped Fiji at the World Cup last year and is filling in for Isaac Luke while Shannon Boyd is a big bopper who is impressing at NRL level for the Raiders. Oh and Bill Tupou making his return.

Verdict - Rabbitohs >12. Too much class and too strong defensively for the Raiders who rely heavily on a few players.

Knights vs Sharks

Matchup - Two very tough forward packs with not much separating them. Battler central.

Key man - Kurt Gidley has no cover at dummy half which means it will all be on him. Can he hang?

Keep an eye on - Young Korbin Sims is cut from the same Sims cloth as his older bros.

Verdict - Knights <12. The Knights have a bit of fire power out wide and will have to immerse themselves in a huge battle through the middle to reap any rewards.

Titans vs Cowboys

Matchup - David Taylor vs Jason Taumalolo. Two quick big men who have a range of plays designed for them, it'll be interesting viewing to see who has a bigger impact.

Key men - Paul Carter for the Titans and Ray Thompson for the Cowboys, coming off the bench these two will play a big role in adding to the platform laid by their starters.

Keep an eye on - How the Cowboys forward pack responds to their performance last week where their effect was severely limited.

Verdict - Cowboys <12. They're tough enough to kick it with the Titans but have more options on attack.