NRL Round 14 Preview
Rabbitohs vs West Tigers
Matchup - Adam Reynolds vs Luke Brooks. Reynolds is coming back in to some form for the Bunnies and he'll be up against the kid on the come up, gunning for the best young half title.
Key man - Nathan Merritt. With Greg Inglis on Origin duty, Merritt returns and he'll have to provide some link play as well as running the ball effectively.
Keep an eye on - Curtis Sironen, up against a big pack it will be a good test for Sironen. He'll provide some skills on the edge and could line up against Sam Burgess which would be awesome to see.
Verdict - Tigers <12. Weakened by Origin and injury, the Bunnies will struggle to match the Tedesco/Brooks combo.
Panthers vs Dragons
Matchup - Isaah Yeo vs Charly Runciman. Two very young centres with a heap of potential. Will be a great battle and they'll be keen to impress.
Key man - Adam Quinlan. Both Gareth Widdop and Benji Marshall will be tightly marked and have game plans sussed to limit their success, but Quinlan could provide some sneaky class touches.
Keep an eye on - Shane Pumipi has done a good job coming of the bench for the Dragons at hooker.
Verdict - Panthers <12. At home, the Panthers should be too tough and clinical for the Dragons.
Roosters vs Knights
Matchup - Jared Waerea-Hargreaves vs Willie Mason. Two big boppers who put their teams on their back and take great pride in dominating the middle.
Key man - Jake Mamo. He'll be much more lively than Darius Boyd and if he can spark the Knights then they could have some sort of chance.
Keep an eye on - Willis Meehan, he's a man-child and will come off the bench for the Roosters. He's also a quality boxer.
Verdict - Rooster >12. Hard to go past the Chooks here.
Bulldogs vs Eels
Matchup - Greg Eastwood/Tony Williams vs Manu Ma'u. Ma'u switches edges during the game we'll be treated to some great battles between these lads.
Key man - Joseph Paulo will have to get his hands on the ball as much as he can with Jarryd Hayne out. Paulo will be the spark.
Keep an eye on - Damien Cook at halfback for the Bulldogs. See what he's got.
Verdict - Eels <12. They'll be able to match the Dogs forward pack and have the skill outwide to break down the Dogs defence.
Titans vs Storm
Matchup - Albert Kelly vs Ben Hampton. Two decent young halves who will have to impact the game for their teams to win as their fellow halves (Maurice Blair/Ben Roberts) will be solid, but won't spark their team to victory.
Key man - Ryan Hinchcliffe, he's the most experienced and toughness Storm player out there. He'll need to control the game and keep the Storm on the right track.
Keep an eye on - How this Storm team goes, they have many faces of the future and could either step up or show that they have plenty of growing to do.
Verdict - Storm <12. I reckon they'll step up, they still have some quality forwards in their and Craig Bellamy will have lit a fuse up their backsides.