Dragons vs Titans

Match Up: Mitch Rein vs Nathan Peats. With no dummy half on their bench for the past few weeks, Rein is now doing an 80 minute job and as Peats is settling into his work with Gold Coast nicely, Nathan Friend is slowly stepping aside. They both love to scoot around the middle of the park and keep markers around the ruck honest, which then leads into just how important they are to sparking their respective team's attack. Also note that Rein and Peats are in that second-tier group of hookers who are above average, but not quite as good as the likes of Cameron Smith, Issac Luke etc.

Key Man: Assuming Josh Dugan plays, he's going to be crucial in the run home for the Dragons. First and foremost is having Dugan play consistently at fullback as he's featured sporadically thanks to injury and Origin, then it's what his dynamic running game offers and how it compliments the work of his halves. The Titans are a big, physical side and Dugan's perfectly suited to break them down whether it's through the middle or out on the edges.

Keep An Eye On: Tariq Sims is getting in where he fits in after leaving Newcastle to join the Dragons. He's coming off the bench at the moment and is a useful bench player as he can genuinely play on an edge and through the middle, plus he gives the Dragons a bit of power that they've lacked for much of the season.

Verdict: Titans <12. I love this Titans forward pack.

Sea Eagles vs Warriors

Match Up: Jake Trbojevic vs Simon Mannering. Expect the total tackles between Trbojevic and Mannering to be up around 100, there's a lot more to this battle than the work of two defensive specialists in the middle. Both lads have a good pair of hands which enables them to offload as well as stepping in at first receiver and flicking a pass on, there's also their work in carting the footy up as they play big minutes and take many tough carries while other blokes are having a breather.

Key Man: While Daly Cherry-Evans will run the show for Manly, Jamie Lyon will be in charge of the play-making duties down their right edge - where Solomone Kata will be defending with either Ken Maumalo or Manu Vatuvei. If Lyon is at his best, offering a slick kicking game and expert distribution, then Manly will pose a threat down either edge and the Warriors could be found out trying to deal with covering either edge and the middle. Lyon can however be slightly off and if that's the case then all eyes will be on DCE, making Manly more predictable and less threatening.

Keep An Eye On: Brad Parker starts on the wing for Manly and Tuimoala Lolohea will come off the bench - how Lolohea is used will be interesting.

Verdict: Warriors >12. Manly's home game in Perth, making it basically a home game for the Warriors. And the Warriors are well equipped to dominate.

Rabbitohs vs Broncos

Match Up: Adam Reynolds vs Ben Hunt. They are very similar halfbacks so that will make this an interesting contest without the context of both their teams struggling. When you look at either team list, you wonder how these teams have found themselves knee deep in a mid-season slump and while there's a variety of factors at play, perhaps that neither Reynolds or Hunt has been a dominant force is a low key factor. Reynolds has just seen New South Wales win without him so expect him to play with a chip on his shoulder and Hunt simply needs to step up as we near Finals footy.

Key Man: Adam Blair isn't a highlights player, he does a heck of a lot of dirty work and manages to influence a game without actually doing anything of note. Against the Bunnies, Blair's work through the middle will be crucial as he chops Burgess brothers down, slows them down with some niggly wrestle and puts pressure on Reynolds and Luke Keary's kicking game.

Keep An Eye On: There's constant noise about Greg Inglis possibly wanting to finish his career in Brisbane, so any time he faces the Broncos make sure you keep an eye trained on him. Marion Seve has also been named on an extended bench and as we've got no idea what line up Wayne Bennett will roll out after Origin, maybe we'll see Seve play in the centres. Seve is apparently the net big thing and was signed by Brisbane from the Tigers last season.

Verdict: Brisbane <12. I have faith, they'll flick that switch.

Knights vs Storm

Match Up: Jarrod Mullen vs Blake Green. Mullen is back after a length injury lay-off and he's coming up against one of the best No.6's in the NRL right now in Green. This is interesting to me because Green is an expert at merely doing his job (easy in the Storm system) and as this is Mullen's first game back, he could overplay his hand and the difference between the two individuals right now could be crystal clear.

Key Man: Many have slept on the work of Young Tonumaipea at fullback for the Storm - he's been at fullback through much of the Storm's strong mid-season form. He's no Billy Slater, nor is he Cameron Munster, he is a nifty runner who has a nice mix of footwork, power and speed while also doing enough play-making to fill the void left by Slater/Munster.

Keep An Eye On: Watching the Knights can be fun ... and tiresome so I usually find myself paying more attention to their opposition. That will continue to be the case, although I'll be keeping close tabs on Sione Mata'utia as an edge forward. This looks like a permanent move by coach Nathan Brown and Mata'utia has the physical capacity to be a dangerous edge forward, he also has time now to gain experience in that position.

Verdict: Storm >12. Too good.

Panthers vs Eels

Match Up: Zak Hardaker vs Michael Jennings. Hopefully my NRL mathematics work is correct and we'll see Hardaker line up against Jennings because Jennings is coming in hot from a Origin match-winner and Hardaker is, well, Hardaker's new to the NRL. This will be a big test for Hardaker's NRL credentials and we'll know a lot more about him after this game (Matt Moylan could be rested, Hardaker to fullback and we won't get my match up *sad face emoji*).

Key Man: Regan Campbell-Gillard is the leader of Penrith's enthusiasm through the middle and as the Eels severely lack some play-making nous, Penrith will probably just need to do the job through the middle and let their skillful backline create chances. Campbell-Gillard needs to get up off their defensive line quickly and impose himself physically to ensure that the Eels forwards don't keep them in this game.

Keep An Eye On: Suddenly Jeff Robson finds himself in a weird position where he's gotta carry the load for Parramatta with their two starting halves no longer in the team (Norman could be back). Robson's playing for contracts at this stage of his career, it's just a shitty spot he's found himself in at the Eels.

Verdict: Panthers <12. No Norman, not many points ... it's a good test of Penrith's forward pack though.

Roosters vs Sharks

Match Up: Big, angry, powerful forward pack vs the grown man forward pack. The Roosters will roll out their best forward pack and we tend to forget that they haven't had their best forward pack on the field together all that often this season, they'll face off against a Sharks forward pack that will niggle, frustrate and generally not take any sort of backwards step. This will be 'must watch' footy and expect your Monday night to be lit up by two brutal forward packs.

Key Man: You don't really notice how good Boyd Cordner is until you watch the Roosters play without him and then see Cordner make a return from injury ... which unfortunately happens too often. Cordner is huge, has great feet and runs good lines as all good edge forwards do, plus he'll likely line up against Wade Graham which will be a funky contest.

Keep An Eye On: It's a full-strength Roosters forward pack, what holds me back from getting excited about their hopes of salvaging this season is the rotating cast in that No.6 jersey. Ryan Matterson has a chance to try make this spot his in the back-end of the NRL season.

Verdict: Sharks <12. Can see the Chooks winning, just gotta go with the Sharks and their grit.