The St. George Illawarra Dragons and Manly Sea Eagles will both be looking to snap their respective two-game winning streaks when they square off in their round 9 matchup on Sunday. With Manly looking to break back into the top 8 and St. George completely desperate, let’s find out which team is offering the best betting value against their NRL odds in this affair.
NRL Sea Eagles Vs Dragons Round 9
Why Bet On The Dragons
The Dragons are sitting in 14th place in the NRL standings with four points. St. George has scored122 points this season while allowing 158 points defensively (-46). The Dragons have gone 1-2 at home and a dismal 1-4 on the road. The Dragons put up a great effort in the second half in coming from down 22-0 at the break to finish with a 22-16 loss against the Canberra Raiders on Friday. Matthew Duffy scored a pair of tries and Zac Lomax added another, plus a pair of conversions in the loss. Now, heading into round 9, Tariq Sims is back from a wrist injury in the second row and Tyrell Fuimaono moves to the bench while Korbin Sims moves to the reserves. Ben Hunt starts at hooker with Cameron McInnes in the No.13 jersey and Trent Merrin back to the bench. Jordan Pereira replaces Jason Saab on the wing.
Why Bet On The Sea Eagles
Manly is sitting in 10th place in the NRL standings with eight points. The Sea Eagles have scored 129 points while allowing an identical 129 points defensively this season (0). Manly has gone an uninspiring 2-3 at home and solid 2-1 on the road this season. The Sea Eagles come into this matchup off a narrow, 14-12 home loss against the Newcastle Knights on Sunday. Daly Cherry-Evans and Cade Cust scored tries and Reuben Garrick went 2-for-2 on conversions in the crushing defeat that dropped Manly out of the top 8. Now, heading into round 9, Taniela Paseka gets the start at prop for the suspended Addin Fonua-Blake with Morgan Boyle the new name on the bench.
General Match Info Manly Sea Eagles (4-0-4) vs. St. George Illawarra Dragons (2-0-6)
- When: Sunday, July 12, 2020 at 3:30 AM AEST
- Where: Netstrata Jubilee Stadium, Sydney
- Sea Eagles Vs Dragons Live: Nine/Fox Sports
- Handicap: Sea Eagles -2.5
- Money Lines: Dragons +114 / Sea Eagles -138
Expert Analysis and Prediction
The Dragons won four straight in this rivalry before the Sea Eagles snapped that streak by recording an emphatic 34-14 home win the last time these two met on June 16, 2019. With that said, Manly is still the better team right now and despite being on the road, I fully expect them to get the much-needed win to snap their two-game skid. St. George has been held to 16 points or less in each of their two losses and they only managed to put up 2 points against the lowly Bulldogs in round 4 while getting shut out by New Zealand in round 3. I’m sorry, but I just don’t have a whole lot of faith in the Dragons getting the job done in this clash, even at home. Manly wins and covers the chalk in doing so!
Pick: Sea Eagles 24 Dragons 20
Telstra Premiership 2020 Round 9 Matches
- Roosters vs Cowboys – Thursday 9th July, 05:50 AM | Queensland Country Bank Stadium, Townsville
- Warriors vs Titans – Friday 10th July, 04:00 AM | Cbus Super Stadium, Gold Coast
- Wests Tigers vs Rabbitohs – Friday 10th July, 05:55 AM | Bankwest Stadium, Sydney
- Panthers vs Sharks – Friday 10th July, 01:00 AM | Netstrata Jubilee Stadium, Sydney
- Bulldogs vs Broncos – Saturday 11th July, 03:30 AM | Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
- Storm vs Raiders – Saturday 11th July, 05:35 AM | GIO Stadium, Canberra
- Eels vs Knights – Sunday 12th July, 02:05 AM | McDonald Jones Stadium, Newcastle
