After an yet another gritty win on the weekend over the Newcastle Knights the Wests Tigers will be looking for more of the same formula when they tackle rivals South Sydney this Friday night. The Tigers weren't always impressive but still found a way to grab a much deserved win over the Knights at Hunter Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
Led by Luke Brooks, Robbie Farah, James Tedesco and Aaron Woods, Wests simply got the job done on Sunday and it's that formula that will be needed as Souths look to avenge their round 3 defeat at the hands of the Tigers. Wests will be missing Farah and Woods who are Origin II bound, whilst Liam Fulton is missing yet again with concussion.
Into the side come Joel Luani, Dene Halatau and Ava Seumanufagai, whilst Keith Lulia and Sitaleki Akauola are added on an extended bench. The final make up of the side for Friday night could go a couple of ways. The most likely formula should see Akauola and and Lulia drop off the bench. However Braith Anasta could well be a doubt after sustaining a shoulder injury on Sunday. If Anasta is unable to play then Blake Austin would move to five eighth with Dene Halatau sharing the hooking duties with Joel Luani. Halatau could still feature as a backrow option should Anasta suit up on Friday night.
Curtis Sironen moves into the starting line up this week and will be hoping for a little more good fortune after last weekend's return was ruined by an early concussion. Ironically he'll replace Liam Fulton who unfortunately has been hit with yet another concussion and will miss at least this week's match up.
For the Tigers, the key to success this week will again be matching the Burgess brothers. Whilst the loss of Farah and Woods is a blow to this objective, the Bunnies will be missing Ben Te'o and Chris McQueen from their forward pack. They'll also do without Greg Inglis. That trio all Origin bound as well. In a further blow for Souths, in form youngster Dylan Walker misses the clash with injury,
The key to this game will be the playmakers. Both forward packs look to be well matched so the presence of John Sutton, Adam Reynolds and Issac Luke gives the Bunnies a distinct advantage. Wests will rely heavily on the influence of Luke Brooks and James Tedesco, whilst Curtis Sironen will hope to cause trouble on the edges,
Souths appear to have the edge this week but the Tigers have made a point of upstaging more fancied opposition this season and for that i'll give us a good shot.
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