2021 NRL – St. George Illawarra Dragons vs New Zealand Warriors Preview & Prediction
THE FACTS
When is St. George Illawarra Dragons vs New Zealand Warriors taking place? Sunday 18th April, 2021 – 05:00 (UK)
Where is St. George Illawarra Dragons vs New Zealand Warriors taking place? Netstrata Jubilee Stadium, Sydney
Where can I get tickets for St. George Illawarra Dragons vs New Zealand Warriors? Click here for ticket information on 2021 NRL matches
What channel is St. George Illawarra Dragons vs New Zealand Warriors on? Sky Sports Arena will be televising selected NRL games in the UK and you can find their schedule here. For Australian broadcasters, you can find a list here
Where can I stream St. George Illawarra Dragons vs New Zealand Warriors? If televised on Sky Sports, then subscribers will be able to stream the match live via Sky Go. Alternatively, the match will be available to subscribers of Watch NRL
THE TEAM NEWS
ST. GEORGE ILLAWARRA DRAGONS
Starting 13: Dufty, Ramsey, Bird, Lomax, Ravalawa, Norman, Clune, Vaughan, McCullough, Merrin, Kerr, Sims, Fuimaono – Interchanges: Ellis, Alvaro, Wiliame, Ford – Reserves: Burns, McGuire
Unavailable: Jack de Belin (Suspended), Cameron McInnes (Injured), Jayden Sullivan (Injured), Ben Hunt (Injured), Blake Lawrie (Injured)
- It had already been an impressive start to the season for St. George Illawarra Dragons before they produced a brilliant all-round performance to see off unbeaten Parramatta Eels at Bankwest Stadium last week.
- The Dragons were excellent with their simple gameplan paying dividends and ultimately they were able to frustrate the Eels with more of the same expected while Josh McGuire could debut following his midweek move from North Queensland Cowboys.
NEW ZEALAND WARRIORS
Starting 13: Tuivasa-Sheck, Hiku, Pompey, Montoya, Maumalo, Nikorima, O’Sullivan, Ah Mau, Egan, Harris, Curran, Murchie, Tevaga – Interchanges: Murdoch-Masila, Afoa, Evans, Turner – Reserves: Berry, Taunoa-Brown
Unavailable: Karl Lawton (Injured), Euan Aitken (Injured), Chanel Harris-Tavita (Injured), Addin Fonua-Blake (Injured), Bayley Sironen (Injured), David Fusitu’a (Injured), Eliesa Katoa (Injured)
- New Zealand Warriors would have been fully expecting to be good enough to beat previously winless Manly Sea Eagles last week but some poor execution cost them as they slipped to a disappointing loss.
- With the scores locked in the dying seconds of the game, Daly Cherry-Evans kicked the winning field goal to punish some sloppy play from the Warriors and they will have to smarten up this week and ask more questions when they have the ball in the 20.
THE PREDICTION
St. George Illawarra Dragons are certainly the surprise package of 2021 but they cannot afford to believe their own hype just yet. They have a winnable game ahead of them here as they host New Zealand Warriors but complacency could be an issue if they do not come into the game with the same attitude that they showed in their sensational win over Parramatta Eels last week. The Warriors have some big improvements to make on their effort last week and with the Dragons running hot, the hosts can capitalise on the Kiwi side’s weaknesses to cover the -5.5 handicap here and make it five wins from six to begin the campaign.
