PRE-GAME Round 24 - Broncos vs Dragons

[Porthoz]

He was stumped by the allegations.

Can we stop these legless rumours?

 

[Super Freak]

Korbin Sims relishing battle with older brother Tariq as Broncos look to end Dragons shot at NRL finals

KORBIN Sims has predicted a “fiery encounter” is on the cards when his Brisbane Broncos attempt to end the season of brother Tariq’s Dragons.

The Sims brothers will clash at Suncorp Stadium on Friday night in a game St George-Illawarra must win to stay in finals contention.

There is just as much on the line for the Broncos who will have a home semi-final and double chance if they can hold on to their spot in the top two.

After four seasons at Newcastle, Korbin returned to the Broncos late in the pre-season and has cemented a spot in Brisbane’s starting front row.

The 25-year-old has only missed one match this season and is ready to butt heads with his big brother.

“It’s going to be fiery if we have an encounter together,” Korbin said.

“That’s football. There is no love lost between Tariq and I. We both know that. We have played against each other before.

“I haven’t really spoken to him yet. I’ll try and treat it like another game.”

The Dragons burst out of the blocks this season and were destined to play finals, only to suffer a fade out which has seen them drop to ninth.

On the other hand the Broncos have quietly been going about their business and one more win will all but secure a crucial top-four finish.

The move north has been a godsend for Sims following some tough seasons at Newcastle and he wants to make the most of the position the Broncos are in.

“I personally think I’m helping out the team as best as I can,” he said.

“I thought with a fresh start, new club and new year I was just trying to make the side to start.

“To be 20-odd games in with the Broncos has been a great incentive for myself.

“I’m trying to play some decent footy for the club.”

Broncos captain Darius Boyd is expected to be available for the Dragons game despite suffering an unfortunate injury in last Friday’s win against Cronulla.

Boyd broke a tooth and will undergo surgery this week to remove it.

http://www.couriermail.com.au/sport...s/news-story/98ebee9e5bff1eac1044cb8df9bfe534

 

[Morkel]

Boyd got his tooth broken with that high shot, despite wearing a mouth guard. Yet Sharks fans thought he was milking it.

 

[Stix]

Boyd got his tooth broken with that high shot, despite wearing a mouth guard. Yet Sharks fans thought he was milking it.

I thought he was milking it too...ha

 

[GCBRONCO]

http://www.broncos.com.au/news/2017/08/15/injury_update_ben_hu.html

BEN Hunt has been cleared of any serious injury after a training mishap this morning.
Hunt left the field with a painful arm injury at Red Hill near the end of the session after coming into contact with a teammate.
He was immediately sent for scans but there was nothing to indicate any serious damage.
Hunt is expected to be named for Friday’s match against Dragons at Suncorp Stadium when Wayne Bennett releases the team this afternoon.
“Ben was sent for precautionary scans this morning but there was no evidence of any fracture,” said Broncos’ High Performance Manager Jeremy Hickmans.
“We will look after him over the next couple of days and expect he will be right to play against the Dragons on Friday night.”
The Broncos will name the team at 4pm this afternoon.

 

[Super Freak]

Hunt plays down Dragons clash

Ben Hunt says it is business as usual as he prepares to face the St George-Illawarra Dragons for the first time since announcing he would be joining the club at season's end. You're all going to hell.

The Brisbane utility will link with Paul McGregor's men in 2018 after signing with the Red V in January but for now he has unfinished business with the Broncos – starting with Friday's clash against the desperate Dragons.

It is a strange scenario for Hunt, with a loss for the ninth-placed St George-Illawarra set to all but end their top-eight hopes.

But the 27-year-old is firmly focused on securing a Broncos victory that would almost guarantee Brisbane a top-four finish.

"I'm approaching it the same as I would approach any game. We've had one training session already and we trained really hard.

I'm not doing anything different. I'm just going to go out and prepare as well as I can," Hunt said.

"[I'm not expecting] extra scrutiny. It's the same game for me. I'm preparing like I do every other week and trying to play the best possible game for the Broncos. I'm a Bronco for the rest of the year."

Hunt may be a Bronco until the end of the season, but he admits to keeping one eye on the form of the side he will play for next year.

His five-year deal with the Dragons is one of the richest in the NRL and he was full of praise when asked about the form of the club that rates him so highly.

"I've watched a few of their games this year and I think they've got a quality side," he said.

"I don't know if they are too wobbly. I know they are fighting to stay inside the top eight. I definitely think they have a quality side looking into the future."

The Dragons are sure to have their work cut out for them when they travel to Suncorp Stadium on Friday night, with Hunt leading a rejuvenated Broncos attack that has stacked on the points in recent weeks.

Hunt has been a revelation since moving to hooker, adding another attacking dimension to the Broncos as they look to end their 11-year premiership drought.

It is no coincidence that Brisbane have scored 86 points in the two weeks that Hunt has been in the No.9 jersey, with the Queensland Maroons representative doing a stellar job after taking over from the injured Andrew McCullough.

A halfback at heart, Hunt is sacrificing his preferred position for the team and he hopes to be able to play 80 minutes at hooker in the near future.

"Honestly I'd still rather be in the halves but I am enjoying it. Having two big wins makes it a bit easier," Hunt said.

"[The workload] is definitely a lot more, but in the two games I've played there's been a lot of stoppages so I don't think I've been tested too much.

"In a couple of games I think I'll be in a position where I can [play 80 minutes]. I'd like to have a crack at it."

http://www.nrl.com/hunt-plays-down-dragons-clash/tabid/10874/newsid/111041/default.aspx

 

[winslow_wong]

We need ben hunt more than ever. A training injury would be disastrous

 

[Super Freak]

We need ben hunt

A scary thought.

 

[GCBRONCO]

BRONCOS NRL SQUAD
1. Darius Boyd ©
2. Corey Oates
3. James Roberts
4. Tautau Moga
5. Jordan Kahu
6. Anthony Milford
7. Kodi Nikorima
8. Korbin Sims
9. Ben Hunt
10. Adam Blair
11. Alex Glenn
12. Matt Gillett
13. Josh McGuire
Interchange:
14. Sam Thaiday
15. Tevita Pangai
16. Jai Arrow
17. Herman Ese’ese
18. Benji Marshall
19. David Mead
20. Jaydn Su’A
21. Tom Opacic

 

[GCBRONCO]

Dragons: 1. Matthew Dufty 2. Nene Macdonald 3. Josh Dugan 4. Timoteo Lafai 5. Jason Nightingale 6. Gareth Widdop 7. Kurt Mann 8. Leeson Ah Mau 9. Cameron McInnes 10. Paul Vaughan 11. Tyson Frizell 12. Joel Thompson 13. Jack de Belin. Interchange: 14. Tariq Sims 15. Hame Sele 16. Blake Lawrie 17. Taane Milne 18. Josh McCrone 19. Will Matthews 20. Luciano Leilua 21. Euan Aitken

 

[Kyall]

I have been right the last 2 weeks about big margin wins and I see no difference this week.

 

[Aldo]

I have been right the last 2 weeks about big margin wins and I see no difference this week.

How'd the previous 21 predictions go?

 

[Kyall]

Not so good I picked a close 1 though

 

[Alec]

Lets see if our forward pack can muscle up again. Drags have a pretty gun pack.

 

[uptheguts]

Something seems to have clicked in attack over the last few weeks. The halves are just playing with confidence and the fowards are really muscling up . The signs were there in that hard fought loss to Parra.

We are starting to look slick and dngerous. Miilford seems to have regained his pace . Moga just improves every week. Boyd is running hard and fast. Corey Oates looks fresh and fast. Even Thaiday is picking up his game. Hunt looks determined to go out a winner.

Could this be our year?

 

[Sproj]

It could certainly be, the only thing standing in our way is a big obstacle, a fantastic team from Melbourne with an equally fantastic record against us.

 

[Number6]

Something seems to have clicked in attack over the last few weeks. The halves are just playing with confidence and the fowards are really muscling up . The signs were there in that hard fought loss to Parra.

We are starting to look slick and dngerous. Miilford seems to have regained his pace . Moga just improves every week. Boyd is running hard and fast. Corey Oates looks fresh and fast. Even Thaiday is picking up his game. Hunt looks determined to go out a winner.

Could this be our year?

Hope so.

I think it's obvious what has clicked. Hunt not stinking up Alfie's hallowed jersey and providing faster service from dummy half. But let's not carried away they have done great in breaking the rule of the last 5 years of making crap teams play and look better, but both Titans and Sharks were terrible.

Boyd is running harder because he seems out of form and hopefully has insight that he has to go harder to make up for it (pity he doesn't see the need for that intensity rest of the year). Moga towelled a second rower not a real centre and still makes mistakes and dumb decisions. Oates is making uncharacteristic mistakes he still needs time to get over his illness and rust. Love what Thaiday is doing but needs to be at dummy half more than 50% (note Thaiday again steps it up when his future contract is questioned). They need to keep progressing to win against Roorters and the wwe storm.

Plenty of ups and am cautiously optimistic but hope boys don't get full of themselves when so far they are just flat track bullies.

 

[heartly87]

I want to see us building on the last few weeks. I want to see our forwards hitting and sticking, making meters and our backs carving and scoring points. There is a foundation here that can win a premiership. The #1st attacking team and #3rd best defense in the comp. I want the dragons punished. Love this feeling.