[shantystar]

Parramatta Eels Canterbury Bulldogs
7 Rugby League tips I put up last week,7 incorrect picks I made,I am angry at myself for getting swept up in emotion last week,this week I will try to improve...

The Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs as they were called are known as "The Dogs of War" come finals times in years gone by,right now and for the last few seasons they look more like the "Poodles with a little punch".The Bulldogs are a team still living with an enviable history,history tells of Dogs sides lifting to unbeleivable heights come finals time and in my lifetime I have seen them play some of the best and hardest Rugby League Finals matches,the best in my lifetime was when they beat Canberra in 1988 in the then called Winfield Cup 19-18 and then their best ever Finals match was in 1994 when once again they faced a star studded Canberra and Dean Pay played perhaps the game of his life in the rain and the Bulldogs went on to win with the exact same scoreline as 1989, 19-18.Before they lost to the Raiders in the Grand Final that year.Few sides have ever been as scary as the Dogs in the Finals in seasons gone by,a side that has won premierships on the back of defence so fierce that other sides have wilted before them at times looking to afraid to even carry the ball to the snarling Dogs looking to inflict more pain on their unsuspecting combatants.Can the Dogs of 2007 find any of that feared Bulldogs legacy,on Saturday Night we will find out,what this Bulldogs 2007 version are really made of,the game is theirs for the taking,the real question is can they take it,I think they can.

The Parramatta Eels have a different history than the Dogs,a side that has always been competitive but never won the big one untill 1981,in 1977 the Eels drew with St George 9-9 in the GF which forced a replay that the Eels were embarassed in losing 22-0 to the Dragons.Fast forward 4 years and the Eels then won their madien Premiership 20-11 against the Newtown Jets at the fabled Sydney Cricket Ground,without doubt the greatest of all the Eels sides were this side who were a permanant fixture in the Fianls in the 80's from 81 to 86 the Eels team of that decade made the Finals in 6 consecutive years,they made the Grand Final 5 times in those 6 years and only lost once in 1984 to the Bulldogs 6-4,two years later in 1986 they then returned the favour in beating the Bulldogs 4-2.The Eels side of that era perhaps contained some of the best talent the Rugby League World has ever seen,Sterling,Kenny,Grothe(Whos son is on the wing today for the Eels),Price,Cronin,the Ella Brothers,etc,etc.Gone now are those players but their legacy will always be a factor for Paramatta sides to come who pull on the Yellow and Blue jersey,a hard legacy to live up to.

However 2007 and we see the up to date versions of these two great Rugby League Clubs,both have talent to burn,both want nothing more than a win here today,the question is which side will get it?

On the Bulldogs side they have great talent all over the park,a Forward pack that on their day can rampage over any side in the Compettion,but a backline not as good as former Bulldogs sides,and the greatest Goal Kicker of this era in El Masri,the Eels have a decent Forward pack with good commitment but their backline holds the key for them,some of the most exciting attacking talent in the Rugby League World in Inu,Hayne,Grothe,Tahu and Smith but a side whos main playmakers are'nt the best,are prone to intercepts and being intimidated,not good to have that as they now face the side who can intimidate the most,the Bulldogs.

The Loss of SBW last week had the desired effect the other Bulldog players who have looked average at best over the last month or so,stood up and they needed to,they have lived of Williams for the last two months,something needed to happen and the suspension of Williams last week seemed to have the desired effect,the Bulldogs lifted,their defensive intensity was back and their running was far more committed.perhaps the best effort i've seen from the Dogs in months and with Williams returning today they can only get better.

The Eels came to Auckland last week on a hiding to nothing and they exceeded expectations and won,I can tell you as I was there that that was a fantastic game,the Warriors supportters were upset at the loss but not at the game itself,probaly the most intense of all the First week finals,some of the hits out there were huge and the sounds of hits were ringing around the Stadium and the Fans loved it,the atmosphere was thick with expectation and no one went home angry at the loss,most people were just happy to of been there and to of witnessed a classic match with all the components that make Rugby League the 'Greatest Game".

This week sees the two Sydney sides facing off for a chance to get one step closer to the Grand Final the Pinnacle of any Rugby League players asspirations,who will win,it's anyones geuss,however i'm going to side with the Bulldogs.

The Bulldogs form impressed me last week,they ran with far more passion than they have been and their defence apart from the opening 10mins was fantastic,every break the Cowboys made the Bulldogs chased them down,their running had far more purpose and structure about it,their penalty count was down on previous weeks and the most telling sign was that there was talking on the field by the Bulldogs which has been missing in weeks gone by,if they can bring that same level of play to Paramata today then the Eels could well be in trouble.

The Eels last week here in Auckland played well but they were more than helped by the Warriors not executing well enough to win,the Warriors had 4 try scoring chances spoilt,not by the Eels by the Warriors themselves,the Warriors allowed the Eels to stay in the match and that is what saw the Eels still close enough to win in the final quarter of the game,The Eels defence though was solid,but their attack for vast periods of the match was not good,in the first half after 30mins the Eels had 69% of possesion and 75% of that possesion was in the Warriors half 45% was in the Warriors 20 meter zone and they still could'nt score trys,their defence was good but the Warriors created chances against it but could'nt finish the job,against the Dogs the Eels might not be as lucky.

Both sides on paper stack up very,very well against each other,in defence they are simalar, in Attack the Eels are far more off the cuff while the Bulldogs are far more structured.

The reason's I have for siding with the Dogs today are simple really,last week the Eels were bashed up really bad by the Warriors and when I say beaten up thats what I mean the Players left the field with black eyes,cuts and brusies all over them,the Warriors really did beat the Eels up last week,the Bulldogs on the other hand were'nt,they lost a fast paced game but were not beaten up during it,they finished the game the stronger of the two sides and came off the field looking far more relaxed than the Eels did at the end of their match and they also looked like some sense of belief had come back into their side.

The other reason I quite fancy the Bulldogs here tonight is because (and Eels suppotters are sure to disagree with me) the Eels unlike the other sides still left do not go well in matches where teams stand up to them,all the Eels wins this season have come on the back of offloads and the other side stepping backwards,in all the games they have lost in, the other side has intimidated them,the Warriors did it last week and really should of won but the Warriors let themselves down by not finishing the Job,however the Eels in games where they cannot assert their physical prowess on other sides have lost and sometimes quite badly,this week they face a Bulldogs side back to full strength and the Dogs will already know that to have any chance of winning here they must assert their physical pressence early and they are the side who can do it also.

This year either side has beaten each other on the others home ground,the Eels beat the Bulldogs at home 22-34 and the Bulldogs beat the Eels at home 18-21.This match will be close ,but I will side with the Bulldogs as I think the Bulldogs have far greater room for improvement than the Eels,certain sides have already shown the Bulldogs how to beat the Eels,get out there and assert your physical dominace and the job is already half done,then execute your own plays and you will win,Can the Bulldogs do that this week? Against a battered and bruised Eels side,yes I think they can,The Dogs of War to reamerge this weekend and a match with the Storm next week awaits them for a chance to play in the Grand Final,Bulldogs Win,Good Luck.



Pick : Bulldogs Win
Odds : 2.00
Stake : 8 / 10
Bookmaker : Skybet
Date : 2007-09-15