daily fantasy sports articles

The first NRL semi-final will take place between two of the powerhouses of the past decade, as the Roosters head south to take on the Storm in Melbourne. With the winner set to play the Panthers next Friday night in a Preliminary Final, the stakes couldn’t be higher. What better way to enjoy the action, than by selecting your very own Draftstars team!

Draftstars has a $15,000 guaranteed contest for the Storm and Roosters, with several other contests available, there’s something for everyone, so get involved and make this game even more exciting!

Team News

The Storm have been forced into a huge change, after their 26-0 loss last week to the Broncos, with star Ryan Papenhuyzen fracturing his ankle. He’s replaced by Alec MacDonald on the bench. They will also be missing Xavier Coates, who also injured his ankle last week, replaced on the wing by Reimis Smith. Finally, Young Tonumaipea (head knock) misses out, replaced in the centres by Justin Olam. 

As for the Roosters, they will also be without several outside backs, as Joseph Suaalii (concussion), Joey Manu (hamstring), and Billy Smith (broken jaw) will all miss out. They are replaced by Jaxson Paulo, Paul Momirovksi, and Corey Allan. No other changes expected.

Betting Markets

Melbourne Storm ($1.27) vs Sydney Roosters ($3.78)

Total O/U – 40.5

Overview

It’s hard to see the Roosters winning this one, after a brutal matchup against the Sharks on Saturday night last weekend. The Storm gets the extra day of rest, and their matchup with the Broncos, whilst a harsh loss, also wouldn’t have cost them too much physically, with the game being over quite early.

The Storm have won both matchups with the Roosters this season, with a 28-8 win at home in round 6, before a 30-16 victory at the SCG in round 20. In the positives, the Roosters were missing James Tedesco in both those matchups, however, will have him at the back on Friday night. Despite this, the losses of Suaalii, and in particular Joey Manu, are really going to hurt the Roosters and their ability to score enough points to win on Friday night. I expect it to be tight for 40-60 minutes, but the Storm should get home rather comfortably in the end.

Love It – Reimis Smith - $9,800

Smith has been solid in his appearances on the wing lately, with scores of 41 and 34 in his past two starts on the wing. But this selection is less about Smith, and more about the position he is (hopefully) playing. I’m assuming Smith plays left wing, given Warbrick has been right wing all season, and left wingers have had a field day against the Roosters this season, in particular, Xavier Coates. Coates has 6 tries in the 2 games against the Roosters this season, and with a matchup against an inexperienced winger (Pauga or Paulo), and Cam Munster running that left side, I expect Smith to score well.

NB: If information comes through that Will Warbrick is playing on the left side, take Warbrick over Smith.

Love It – Cam Munster - $21,060

Munster, and the Storm, were horrible last weekend, and despite the Storm not being the team they have been in years past, they still rarely put up two bad performances in a row. Same can be said for Munster, whom I fully expect to lead from the front in this clash with the Roosters. With the Roosters right edge missing Joey Manu and Joseph Suaalii, I expect the Storm to go left early and often, and Munster will be the conductor. Scores of 63 and 109 against the Roosters already this season shows Munster loves this challenge.

Love It – Terrell May - $13,790

May has quietly gone about a huge month and a half, with an average of 47.7 over his past 7 games. The big man had an injury-effected game against the Sea Eagles amongst these games, and if we take that score out, the 6-game average jumps to 53.5. His consistency has been tremendous, with 5-straight scores between 50 and 60. At this price, May is a tremendous purchase, and with Jared Warea-Hargreaves still out, his minutes should stay solid.

Hate It – Harry Grant - $18,950

Grant was in the ‘hate it’ list last week, and it was a great call. This week, I’m a little more concerned, as I expect the Storm to win. However, his form just hasn’t been there of late, and despite his minutes going back up to the full 80 last week, until I see some semblance of his early season form, I can’t play Grant at this price. Much prefer the likes of Munster and Jahrome Hughes for around the same price.

Hate It – Nat Butcher – 20,680

Butcher is the most expensive forward, in a tough game for picking forwards. To be fair, he has easily the highest average of any forward in this matchup, however unless he scores a try, he’s just not worth the outlay. The Storm have contained him on both occasions the sides have met this season, with Butcher putting up scores of 41.5 and 38.7. Has good upside, however for the price I prefer to pay for Cam Munster and/or Tedesco.

Who Knows – James Tedesco - $20,700

Teddy has been quite unpredictable this season, averaging just 48.7 for the season. He has been far better since the mid-point of the season, with six 50+ scores in his past 8 games. I’m struggling to select him here, as I see a tight contest between these two sides, with not many points. Despite this, if anyone is going to score for the Roosters, Tedesco has to be close to the top of the list. Don’t select him at your peril, as the great Roosters fullback is one of the best to ever do it.