FREE Bet of the Round
Record: 6-1-4 (55%)
SHARKS -1.5 ($1.81 Sportsbet)
**Next Best: -3.5 @ $1.91 b365
The Sharks are full of confidence right after two big road wins and getting back in front of the comforts of their home fans and they will be extremely tough to beat. Sharks are fully fit and name the same 1-17 once again and are coming up against a Panthers team who are anything but. Cleary and his back-up Schnieder remain sidelined and now with their best edge weapon in Taylan May suspended, it does strip some of their firepower and they are a Penrith team a little off their best selves. I understand they are off a loss and that they are a scary team to bet against, but I don't feel the market is respecting the gap between these sides right now. The recent success of Penrith is a little engrained into the general line of thinking and we're expecting great things from them, but who could sit there and say that the Panthers are equal to the Sharks at the moment? There will be no shortage of motivation with Hynes and alongside others in Brailey, Ramien and Hazleton all in the mix for Origin spots. The Panthers have proven in the past they can win without Nathan Cleary and so there isn't any extra incentive for them to do so here. Whereas a loss for Cronulla would definitely impact their mindset because if they can't be Ivan's men now, then what chance do they have if they face each other in September. Sharks roll. Surprised this line isn't above 4.
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