Crikey’s NRL Hot Form Chart: Round 21

Tipsters, ahoy! Crikey's NRL Hot Form Chart at your service.

Aug 10, 2007

At the best of times, NRL matches are about as easy to tip as a sleeping cow. Round 21 was far from the best of times with form lines meaning little as upset followed upset, and Crikey’s NRL Hot Form Chart roiled with some furious movement.

Round 21 even saw the rarest of rugby league creatures: the draw. The Roosters further enhanced their reputation as the competition’s feel-good team when after 80 minutes, swapped field goals and extra time could not separate them from the New Zealand Warriors.

The Roosters have stormed their way into the Hot Form Chart top four, displacing the Bulldogs who went down biting against Parramatta. Such is the closeness of the competition, the loss now makes the Bulldogs vulnerable in the NRL top eight.

Vulnerability is a feeling Brisbane can empathise with. The Broncos lost the game and another key player against Manly on the weekend, and now face Melbourne at home. Fortunately for the depleted Broncs, the Storm appear to not be quite on their game after scraping home against a luckless Sharks outfit on Monday night.

Two key battles in round 22 may shape the make up of the finals. The Dragons have been steadily on the improve in Crikey’s Hot Form Chart but must beat the Rabbitohs this weekend to keep their finals aspirations alive. Meanwhile, another victory for the booming Roosters over the Tigers will put them just half a game outside the NRL top eight and throw their opposition’s September plans into serious jeopardy.

Form over last 5 weeks	Team	Last week’s form rating	NRL ladder position	Sequence
1	Manly	1	2	W-W-W-W-W
2	Melbourne	3	1	W-W-W-L-W
3	Warriors	2	5	L-W-W-W-D
4	Roosters	10	11	L-W-W-W-D
5	Parramatta	9	3	L-W-W-L-W
6	Dragons	7	12	W-L-W-L-W
7	Bulldogs	4	7	W-L-W-W-L
8	Brisbane	5	6	W-W-L-W-L
9	Rabbitohs	8	9	W-L-W-W-L
10	Tigers	6	8	W-L-L-W-L
11	Canberra	11	13	L-W-L-W-L
12	Cowboys	12	4	L-L-W-L-W
13	Penrith	14	16	L-W-L-L-W
14	Titans	16	10	L-L-L-L-W
15	Newcastle	15	14	W-L-L-L-L
16	Cronulla	13	15	L-L-L-L-L