NRL Betting: Sydney Roosters a value bet to beat Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs by 1-10 points
Recommended bet: Sydney Roosters to win by 1-10 points @ 12/5 (3.40) with bet365
Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs and Sydney Roosters do battle at the ANZ Stadium on Sunday afternoon, in a clash between long-term rivals.
It will already be the second meeting of the teams this season, with the Roosters edging home 28-24 at the Allianz Stadium in Game Week 2.
Current form also favors the visitors here, with the Bulldogs having gone down to a 30-14 defeat at home to the North Queensland Cowboys last Thursday, with them being 18-0 in arrears by the interval. As a result, the Bulldogs are currently occupying the final play-off spot, having registered five wins and five defeats to date.
By comparison, the Roosters had an impressive 48-10 victory at home to Parramatta Eels last time out, a result (their biggest win of the campaign to date) that left them on 14 points from 10 matches. That in turn means that they are one of three teams (alongside Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks and Brisbane Broncos) now within two points of the Premiership leaders, Melbourne Storm.
Whilst the Roosters were dominant in attack against the Eels, the Bulldogs were far too one dimensional against the Cowboys and those are both factors that need to be taken into consideration here.
With regards to team news, Craig Garvey has been named on the bench for the Bulldogs, while for the Roosters, Mitchell Aubusson is expected to be fit to play despite being concussed on Sunday but Zane Tetevano (knee) has been named on the bench.
Nat Butcher also came off the bench in the Holden Cup last Sunday as he made his return from a shoulder injury and came through the match with no problem.
In the head-to-head record, the Bulldogs have come out on top in two of the last three clashes, but the Roosters prevailed in six of seven meetings prior to that.
The Roosters certainly look the likeliest winners here, but best odds of around 9/20 (1.45) have little appeal. A better option could be to back the Roosters to win by a margin of 1-10 points available at 12/5 (3.40) with bet365.
