Back South Sydney Rabbitohs to edge past Brisbane Broncos in tight encounter

Recommended NRL bet:
Winning Margin – South Sydney Rabbitohs to Win by 1-6 points @ 5/1 (6.00) with Centrebet

The South Sydney Rabbitohs play host to the Brisbane Broncos at the ANZ Stadium on Thursday evening.

The Rabbitohs currently sit 6th in the Premiership table with eight points after a 42-22 win over Canberra Raiders at the Central Coast Stadium over the weekend (only table-topping St. George-Illawarra Dragons have scored more points than the Rabbitohs this season).  

The teams had two closely fought encounters last season with the Broncos coming out on top on each occasion.  The teams met almost exactly a year ago at the ANZ Stadium in what was also Game Week 8 of the 2017 season, with the Broncos edging home 25-24.  They met again in Game Week 14 at the Suncorp Stadium, when the Broncos secured only a slightly more straightforward 24-18 victory.

There’s mixed team news for the Rabbitohs, with Sam Burgess suspended for the next two games after making an early guilty plea for a high tackle.  On the plus side, Cameron Murray is due back after a hamstring injury. Tyrell Fuimaono (dislocated toe), Zane Musgrove (ankle) and Dean Britt (groin) all remain long-term absentees.

As for the Broncos, they lost Andrew McCullough for four to six weeks to a medial ligament injury to his elbow during last Friday’s defeat to Storm.  Josh McGuire and Kodi Nikorima both featured as hooker in training on Monday, with McGuire expected to get the nod. The Broncos are also missing the injured Jordan Kahu (jaw), Andre Savelio (knee) and Matt Gillett (neck).

The Rabbitohs are available at best odds of 3/5 (1.60) with CrownBet to win the match, with the Broncos offered at 6/4 (2.50) with bet365 at the time of writing.

It looks likely to be a tight encounter, with perhaps just a few points separating the teams, so backing a Rabbitohs victory by 1-6 points at 5/1 (6.00) with Centrebet has some betting appeal.