The Raiders are the undisputed kings of the regular season, but the race to the top four and final spot in the eight is still wide open.
The Broncos moved into the top four, but they will need to be a lot better against the Storm to stay there, while the Eels are proving giant killers on the back of the form of their star fullback.
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Read on for the Talking Points from Round 26.
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WALSH AND WALTERS LEAD BRONCOS TO TOP FOUR DESPITE DEFENCE CONCERNS
Reece Walsh and Billy Walters starred as the Broncos moved into the top four with an unconvincing but equally brilliant 38-30 victory over the Cowboys in the Queensland derby.
Walsh had 148 metres, a whopping 10 tackle busts, three offloads, six linebreak assists, two try assists and a try, but he also had five errors in a rocks and diamonds display.
Cooper Cronk believes Walsh has the brilliance to lead the Broncos to a title, but he still needs to pick and choose his moments with greater effect.
“There is no doubt that Reece Walsh when he has the confidence and the skill put together, there is not too many defences in this competition that can hold him back,” Cronk said.
“But the key is getting the consistency at a high level.
“I liked what Ben Hunt and Michael Maguire said about backing him all the time.
“You have to give these young players all the confidence in the world, that no matter what the situation, they can come up with the right play.
“But then it is about repetition and learning the art of making the right call. And the other thing is when the game is under control with two minutes to go, he runs left, runs right, throws a ball over the top and gets to dummyhalf and then runs 100 miles an hour again.
“Just pull it back a bit. The game is not in the balance. You have got it under control.
“It is not necessarily around the 80 minutes and how do you control him, but in the video review room.”
However, Mal Meninga warned Walsh not to take away from the unique brilliance in his game by trying to be perfect.
“It is hard because he has been doing that since he was a kid and that’s the way he plays,” Meninga said.
“He takes the game on. He sees things and he reacts. He is obviously very quick and skillful, so it is difficult to rein it in sometimes when that is your natural instinct to how you play rugby league.”
Cronk believes Walsh can reach the heights of Billy Slater during his career if he continues to develop his game at this rate.
“He will 100 per cent get there, Billy Slater was very similar at a young age, he threw caution to the wind and he got some right and got some wrong,” Cronk said.
“By the time Billy was 25 he got it to where it was nearly the perfect balance and by the back end of his career he nailed it.”
Walters has been a Mr Fix It for the Broncos after starring as a bench utility, hooker and now five-eighth in 2025.
Walters had 56 run metres, a linebreak assist, a try and a freakish try assist, as he continued to step up in the absence of injured stars Ezra Mam and Adam Reynolds.
“Billy Walters has been fantastic for the Broncos, off the bench, when he has played No.9 and now being thrown into that position of five-eighth, which has been high pressure given the circumstances and he is delivering,” Braith Anasta said.
Cronk admitted he was wrong to question Walters slotting into the No.6 role when Mam went down, but it was more to do with how well he was playing at hooker.
“I have got to give credit to Billy, I thought when Mam and Reynolds went down, I thought they should have kept Billy at No.9,” Cronk said.
“He was doing such a good job coming off the bench adding spark and a point of difference.
“Whatever jersey he wears he has a crack. He did some really good things tonight.
“That pass was exactly like his dad throwing an out ball to the Pearl (Steve Renouf) back in the 90s. That was a peach of a pass. That was a very good moment for Billy.”
However, Cronk warned the Broncos can’t play like they did against the Cowboys and beat the Storm coming off an embarrassing loss to the Roosters, in their bid to lock up a top four finish.
“There is no doubt the Broncos have that confidence and swagger, but that scoreline 38-30 is not what you want leading into Melbourne Storm coming off that loss and leading into September,” Cronk said.
“There is a little bit more work to do for the Broncos, especially in defence.”
Madge spray rockets Bronx to top 4 | 01:58
WHY THE RAIDERS WILL BE A FORCE FOR YEARS TO COME
Ricky Stuart believes there’s “no pressure” on the Raiders to mount a charge for a title in 2025.
And he has a point, considering his side are only going to get better in years to come.
The team from the nation’s capital clinched the J. J. Giltinan Shield with a win over the Tigers, delivering a minor premiership that maybe believed to be unthinkable at the start of the season.
The Raiders were among many pundits wooden spoon tips, mainly due to the youth Stuart was set to inject into his side.
However, in his second full NRL season, Ethan Strange has arguably been the form five-eighth of the competition, while Savelio Tamale, Xavier Savage and Jed Stuart have shone bright on the wings.
Kaeo Weekes has made the No.1 jersey his own, while the likes of Noah Martin, Matty Nicholson and Simi Sasagi have all played big roles.
Those players are only going to continue to develop in the coming years, while Ethan Sanders will join Strange in the halves.
Throw in the mix the likes of Hudson Young, Zac Hosking, Joseph Tapine, Seb Kris, Matt Timoko and Josh Papalii, who is set to go around again, and the Raiders have a stacked side.
Tom Starling has also been a revelation at hooker, and that position’s depth will only be bolstered by the arrival of Jayden Brailey.
In his post-match press conference, Stuart explained that the Raiders have no expectations in this year’s finals series and are simply building — and a baptism of fire will do nothing but benefit this team moving forward.
“The mentality is, whatever they get out of these finals experiences is just going to be an asset for the next three, four years,” he said.
“We’ve got 90 per cent of this group signed up for the next three to four seasons… Joe (Tapine) has played international football, Papa (Papalii) has played Origin, Red (Horsburgh) has played Origin, Hudson (Young) has played Origin.
“They are used to this exciting part of the season, they have played finals… what the younger players will get going forward is going to be such a benefit the next three to four years.
“The thing I like about it now is it’s easy coaching it because there’s no pressure on us.
‘We’re not meant to be here, no one thought we were going to be anywhere near the pointy end of the competition.
“I understand that, that’s just opinion and I’m not being disrespectful, but there’s no pressure on us going forward. Whatever happens over the next five, six weeks is just a great bonus.”
Not only has Stuart taken some pressure of his side, but he’s also sent a warning to his NRL rivals that the Raiders are here to stay, if they didn’t already know that.
Raiders claim 2nd Minor Premiership | 01:34
GALVIN GROWING INTO NO.7 ROLE DESPITE BULLDOGS’ SCRAPPY WIN
The Bulldogs were anything but clinical and convincing in their 28-4 victory over an undermanned Panthers side, but there are signs Lachlan Galvin is warming to his new halfback role.
Canterbury were in a no-win situation against a Panthers team missing 16 first-graders and Nathan Hindmarsh believes Cameron Ciraldo wouldn’t be impressed with their start.
“I think Ciraldo would be disappointed with the way the Bulldogs started because the Panthers were still in it at half-time,” Hindmarsh said.
“I think Ciraldo would have preferred that they got into their process a little earlier.
“They were very scrappy early on and I know that came from the pressure the Panthers applied, but that first half was scrappy.
“They got it together in the second half and they started hitting their targets, but it wasn’t convincing.”
However, Jacob Preston’s first career hat-trick got the Bulldogs home and Matty Johns believes he is the key to getting the best out of Galvin.
“What will be really pleasing was Jacob Preston’s performance,” Johns said.
“He had three tries and you just know sooner or later he is going to play State of Origin. You can see he is that sort of player.
“He is a god send for Galvin because playmakers live and die by their edge back-rower and he and Galvin are really forming a combination.”
Galvin finished with 73 metres, a linebreak, two linebreak assists, a try assist and a try and
Bryan Fletcher noted he is simplifying his role to give good early ball to his edge players.
“He laid on three tries and there was none of those fancy blocks,” Fletcher said.
“He was just hitting him early. He is warming into his role Galvin.”
Johns believes Galvin is starting to stick to his own game and what works for him as a playmaker, after some growing pains since coming into the Bulldogs team mid-season.
“He is starting to play his own game a little bit,” Johns said.
“Early doors when he first came into the side he was just trying so hard to fit into their system and the second half against the Storm last week he was terrific.
“He started to play his own game and was weaving around the park and he carried that on against the Panthers.
“He is a very good footballer, it is just getting used to that system and one thing about the Bulldogs I look at them and it is a different type of spine.
“You look at Melbourne and different sides and you know who is in charge, but with the Bulldogs, you wonder who the shot caller is at different times. Galvin looks to me like a roving No.13 the way he plays.”
Another boost for the Bulldogs was the form of Sitili Tupouniua, who stepped up in the absence of Viliame Kikau with a rampaging display.
Tupouniua finished with 125 metres, six tackle busts, a linebreak, two offloads and 19 tackles off the bench to spark the Bulldogs when he came on.
“Ciraldo would be very happy with the way Sitili Tupouniua played,” Hindmarsh said.
“In the absence of Kikau I thought Sitili was outstanding hitting those holes on the edge.”
The Bulldogs have locked up third spot on the ladder and will play the Storm in a blockbuster in the first week of the finals.
Dogs down Panthers to secure top 4 | 02:06
SELECTION DILEMMA FOR IVAN AFTER LIVEWIRE’S STANDOUT GAME?
Outside of the early rounds in the season where Ivan Cleary tinkered with his options at five-eighth and centre after Jarome Luai and Sunia Turuva’s departure, the Panthers have largely had a consistent first-choice 17 in 2025.
But after Daine Laurie’s standout effort against the Bulldogs and Brad Schneider’s underwhelming performance at halfback, does Cleary need to reconsider his bench make-up ahead of the finals?
Cleary has opted for the reliable Schneider as his utility for much of the year, which made sense given he was the clear back-up option for superstar Panthers halfback Nathan Cleary and would be able to take on the bulk of the general kicking if he ever went down.
That skill is particularly important given the lack of options elsewhere, with Blaize Talagi still developing his game and not offering much of a consistent long-range kicking game.
But Schneider’s kicking game on Thursday night left a lot to be desired and while he is more of a seamless fit into Penrith’s defensive system given his first contact in tackles is always strong, the limited upside in attack begs the question if the Panthers could make better use of that spot on the bench.
Laurie, while inconsistent in his limited opportunities in the NRL this year, showed just how much of a difference-maker he can be with the kind of vision and — more importantly — execution that Schneider lacks in attack with a pinpoint pass to put Paul Alamoti over.
Laurie also came up with a number of try-saving tackles, including one on Connor Tracey, to keep the final scoreline far closer than it could have been.
Now, whether Laurie would be that effective while also making more tackles in either the halves or at hooker if he was Penrith’s bench utility is a fair question.
Coach Cleary also seems to be banking on the fact the Panthers have won their past four premierships on a grinding style of football that Schneider, even if he is limited in attack, is better suited to.
Further to that, in general Penrith seems to prefer a bench option that helps freshen up the forwards as opposed to being a game-breaker in attack and at times carrying a back-up hooker with Mitch Kenny shifting to the middle has been a way to achieve that.
Another problem for the Panthers, however, is that neither Luke Sommerton nor Trent Toelau have proven themselves reliable options in the NRL — let alone for the finals.
But another question for Cleary and the Panthers is whether they can even afford to carry Schneider on the bench for 80 minutes.
Penrith is far from the only team to have a bench utility instead of a forward, but the defending premiers are one of the few sides to not even use that player unless there is an injury.
The Panthers largely controlled field position against Canberra a fortnight ago on the back of Cleary’s kicking game but otherwise didn’t get much go-forward up front and could have used the extra punch of someone like Luron Patea off the bench.
Patea, veteran Scott Sorensen or Liam Henry loom as the likeliest players to miss out on a spot in Penrith’s first-choice 17 should Cleary persist with a bench utility in the finals.
“We have a plan” – Ivan teases strategy | 04:31
IONGI CAPS BRILLIANT ROOKIE SEASON WITH ANOTHER EELS BOILOVER
The Eels moved up to 12th on the ladder with Isaiah Iongi producing a masterclass in their 26-22 upset win to knock the Warriors out of the top four.
Iongi capped a superb rookie season with another brilliant outing to finish with 150 run metres, a whopping seven tackle busts, a linebreak and a classy double.
Kevin Walters marvelled at the young gun’s support play against the Warriors.
“He was in great touch not only with the ball, but also under the high ball he was very safe for the Eels,” Walters said.
“His speed over the first 10 to 15 metres is amazing and the try off the Junior Paulo offload, the football nous to be in the right position and then accelerate past Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad for that try was an amazing for a young player.
“Let’s remember he is only 22 years old. He is still very fresh on the scene and for him to come up with two great tries like that to get the Eels home it is good signs for the Eels and good signs for the young fullback. And to top it all off he is a Queenslander.”
James Graham believes the Eels have pulled a masterstroke in moving Clint Gutherson on to fast-track Iongi’s development.
“Iongi is making a real name for himself at Parramatta,” Graham said.
“The decision to move on from Gutherson and the leadership was big, but the more football Iongi is playing the better he gets.
“It was evident against the Warriors his recognition of his strong players that can offload the football. He went with Tuilagi because he can offload the football.
“Junior Paulo goes into contact and Iongi senses the opportunity to get a linebreak and then when he was one-on-one with Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, he absolutely gave him a bath.
“That was brilliant stuff from the youngster and when Parramatta are looking at the make-up of their team and their spine, coach Ryles has got the No.1 sorted. He has been a real standout for them.”
Graham lauded Ryles for making some huge calls that have paid off in the first year of his Eels rebuild.
“He has made some big calls coach Ryles in his first year moving on some experienced players,” Graham said.
“He has cleared the decks in terms of those veteran forwards on big money. Reagan Campbell-Gillard, Bryce Cartwright, Ryan Matterson and Shaun Lane.
“Those players have moved on and you can see the young players learning and picking up what the coach is trying to tell them throughout 2025.”
Cooper Cronk predicted the Eels could be a top eight team by as early as next season, given their improvement in the last two months of the year.
“The Eels have won four of their last six and you could say that Ryles started off with some real big challenges,” Cronk said.
“They were on the bottom of the ladder for a period of time, but they have been steadily improving.
“Since Mitch Moses has come back and Ryles has unearthed some really good players.
“Parramatta fans would be pretty excited about the pre-season and what potentially could be next year because if they keep on this trajectory they should be on the edge of playing finals next year.”
Eels pull off shock away win | 02:37
NRL’S TOP TRY-SCORER’S FOURSOME IN ROOSTERS STATEMENT WIN
Mark Nawaqanitawase scored four tries to lead the Roosters to a stunning comeback 40-10 win over the Storm to all but seal a finals berth.
Nawaqanitawase’s four try haul took him to the top of the NRL try-scorers list and more importantly broke the Roosters’ seven match losing streak against the Storm heading into the finals.
Cooper Cronk lauded the former Wallaby winger’s insane finishing.
“There was a lot of good ball possession for the Roosters, their halves combined and on the right-hand side Mark Nawaqanitawase with four tries tonight,” Cronk said.
“He’s a brilliant finisher and this was basically the turning point, Nawaqanitawase three tries in a row to finish with four for the game.”
James Graham called it a statement win from the Roosters heading into September.
“That sends a message to the rest of the competition, if they can play with that level of discipline and that level of skill and execution for 80 minutes,” Graham said.
“I don’t think they maybe get away with that in a finals game, but if they can match two 40-minute performances like that, they are a threat in this competition.
“We know it was an understrength Melbourne team, but those stats around how the Roosters have struggled against the Panthers and Storm would have been on their mind.
“So for them to get that out of the way before finals, the pundits and the fans will talk of the players that were missing and highlight that, but that 40-point performance in the second half, I think that counteracts that.
“I think that if you’re in that Roosters dressing room you’re up and about, and when those big games come around the corner, you’re going to draw on this experience and say, look, we managed that performance.
“And Melbourne, for all the players that they were missing, that’s arguably their best defensive display of the season in the opening 40 minutes. Nobody saw that coming in the second half. So that’s got to fill them full of confidence going into September.”
Cronk believes the Roosters found the blueprint to their success in the second half, after storming back with 40 unanswered points.
“Whatever Trent Robinson said at half-time, he needs to bottle that and then rehash it for the next five weeks,” Cronk said.
“They are a chance of winning the competition because the first set after half-time was powerful, was direct, it was straight.
“They made heaps of meters, and they actually put up an attacking kick at the end of that to put pressure on Papenhuyzen and he thought, well they’ve come out like they shot out of a cannon here and off the back of that, some of the numbers in the second half are crazy, the Roosters 22 completed sets to the Storm five.”
Cronk believes the Roosters are finding form and timing their run to perfection.
“Think about the Roosters at the start of the year it was bad start, but then their last two wins out of three games, lost last week against the Eels, but before that it was a brilliant win against the Bulldogs, and then they’ve done it again against the Storm,” Cronk said.
“Yes the Storm were depleted, but it was Craig Bellamy’s 600th, so there was a lot to play for Melbourne.
“So the Roosters have built the season throughout and are playing some of their best football the last two wins they’ve had.
“And then they got the arch rivals Souths next week, so they almost dropped their chances of playing finals last week. They’ve just dramatically improved them tonight.
“Some discipline and some errors from the Storm, but you have to say the Roosters went after the game.
“The Roosters went to the contest and said, we’re going to handle destiny in our hands and play finals.
“So it wasn’t as if they got handed on a platter in the second half. They just dominated to a point that Storm could not get out of their own end, and the Roosters just kept coming.
“They found a crack on that left side defensively and the Roosters kept going there.”
The Roosters now play the Rabbitohs in a blockbuster clash on Friday night to seal a finals berth and not many teams will want to face them in this sort of form.
Roosters take huge step towards finals | 02:20
DOLPHINS GRIP ONTO HOPE OF MAIDEN FINALS FINISH DESPITE LUCKLESS YEAR
While they’re up against it, the Dolphins still remain in contention for the 8th and last finals spot after a tight six point win over the Titans.
The Dolphins now need the Roosters to lose to the Rabbitohs next Friday. If that happens, the Dolphins will have everything on the line when they take on the ladder-leading Raiders in Redcliffe in the penultimate game of the regular season.
Even if the Dolphins just miss out on the eight again and have to wait another year for a maiden finals berth, this has been the most impressive season of the three since they entered the competition.
While expectation was higher than it’s ever been for the club entering this season, this 2025 Dolphins squad had to deal with a fair amount of adversity.
The first season under Kristian Woolf started slow, with the Dolphins losing four straight games out of the gates.
It appeared the Dolphins would be destined to finish near the bottom of the ladder, but a flick switched a couple of months in.
Mid-season is where they picked up steam, especially in attack, however the casualty ward was mounting.
Max Plath, Tom Gilbert, Daniel Saifiti, Jack Bostock all suffered season ending injuries. Herbie Farnworth has missed a month with a hamstring injury while Tom Flegler has missed the entire season.
Star half and stand-in skipper Isaiya Katoa praised his side’s resolve.
“It’s been a bit of a theme for us this year, losing guys through injury pretty much every week
“I think as a club and as a team, we’ve done well not using it as an excuse. The guys that have come in have brought their own game and they’ve been confident with it too.”
Woolf content to finish season strong | 06:16
