Finals Bound for Dolphins and Dragons in Round 7? Knights
A topic that no one was considering coming into the 2024 season is suddenly being raised by the St George Illawarra comeback: will the Dragons be able to make it to the finals? Following their Friday night demolition of the Warriors in Wollongong, Shane Flanagan’s rebuilding squad is now 4-3 and has passed many teams that were thought to be playoff candidates.
The Dragons may be hot and cold, but they have swiftly repaired the club’s reputation following the terrible performances of the previous few seasons with victories over Manly and the Warriors in the first seven rounds.
With Wayne Bennett’s Dolphins comfortably positioned in the top four with four victories out of six, another veteran coach with no nonsense is forcing his team into the postseason picture.
Due to illness, Bennett was unable to go to Darwin to play Parramatta, along with several of his injured regular first-graders. Kristian Woolf was in charge of their 44-16 cakewalk. When Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow, Felise Kaufusi, Tom Flegler, Connelly Lemuelu, and Herbie Farnworth return in the upcoming weeks, it is not implausible that they will be able to contend for the top eight.
Here is how the Power Rankings look, team by team, following Round 7.
1 Panthers (week one prior):While Nathan Cleary has been sidelined, the other 16 teams have only lost one game. With their top player returning very soon, the premiers are in a strong position going into the mid-season representative program. This is frightening news for them.
The Panthers would have adequate salary cap space for Sunia Turuva if James Fisher-Harris’ unexpected departure occurs. This would be a fantastic outcome for a team that has lost every star player for the previous three seasons.
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