After the Super League took in the Nou Camp last week, it heads to Anfield this weekend for the 2019 Magic Weekend, the fantastic round of matches which will all be held at the Liverpool venue, beginning on Saturday afternoon when Wakefield Trinity take on the Catalans Dragons.
This is a battle between sixth and third in the table and while Wakefield head into the contest three places below their opponents in the standings, they will go back above them if they come out on top in front of the Kop.
Bet on the Super League with sponsors Betfred. New customers can get £30 in free bets + 30 FREE SPINS when you bet £10. Ideal for the Sheffield extravaganza! Click the image above to take up this promotion. 18+ T&Cs apply
Wakefield Trinity
After a good spurt of form got them up into the higher reaches of the Super League table, Wakefield Trinity have not so much hit the skids in recent weeks but have struggled to maintain their form and consistency. They were taken apart in the first hour against the London Broncos last week and while they delivered a strong final 20 they could not repair the damage and fell to a damaging defeat in terms of their top five hopes.
With that in mind, they could do with a victory here to redress the balance and if they are to get it then they are going to have to muscle up and tighten things out in defence. If they don’t do that then they will need to score an insane amount of points. 34 wasn’t enough for them in the capital last week so it remains to be seen how many they will need here.
Catalans Dragons
After the euphoria of not just playing in front of thousands inside the Nou Camp last weekend, but also seeing off the champions Wigan Warriors in the match, the Catalans Dragons players must be bouncing with excitement ahead of this one. We saw in that game that the style they deployed in their Challenge Cup run worked a treat on the big pitch and they could well utilise the same formula in this one.
Catalans are very strong down the middle, running with power and purpose and looking to wear out the opposing forwards to make the game much easier as the match goes on. It was perfectly executed last week as they picked up a fourth win in five outings in the Super League, with a comfortable cup win against Doncaster included in amongst that. They head to Anfield looking mighty impressive.
Team News
Anthony England and Matty Ashurst have recovered from injury and will take their place in the squad for this match at the expense of Jordan Crowther and Chris Annakin. Trinity could also give a debut to new signing Kelepi Tanginoa.
Catalans Dragons welcome some players back from injury too with Matty Smith and Lambert Belmas returning but Greg Bird is out with the injury he sustained last week while Michael McIlorum and Sam Tomkins miss out too.
[the_ad_group id=”3624″]
Betting
I like the Catalans Dragons here. They were my pick for the Grand Final this season because of their prowess in the big matches in recent times and they highlighted that again last week. It might not have been the best Wigan Warriors side that they beat but it was the way they rose to the occasion which was impressive and makes me think they can win here.
There is no chance of Wakefield rolling over or going down without a fight but I would imagine Steve McNamara and his men will be treating the run up to this match like they did the big games in the cup last season and that can stand them in good stead. It is more than a slight concern that Wakefield shipped more than 40pts to London last week. Catalans could well expose them again here so I’m on the French outfit in this one.
Tips
WON – Back Catalans Dragons to beat Wakefield Trinity for a 4/10 stake at 1.73 with William Hill
Back them here:
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2019
