Two sides who picked up wins on the opening weekend of the Super League season get the latest round of matches underway when Hull FC host the Catalans Dragons at the KC Stadium.
The winners of this match will take top spot in the table ahead of Friday’s matches so there is something extra to play for in this one.
Hull FC
Hull opened the win with a hard fought and well grounded out win over Wakefield on the first weekend of the season. That was a good start to what is a big season for Hull FC. They will be eager to back up the excellent season they had last year but they will know their efforts last term will have increased the expectation so they have to deliver.
If there is an area going into the season it is their half back combination. They haven’t really had a settled pairing in that position for a while and although they get excellent go forward from their pack you need someone to orchestrate things in the final third to open up the defences to make winning matches easier.
Catalans Dragons
I must admit I didn’t really know what to make of the Catalans Dragons heading into the season although my gut instinct was that they would struggle. I certainly expected that to be the case in the immediate term while a whole influx of new signings took some time to gel but that wasn’t the case in the campaign opener.
The Dragons took care of a much fancied Warrington side in their opener to the season and in fairness at times they looked ok in doing so. The impressive thing was they looked together as a unit and their combinations should signs of working which is exactly what you want at this stage of the season. With two weeks since to work on things they should be well tuned for this one.
Team News
Hull FC go into the match without their suspended half back Albert Kelly which leaves a huge hole for them. Josh Bowden is available as Jake Connor looks set to play in the halves.
Fouad Yaha is out for the Catalans Dragons which is a bit of a blow. That means that Iain Thornley is likely to come in for a debut in his place. Louis Anderson missed the week one win but he is in the squad for this one.
Betting
When I was considering this match I had it as a relatively even match with not much between the two sides but the suspension of Albert Kelly sways me towards the Catalans Dragons now I have to say.
I was always going to back the Dragons with the 10pt start given how close I see the two sides matching up but I’ll have a small bet on the Dragons to win now. Richie Myler and Luke Walsh have the artillery to unlock doors and at some point in the 80 minutes that could prove to be the difference.
Tips
WON – Back Catalans Dragons (+10) to beat Hull FC for a 4/10 stake at 2.00 with Betfred
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WON – Back Catalans Dragons to beat Hull FC for a 1/10 stake at 4.00 with Skybet
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