The wooden spoon favourites face the unenviable task of travelling to New Zealand to start their 2019 campaign.
The Warriors will be keen to put in a strong performance in front of their home fans, and prove they don't need Shaun Johnson at the helm.
Why Warriors can win
Their supremacy in the outside backs means that the Warriors have plenty of points in them.
Reigning Dally M medalist Roger Tuivasa-Sheck and try scoring machines David Fusitu'a and Ken Maumalo will be eyeing off a Bulldogs backline which lacks size and spark.
The kiwis' biggest challenge is through their spine, with former favourite son Shaun Johnson leaving a hole in the halves and Isaac Luke missing through injury.
Veteran five-eighth Blake Green is no stranger to a new role. He will take on more responsibility this season and coach Stephen Kearney will be looking for him to take his debutant halve partner Adam Keighran under his wing.
If these two can put together a solid game, then the Warriors will have too many points in them.
Why Bulldogs can win
Lacking any attacking flair or excitement in their back-line, the Bulldogs will have to be gritty, disciplined and defend well to win.
After a dismal start to their 2018 season, the Dogs were amongst the better sides to finish off the year and coach Dean Pay will be hoping to continue that momentum into 2019.
The Dogs have some big men in their forward pack and fans will be hoping that ex-Rooster Dylan Napa can put his off-season controversies behind him and lead from the front.
Half of footy is doing the basics right, and the Bulldogs have shown in the past that they can win games by this method alone.
The Warriors will need to be ready for a dog fight.
Key NRL Stat
6 of the previous 7 match-ups between these sides have been won by the home team: Warriors to win @ $1.55
NRL Betting Tip: Warriors to win by a margin of 1-12 points @ $2.88
Reasoning: The Dogs will be competitive, but the home side has too many points in them and you can expect them to scrape over the line.
Missed our preview of the early Round 1 games? Read it here.
Both of these sides will be looking for a positive start to the season under new coaches.
Michael McGuire takes the helm at the Tigers and will be aiming to replicate the early success he had in his coaching tenure out Souths.
Manly will be keen to put the Trent Barrett coaching saga behind them. The Brookvale faithful have resorted to old favourite Des Hasler, who will have a point to prove after his fall from grace at the Bulldogs.
Why Wests can win
The Tigers are a team stacked full of work-horses.
They have powerful and dynamic players in both the forwards and backs, who can simply run over the top of teams.
With the experience of Benji Marhsall and Robbie Farah leading this youthful team around the park, the Tigers have a potent formula to win.
Moses Mybe will miss the game through injury. He'll be replaced by Corey Thompson, who performed well in the number one jersey when called on last season.
Look for the Tigers to put in a strong performance at Leichardt Oval.
Why Sea Eagles can win
What the Sea Eagles have that the Tigers lack is star power.
Daly Cherry-Evan has all the quality to engineer a win if his forwards give him the platform to work off.
He's coming off arguably one of his best seasons last year, in a team which were plagued with issues.
With the damaging Martin Taupau and Blues forward Jake Trbojevic, Manly's pack will look to assert their dominance in the opening exchanges.
In a big blow for Hasler's side, gun fullback Tom Trbojevic is likely to miss the game with a hamstring injury.
This tips the scales slightly in Wests' favour.
Key NRL Stat
The Tigers have won their previous 3 matches against the Sea Eagles: Tigers to win @ $1.65
NRL Betting Tip: Tigers to cover the -2.5 point line @ $1.90
Reasoning: Without Turbo Tom, the Sea Eagles will struggle to deal with the Tigers at home.
North Queensland Cowboys vs St George Illawarra Dragons
Another tough way to start the season is an away trip to Townsville.
That's what the Dragons face here, as they come up against a Cowboys side in the post-Thurston era.
Why Cowboys can win
If this game turns into a battle of the forwards, then the Cowboys will have the Dragons covered.
Jason Taumalolo, Coen Hess, Gavin Cooper, Matt Scott and Jordan McLean are all dynamic meter-eaters.
With Josh McGuire also available off the bench, the Cows have far too much go-forward and will be hard to stop if they win the early ascendancy.
All eyes will be on Michael Morgan this year.
The Queensland half gets his long-awaited opportunity to make this side his own after taking the reigns from Thurston.
Jordan Kahu has made the move north from Brisbane and gets first crack at the number one jersey.
Why Dragons can win
With Gareth Widdop, Ben Hunt and new recruit Corey Norman making up the spine, the Dragons have stacks of attacking creativity and talent.
Widdop has been shifted to fullback to accommodate the arrival of Norman, with Paul McGregor hoping the Englishman will be able to inject himself through the middle of the park to link up with the new halves pairing.
Live wire Matt Dufty has been relegated to the bench and the big Cowboys forwards will need to be wary of his impact in the latter stage of the game.
The Red V pack also boasts plenty of punch and they will have to be a their best here to cope with the absence of representative back-rower Jack De Bellin.
Key NRL Stat
St George Illawarra have won each of their past 3 games against the Cowboys: Dragons to win @ $2
NRL Betting Tip: Cowboys to win @ $1.80
Reasoning: Look for the Cowboys' pack to get them over the line here.
Mar 15, 2019 12:57 PM
AAP
Key NRL Stat
NRL Betting Tip: Warriors to win by a margin of 1-12 points @ $2.88
