Check out our team list analysis for Round 1 in Las Vegas!
Knights vs Cowboys – Sunday 1:00PM at Allegiant Stadium, Las Vegas
Knights
Ponga is fit and has been named at fullback. Team leaks earlier today were wrong, and both Fletcher Sharpe and Trey Mooney have been named to start in the #6 and #10 jerseys respectively. Dane Gagai has overcome a hamstring injury to start at centre, while new recruit Sandon Smith will start the season off the bench.
Cowboys
Tom Chester has been named at centre. Jake Clifford and Tom Dearden are the halves pairing, with 2025 bolter Jaxon Purdue starting at centre. New recruit Reed Mahoney will start at hooker, with Soni Luke named on the bench. John Bateman is in the extended squad as he looks to overcome a wrist injury.
SuperCoach Analysis
Some relevance at the Knights this year. I still don’t think they will be great in 2026, however I do expect an improvement on last season. Trey Mooney has been named to start at FRF and boasts a PPM of 1.41, 1.12 and 1.47 across the last 3 seasons (albeit in limited minutes) With the lack of depth through the middle at the Knights, I expect Mooney to play 50-55 minutes and will make good cash from his starting price of $442k. Jermaine McEwen gets through his work and has won an edge spot at the Knights, however Thomas Cant is lurking on the bench and could easily take minutes from him. Kalyn Ponga is very cheap at $607k and will need to be considered. Dylan Lucas is a supercoach gun and wouldn’t look out of place in starting sides.
Scott Drinkwater likely loses a few points with the new scoring changes, however is super durable and has looked great in pre season. Jaxon Purdue is interesting at 5/8 considering the lack of quality options there. He should be a major beneficiary of the last pass try assist changes on the Cowboys’ dominant left side. Reed Mahoney isn’t as appealing despite the low price tag as Soni Luke has been named on the bench. I feel he needs 80 for Supercoach relevance. Heilum Luki has won the edge spot and needs to be considered at $404k. If he can stay injury free (big if) an average of 55-60 isn’t out of the equation.
Bulldogs vs Dragons – Sunday 3:30PM at Allegiant Stadium, Las Vegas
Bulldogs
Matt Burton has been named to start, overcoming the calf injury scare from preseason. Jacob Kiraz and Marcelo Montaya have been named on the wing.
Dragons
Daniel Atkinson and Setu Tu have both been named to start. Val Holmes has been named at centre.
SuperCoach Analysis
No major surprises at the Dogs. I am quite keen on Stephen Crichton after he goal kicked in the trials. He also moved to their dominant left edge recently and is expected to be a major beneficiary of the new try assist rules. Kiraz is a proven gun and should be considered in all teams.
Setu Tu is an absolute lock as a cash cow after being named to start. Daniel Atkinson can be considered at halfback, pending your strategy at halfback. If there is ever a time for dual halfback cheapies, it’s now after the scoring changes. Toby Couchman is undervalued and is a great look at $588k. There are rumours Val might move to the right this season. Considering his historical output and the new rule changes, I don’t expect this to negatively impact him much, if at all.
