The Penrith Panthers will look to take care of business at home when they host the visiting Melbourne Storm in a huge Round 6 showdown of two teams currently ranked in the top five. With Penrith looking to bounce back from a humbling loss last week and Melbourne looking for the big road win, let’s find out which club is offering the best betting value against their NRL odds.
NRL Storm Vs Panthers Round 6
Why Bet On The Panthers
Penrith is sitting in fifth place in the NRL standings with seven points. The Panthers have scored 102 points this season while allowing 72 points defensively (+30). Penrith comes into this affair off a narrow 16-10 road loss against unbeaten Parramatta on Friday that saw them blow a 10-0 lead. Brian To’o and Josh Mansour scored tries while Nathan Cleary went 1-for-2 on conversions. Defensively, the Panthers gave up a trio of scoring tries and a pair of conversions to Mitchell Moses in the loss. Dylan Edwards returns from injury at fullback, bumping Caleb Aekins to the reserves. Liam Martin replaces the injured Kurt Capewell in the back row and Billy Burns joins the interchange.
Why Bet On The Storm
Melbourne is sitting in third place in the NRL standings with eight points. The Storm have scored 84 points this season while allowing 56 points defensively (+28). Melbourne comes into this matchup off a solid 26-12 road win over Newcastle on Saturday. Ryley Jacks, Suliasi Vunivalu, Tino Faasuamaleaui and Brandon Smith all scored one try while Cameron Smith went 4-for-4 on conversions while adding one penalty goal in the win. Brandon Smith is once again named on the bench despite replacing Christian Welch in the starting side on game day in the past two rounds, and could again be promoted to start on Friday night.
Expert Analysis and Prediction
While both of these clubs have just one loss this season, Melbourne has absolutely dominated Penrith in this rivalry, having won a commanding 18 of the last 20 meetings dating back to 2006 including a 32-2 smackdown at home on March 30, 2019.
The Panthers might be playing at home in this matchup and they might have the better statistical offense in this matchup, but Melbourne has been elite defensively all season long and I just don’t see them letting the Panthers score early and often in this matchup. At this point in their lopsided ‘rivalry’, Melbourne has a psychological advantage and I expect them to use that edge to their advantage to get the hard-fought road win in this Round 6 clash!
Pick: Storm 26 Panthers 20
General Match Info Melbourne Storm (4-0-1) Vs. Penrith Panthers (3-1-1)
- When: Friday, June 19, 2020 at 4:55 AM AEST
- Where: Campbelltown Stadium, Sydney
- Storm Vs Panthers Live: Fox Sports
- Money Lines: Panthers +160 / Storm -200
Telstra Premiership 2020 Round 6 Matches
- Broncos vs Knights – Thursday 18th June, 05:50 AM | Central Coast Stadium, Central Coast
- Warriors vs Rabbitohs – Friday 19th June, 04:00 AM | Bankwest Stadium, Sydney
- Dragons vs Titans – Saturday 20th June, 01:00 AM | Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
- Cowboys vs Wests Tigers – Saturday 20th June, 03:30 AM | Campbelltown Stadium, Sydney
- Eels vs Roosters – Saturday 20th June, 05:35 AM | Bankwest Stadium, Sydney
- Sea Eagles vs Raiders – Sunday 21st June, 02:05 AM | Campbelltown Stadium, Sydney
- Bulldogs vs Sharks – Sunday 21st June, 04:30 AM | Bankwest Stadium, Sydney
