The 2016 NRL season was a strange year for rugby. Fines and point deductions ruined another team’s season, the Cronulla Sharks won their first ever Grand Final, and the Melbourne Storm reclaimed their dominance over the sport. But now with the 2016 NRL season behind us, it’s time to look forward to the upcoming 2017 season.
The Storm took home the 2016 minor premiership after a five-year drought. They led the table for the last five games of the season and narrowly lost the Grand Final in an upset at the hands of the Sharks.
Heading into next season, the North Queensland Cowboys and Brisbane Broncos are, as usual, among the top contenders. The Cowboys came in 4th and the Broncos 5th in 2016, which is a little disappointing for the Queensland teams. But they remain a steady favorite in 2017.
The Sydney Roosters will be looking to rebuild. After winning the 2013, 2014, and 2015 minor premiership, the Roosters ended the 2016 season in 15th place, above only the Newcastle Knights. The loss of key players like Michael Jennings and James Maloney partly explains the Roosters’ fall from grace, and the signings of Michael Gordon and Luke Keary for 2017 may help them climb back to the top.
Once again, controversy surrounds Jarryd Hayne. After an unsuccessful transition into the NFL last season and a brief foray into the world of Rugby Sevens, the NRL superstar is returning to the sport that made him. But he’s not returning to the Parramatta Eels, with whom he’s played his entire Rugby League career to date. Instead, he’s signed a contract with the Gold Coast Titans despite allegedly agreeing to return to the Eels if he ever returned to the NRL.
That’s just more bad news for the Eels, who had their 2016 season destroyed after they were found guilty of a salary cap breach. They were docked twelve points midway through the season and stripped of their Auckland Nines title, leaving their hopes for a successful season in ruins.
Odds to win The 2017 NRL minor premiership (first in the regular season)
Melbourne Storm: 6/1
Brisbane Broncos: 6/1
North Queensland Cowboys: 13/2
Canberra Raiders: 8/1
Sydney Roosters: 14/1
Parramatta Eels: 14/1
Cronulla Sharks: 14/1
Photo credit: “Lance Hohaia” by Naparazzi, CC BY-SA 2.0 [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0], via Flickr.