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Canterbury Bulldogs vs Brisbane Broncos NRL Round 18 Tips - Brisbane’s attack goes stale without Origin stars

Jeremy Darke

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Last updated: Tue 01 Jul 2025 12:42

Jeremy Darke 01 Jul 2025

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Canterbury Bulldogs vs Brisbane Broncos expert predictions for Friday’s Round 18 NRL game
Kick off is at 8:00 PM (AEST) at Accor Stadium
Brisbane to struggle in attack without key players Walsh, Carrigan, and Haas.
Bronson Xerri likely to score, while Bulldogs control territory with Matt Burton.

Jez's Canterbury Bulldogs vs Brisbane Broncos NRL Round 18 Tips

Canterbury Bulldogs vs Brisbane Broncos, Round 18 2025 - Expert Prediction

Canterbury Bulldogs vs Brisbane Broncos, Round 18 2025 - Expert Prediction
Head to Head
Canterbury Bulldogs Form Analysis
Canterbury Bulldogs Team News
Canterbury Bulldogs Team List
Brisbane Broncos Form Analysis
Brisbane Broncos Team News
Brisbane Broncos Team List
Canterbury Bulldogs vs Brisbane Broncos NRL 2025 Round 18 FAQ’s

Canterbury will overcome their Origin outs better than Brisbane and get the win at Accor on Friday night, covering the 5.5-point line against the Broncos.

Bulldogs vs Brisbane Rd. 18 Cheat Sheet

Two teams heavily affected by the Origin period will clash on Friday, however it is tipped that the Bulldogs have the depth in the required positions to still function at a top level and get the better of Brisbane without their strike fullback.

The return of Reece Walsh to the Broncos side has sparked a revival with Brisbane winning three on the trot on the back of their electric attack with Walsh running at the line. With their flashy No. 1 out of the side and their two workhorse front rowers in Carrigan and Haas also out, it is hard to see Brisbane controlling the game at all.

Canterbury are the masters of territory and possession and with Matt Burton not standing in as 18th man for the Blues, the Bulldogs have their man to control and dictate where this game is played.

Expect Brisbane to struggle for quality field position and not have the flair to break the line as they have done over the last 3 weeks scoring under 18.5 points in the match.

Bronson Xerri will be the main point of attack with the reshuffle in the Broncos backline and the Canterbury centre will cross for a try.

Brisbane are 1-4 when playing away from Suncorp Stadium in 2025
Brisbane’s attack averaged just 18 points per game without Reece Walsh in the side in 2025.
Canterbury Bulldogs are ranked 1st in Tackled in Opp20m vs Brisbane Broncos's defence ranked 15th
Bronson Xerri has scored in his last two games against Brisbane.

Head to Head

Brisbane are one of just 3 teams to beat the Bulldogs this season, beating Canterbury 42-18 back in Round 8.

Since the beginning of the 2019 season, Brisbane hold a commanding head-to-head lead winning 7 of 9 matches.

The previous four matches between the two clubs have gone over the game total.

Canterbury Bulldogs Form Analysis

Canterbury went down to Penrith 8-6 in Round 17 in one of the best rugby league games you will ever see, even if there were so few points in it. Two teams played the game to perfection and it was a superb charge-down that won it for Panthers, otherwise as the score suggests there was nothing between these two teams.

Canterbury are the benchmark in many ways this season, but none more than how they control the game with territory and building pressure, leading the NRL in possession, territory and tackles inside opposition 20m.

The only criticism they could receive is their ability to turn their pressure into raw points. With the amount of ball played in their opposition's 20m, the Bulldogs should be scoring more. They rank 12th in the NRL in tries scored per tackles inside opposition 20m (11.4 tackles/try).

Canterbury Bulldogs Team News

Stephen Crichton, Max King, Kurt Mann and Jacob Kiraz will all miss the match due to origin duties while Daniel Suluka-Fifita has been ruled out with concussion.

Blake Wilson and Enari Tuala will come into the backline while Harry Hayes and Sam Hughes will start at prop. Lipoi Hopoi and Kurt Morrin come in off the bench.

Canterbury Bulldogs Team List

1. Connor Tracey

2. Blake Wilson

3. Bronson Xerri

4. Enari Tuala

5. Marcelo Montoya

6. Matt Burton

7. Toby Sexton

8. Harry Hayes

9. Reed Mahoney

10. Sam Hughes

11. Viliame Kikau

12. Jacob Preston

13. Bailey Hayward

Interchange

14. Lachlan Galvin

15. Josh Curran

16. Lipoi Hopoi

17. Kurtis Morrin

Reserves

19. Jake Turpin

20. Jethro Rinakama

21. Jack Todd

22. Luke Smith

23. Jack Underhill

Brisbane Broncos Form Analysis

The Broncs’ are back on the rise with three wins on the trott, including their latest two against top eight teams the New Zealand Warriors (26-12) and Cronulla Sharks (34-28).

The Brisbane attack has ignited again after a real dull patch in the 7 games prior where they won just once. During that span they averaged just 18 points per game. In their previous three matches they have almost doubled that total with an average of 35 points per game.

It is no surprise that it has been the return of Reece Walsh that has sparked the Broncos revival, with the Brisbane fullback lighting up the stats sheet since his return three games ago. Walsh has 2 tries, 4 try assists along with 2 linebreaks and 5 linebreak assists while running for at least 126m per game.

Brisbane Broncos Team News

Reece Walsh, Gehamat Shibasaki, Payne Haas and Patrick Carrigan are all out on Origin duty.

Selwyn Cobbo comes back into the Broncos side in the No. 1, while Deine Marinier returns in the centres. Xavier Willison starts at prop with Kobe Hethrigton starting at lock.

Tyson Smoothy and Jaiyden Hunt come onto the bench.

Brisbane Broncos Team List

1. Selwyn Cobbo

2. Josiah Karapani

3. Kotoni Staggs

4. Deine Mariner

5. Jesse Arthars

6. Ezra Mam

7. Adam Reynolds

8. Corey Jensen

9. Cory Paix

10. Xavier Willison

11. Brendan Piakura

12. Jordan Riki

13. Kobe Hetherington

Interchange

14. Billy Walters

15. Jaiyden Hunt

16. Tyson Smoothy

17. Jack Gosiewski

Reserves

18. Delouise Hoeter

19. Ben Talty

20. Blake Mozer

21. Va'a Semu

22. Josh Rogers

Canterbury Bulldogs vs Brisbane Broncos NRL 2025 Round 18 FAQ’s

How to watch Canterbury Bulldogs vs Brisbane Broncos NRL 2025 Round 18?

You can watch the Canterbury Bulldogs vs Brisbane Broncos NRL 2025 Round 18 game via Fox Sports or Kayo Sports. If you are watching from outside of Australia the WatchNRL app is the perfect solution.

How to buy tickets to Canterbury Bulldogs vs Brisbane Broncos NRL 2025 Round 18?

To buy tickets to the Canterbury Bulldogs vs Brisbane Broncos NRL 2025 Round 18 game check the NRL website or the official Canterbury Bulldogs site.

Verdict

Canterbury Bulldogs v Brisbane Broncos

Canterbury will hold Brisbane to under 18.5 points and cover as the 5.5-point favourite.

Bronson Xerri will score his third try in three games as a Bulldog against Brisbane.

Canterbury -5.5

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