National Rugby League Matches of the Season: Overview and Outcomes

The 2024 National Rugby League (NRL) season has come to an end, and the Penrith Panthers have won their fourth consecutive league championship with a 14-6 victory over the Melbourne Storm. It was a very eventful season: seventeen teams, all over from Australia, competed for the championship. Active since 1998, the NRL is one of the top five rugby leagues in the world, and it will retain this title for many more years. 

Of course, this is not a “guarantee”: you cannot know what the future holds for the league with the same certainty as you can calculate your roulette winnings at Roulette77. However, we can help you make a consistent prediction by providing a detailed overview of the 2024 NRL season and summarising the outcomes.

NRL Format & Current Standings

Since 2012, the Australian Rugby League Commission has used the same format as the AFL finals system. This format is based on a four-week playoff series. Once the series is completed, two of the eight teams will meet in the Grand Final. A total of 192 matches are played throughout the season, with each team playing at least one match against each other. The teams in the league and their standings as of the end of the 2024 season are as follows:

You can find the most up-to-date list and more data, such as the average winning/losing margin, on the official NRL website. The rules for rankings are simple: teams are given 2 points for each match won and 1 point for each match tied. Lost matches are counted as 0 points. 

Analysing Past Results & Predictions for Future

The National Rugby League championship has been held by Penrith Panthers since 2021. This is their fourth consecutive championship and sixth in total. At first glance, this could be interpreted to mean that they are also the favourite for 2025, but most analysts think otherwise. The main reason for this is that the team has lost most of its key players, and its closest rivals have signed promising players. For example:

• Jarome Luai has transferred to the Tigers.
• Damien Cook has joined the Rabbitohs.
• Zac Lomax will now play for the Eels.

When we look at the current standings, we see that these are the teams at the bottom of the list, but this could change very quickly in the 2025 season as the teams at the top of the list have lost their star players. In the case of the Panthers, Sunia Turuva has left to join the Tigers, and James Fisher-Harris will now play for the Warriors. The departure of these two names will put a lot of pressure on the Panthers, and they are not expected to perform as well as they did this year in the 2025 season.

Favourites for the 2025 Season

Melbourne Storm is currently the favourite of almost all analysts. Ryan Papenhuyzen and Sualauvi Fa’alogo seem to perform well together, and the team includes important names such as Will Warbrick, Stefano Utoikamanu and Tyran Wishart. The Broncos and Sharks are also among the teams that are given the most chances. The Sharks are quite strong on the wings, thanks to Sione Katoa & Ronaldo Mulitalo, and Addin Fonua-Blake is the team’s most important star player. 

The Broncos, on the other hand, seem to be getting back to their old performance with the return of Reece Walsh. The team also includes experienced players such as Selwyn Cobbo, Kotoni Staggs and Ezra Mam. 

The Sea Eagles and Roosters are seen as the teams with the least chance of winning the title – at least for now. This is not very surprising as both clubs are among the teams that have lost the most players, and there is no notable name on their 2025 rosters. 

Of course, all of this is nothing more than speculation at the moment. We don’t know what 2025 will bring for NRL teams. More consistent analysis will be possible once the season actually starts. In any case, no matter what the team’s performance is, the National Rugby League will remain one of the biggest rugby leagues in the world, and that’s for sure.

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