St George Illawarra Dragons' will face the Sydney Roosters at Bankwest Stadium on Friday, June 26 (7:50pm). This is your Round 7 game guide.
Skipping the test drives
Saab and Ford… fine cars yet even finer players.
Jason Saab and Jackson Ford have been named to make their first appearance for the Dragons in 2020.
Without Canterbury Cup NSW available to fine tune the wider squad, both players will face the biggest test of their burgeoning NRL careers so far.
Saab comes into the 17 for the suspended Jordan Pereira while Ford is the benefactor of James Graham's imminent release from the club.
Two local juniors getting their first crack of season 2020 against the defending premiers; it doesn't get much better!
Rejuvenated Dragons face biggest test
Ghanaian pallbearers were all the rage on Saturday night when James Tedesco literally faced the might of Parramatta Eels winger Maika Sivo.
Thankfully the New South Wales and Australia fullback is okay and has been named to face the Dragons.
While the Roosters have enjoyed a seamless run of wins since the season recommenced, the Dragons have slowly built their way into the year and are enjoying a run of consecutive wins.
A big performance against the defending premiers will shore up further confidence for the Red V, especially with the Canberra Raiders and Parramatta Eels to come beyond this weekend.
Flanagan v Flanagan
Sydney Roosters halfback Kyle Flanagan has proven himself as a suitable replacement for the now retired Cooper Cronk in the first few weeks of the amended 2020 season.
Flexing their muscles against any and all opponents of late, the Roosters winning run has enabled Flanagan to fly to the top of the NRL's point-scorers list.
One of the interesting subplots to Friday's clash sits squarely on the Flanagan surname. Dragons assistant coach Shane Flanagan has worked busily behind the scenes this week in an effort to halt the Roosters' (as well as his son's) hot streak.
Asked about coming up against his son in the NRL for the first time, Shane told The Australian: "Kyle to get man of the match and the Dragons to win by one point would be nice."
Bankwest battlers
St George Illawarra will be hoping third times the charm at Bankwest Stadium on Friday night. Winless in their first two outings at the ground, the Red V faces a Roosters team yet to lose at the new-look Parramatta venue.
The Dragons have lost five of their past six meetings against the Tricolours, with only seven players named to play in Round 7 (Matt Dufty, Euan Aitken, Ben Hunt, Paul Vaughan, Cameron McInnes, Tyson Frizell and Jacob Host) featuring in the club's last win against the Roosters (2018 Anzac Day).
