A disaster weekend for the Down the Sideline panel as the Roosters, Knights and Sharks all suffer damaging defeats heading into the finals.

We break down the fallout from the Micallef Bowl, ask whether the Dolphins are now genuine premiership contenders, and assess whether the Roosters can still win it after Sam Walker’s season-ending injury.

There’s plenty to unpack from Knights v Warriors too, including the Daniel Saifiti send-off, whether Newcastle were on top before it happened, and the wider debate around the NRL’s send-off rules. We also look at Jett Cleary’s debut and what comes next for the Warriors.

Then Boldo reacts to the Sharks’ latest stumble, we assess the now-confirmed Top 8, look back on the seasons of Manly and the Bulldogs, and make an early call on which team outside the eight can bounce back into the finals in 2027.

Plus: is the NRL season too long, what might be hiding inside Brisbane’s 14-point review, and our Round 27 Upset Alerts and tips.

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The finals race is heating up with just two rounds to go — and somehow the Warriors are sitting in the box seat.

This week we break down the Warriors’ charge towards the minor premiership, the Roosters’ costly loss to the Tigers, Newcastle’s horror showing against Manly and the Sharks doing just enough to get past the Titans. We also ask whether the Dolphins are becoming a genuine premiership threat and look at how the Top 8 could still shift before September.

Adam Reynolds has played his final NRL game, so we look back on his career, where he sits among premiership-winning halfbacks and the debate around Brisbane deciding not to give him one last game. We also get stuck into the controversial new kick-off rule being trialled in Broncos v Storm, Joey Manu’s move to PNG and Corey Horsburgh signing with the Bears.

And, after going 0-from-3 last week, the pressure is firmly back on for our **Round 26 Upset Alerts** — Canterbury over Penrith, Newcastle over the Warriors and Parramatta over the Sharks.

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The boys are back for Round 25 — and Upset Alert has now delivered three weeks in a row, including a huge 9-to-1 result last week.

This week we break down the Sharks’ worrying slide out of the Top 4, whether the Roosters should now be premiership favourites, Penrith’s struggles without Yeo, Newcastle’s remarkable rise into the finals and the Dragons’ encouraging finish to the season.

Plus, we look at the race for the Top 8, ask who goes first between Madge and Benji, cover the latest on DCE and Walker, and finish with Round 25 Upset Alert and full tips.

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