NRL – Top 8 NRL 2025 Betting Odds & Expert’s Predictions

Though there is a trio of runaway favourites to win the NRL Premiership in 2025, things are looking likely to be a lot tighter further down the ladder. That trio of the Storm, Panthers and Broncos, as well as the Sharks, Bulldogs and Sea Eagles, are at very short odds to make the final eight, but competition for the likely two spots available if those six teams make it is very hot. Every other team is at least even money with some NRL betting sites to make the finals, meaning there is plenty of potential value on offer, and on this page we’ll try to find the best of it as we take a look at some of the outsiders to finish in the top eight in 2025.

The Rabbitohs have wasted no time in their attempts to prove that their tumultuous 2024 was an anomaly, jumping out of the blocks in their first season with Wayne Bennett back at the helm. Things could very easily have been different with two thrillers to start the season, but they won them both and then impressively beat the Panthers a fortnight later to give them a 3-1 record in the first month.

The Bunnies still have plenty of very good players run around, and it’s worth remembering that just over 12 months ago they were one of the favourites to win the flag heading into the 2024 season. That is probably beyond them this year, but a finals appearance certainly is not. Once they got past their disastrous first ten weeks of last year they were a dangerous team with their tails up, and having started this season far more positively than last there is no reason they can’t return to finals action.

• What brings them here? The Bunnies were always going to be capable of being much better than last year, and have started the season really strongly.
  
• What has changed? The coach, while Damien Cook has left and the enigmatic Josh Schuster joins the team.
  
• Injury report. There is no timeline on the returns of Alex Johnston or Cameron Murray, while each of Campbell Graham, Tyrone Munro and Euan Aitken should be available by mid-April.

Bet on the Rabbitohs to make the top 8 @ $2.00 with PlayUp

The Warriors are another team looking to turn things around after a very disappointing 2024, and like the Rabbitohs their first season suggests they are well on the way to doing just that. Their start could hardly have been worse as they went down 30-8 to the Raiders, but they bounced back with three consecutive wins against the Sea Eagles, Roosters and Tigers.

With James Fisher-Harris now in the fold, the kind of lacklustre efforts which plagued them last year will hopefully be a thing of the past. If they are, this team is easily good enough to play finals. It was just two years ago that they were a top four side, and after a really positive start they look like good value to return to the finals at better than even money odds.  

• What brings them here? The Warriors have started the season positively, giving hope that they can return to the finals in 2025.
  
• What has changed? Fisher-Harris is the biggest in while Boyd could also help. Shaun Johnson’s time at the Warriors, however, is done.
  
• Injury report. Roger Tuivasa-Sheck is expected to be available from Round 11, Dallin Watene-Zelezniak a week before that and Tom Ale a week before that, while Rocco Berry returns from a hamstring injury in Round 6.

Bet on the Warriors to make the top 8 @ $2.25 with BetRight

The Titans had a topsy turvy 2024 when looked at in its entirety, but if you take out the first month this was a really competitive team for the majority of it. That first month was a disaster, but after that they either won or narrowly lost every game for two months, and all that without their captain in Tino Fa’asuameleaui.

With Tino back and a far more positive start, the Titans should be able to put themselves right in the mix to play finals this season. Like the above two teams, they won three of their first four games, their only loss coming to the Bulldogs, and while they didn’t exactly beat any world beaters, they did beat other teams likely to be vying for the same lower spots in the top eight as them, results which could prove vital later in the year. They might not have the recent runs on the board like a couple of other teams in this list, but they should be right in the mix in the run home. 

• What brings them here? They weren’t that highly fancied entering the season, but with a strong start behind them the Titans should be in the mix for the eight.
  
• What has changed? Tanah Boyd is out, while Reagan Campbell-Gillard joins from the Eels.
  
• Injury report. Each of Kieran Foran, Alofiana Khan-Pereira and Keano Kini is listed as TBC by the Titans, while Sam Verrills is due back in mid-April.

Bet on the Titans to make the top 8 @ $2.40 with BetRight

The Knights would have plenty of reason to think that they deserve a little more credit in this market. They have made the finals in each of the last two seasons and enter this one without too much having changed on-field, and started with consecutive wins. Alas, they find themselves at close to $3 with betting sites to make it three finals appearances in a row.

Why? The Knights are probably going to be just as good a team this year as they have been in the last couple, but unfortunately for them there are quite a few others that appear likely to take a step forward, perhaps most notably the above three. Standing still in this league is as good as going backwards, and the concern for the Knights this year is they will do exactly that. Still, their first month was decent enough notwithstanding a bad loss to the Titans, but it’s easy to see why other teams are more highly fancied.

• What brings them here? The Knights have been finalists two years in a row, and at worst should be within a couple of games of the top eight in 2025.
  
• What has changed? They have lost Daniel Saifiti and brought in James Schiller, but there haven’t been many major changes to this team this season.
  
• Injury report. Tyson Gamble and Dylan Lucas are listed as TBC, while Kai Pearce-Paul was suspended until Round 6.

Bet on the Knights to make the top 8 @ $2.80 with BetRight

If the Tigers were to make the finals this season it would be an incredible ascent up the ladder, but it is far from outside of the realms of possibility. Having finished last for three consecutive years, they picked up Jarome Luai, Terrell May, Royce Hunt and Sunia Turuva in the off-season to finally give Benji Marshall something to play with, and their start with a new-look team was really positive.

They only split their first month of games at 2-2, though given where they have been for the past few years that was a positive beginning, particularly considering that the two defeats came by just two points. Already the Tigers look like a really competitive team, and they will likely only get better as the season wears on and they become more accustomed to playing with one another. It’s hard to imagine the Tigers playing finals and they might not be quite there yet, but it would be no surprise to see them push for a spot in the eight.

• What brings them here? After years at the bottom, some off-season acquisitions appear to have improved the Tigers dramatically.
  What has changed? Each of Luai, May, Hunt and Turuva has slotted into the team, while Stefano Utoikamanu has moved on.
  Injury report. The Tigers are pretty healthy at the time of writing, with just Brent Naden out until Round 7, while Jarome Luai missed Round 5 through suspension.

Bet on the Tigers to make the top 8 @ $3.00 with PlayUp

The Dragons weren’t really expected to make the finals this season, as they haven’t been for years. And while those expectations have mostly proven accurate, they have gone a lot closer than many expected pretty often of late and could do the same again this season. They have not made the finals for seven years, but in three of the past four have finished top 11, so have not been far off.

Two losses to start the season was not ideal, but they were close ones against the Bulldogs and Rabbitohs and they followed them up with a very impressive and surprise win against the Storm. If they can maintain that kind of defensive intensity throughout the season they will be far more competitive than their talent would suggest they should be, and could put themselves right in the mix for finals. They are long odds for a reason, but that’s been the case for years and they’ve often been closer than anticipated to the top eight.

• What brings them here? The Dragons are pretty good at hanging around the tail end of the top eight, and an impressive Round 4 win over the Storm gave some hope they can be competitive again this year.
  
• What has changed? The Dragons have some big ins, with Valentine Holmes, Clint Gutherson and Damien Cook coming in along with Lachlan Ilias, while in a huge change Ben Hunt has left the club.
  
• Injury report. The Dragons are pretty healthy at the time of writing, with Ryan Couchman out for the season and Emre Guler suspended until Round 8, but no other unavailable players.

Bet on the Dragons to make the top 8 @ $3.75 with PlayUp

While the Tigers appear to have risen, the Roosters are falling, though that fall was not unexpected. In contrast to their western counterparts, last year’s Preliminary Finalists lost a swathe of players in the off-season, and while there is still a decent amount of talent on their list things were always going to be a lot tougher than they were in 2024.

They still had their moments over the first month, beating the Panthers by six points in an impressive Round 2 performance, but they lost their other three games over the first four rounds in relatively ignominious fashion. All is not entirely lost for this team and that win over the four-time reigning Premiers gives some hope that they can find something this season, but in a competitive league it seems much more likely than not that they will miss the finals, and potentially even finish in the bottom four.

• What brings them here? After plenty of success in recent years, the Roosters lost a lot of players in the off-season and are now an outsider to play finals.
  
• What has changed? A lot. The Roosters have lost heaps of players including Joseph Manu and Jaered Waerea-Hargreaves, while Chad Townsend comes in.
  
• Injury report. There are a lot of injuries for the Roosters and a lot of uncertainty around those injuries, with each of Brandon Smith, Sam Walker, De La Salle Va’a, Fetalaiga Pauga, Tyler Moriarty, Egan Butcher and Benaiah Ioelu listed as TBC.

Bet on the Roosters to make the top 8 at $3.75 with PlayUp

The Cowboys have been a big early slider in this market and for good reason, and based on the way they started the season it’s very hard to see them not just playing finals, but winning many games. They lost their first three games by double-figure margins, averaging a 21.3-point loss in that time, their complete lack of defensive consistency making them look like a bottom tier side.

But life is often a rollercoaster for Cowboys’ fans, as it was last year, with the gap between their best and worst significant. They managed to make the finals then though, and even though they are without a few experienced players from last season this year, maybe a Round 4 win over the Raiders will be the confidence-booster they needed to turn things around. It’s hard to have much faith in this team to do anything, but at their best they are capable of competing for the finals, while at their worst they could be a bottom team. That’s not always a bad thing for an outsider though; the ability is there, it's just a matter of whether they can maximise it.   

• What brings them here? After making the finals last year, a dreadful start has seen the Cowboys plummet down the estimations of the masses.
  
• What has changed? Valentine Holmes, Chad Townsend and Kyle Feldt are gone, while John Bateman has joined the team.
  
• Injury report. Heilum Luki and Tom Chester will miss the season with ACL injuries.

Bet on the Cowboys to make the top 8 at $5.00 with BetRight

With only six teams paying under $2 with virtually all betting sites in Australia, this is an intriguing market with lots of potential value options. Of course, most likely only a couple of the above teams will make it, and at the moment the odds look pretty spot on. The Warriors are one which stand out having underperformed last year and making a huge signing in the off-season in the form of James Fisher-Harris. During their three wins in a row between Rounds 2 and 4 they looked far more like the top-four side they were in 2023 than the non-finalist from last year, and they should be disappointed if they fail to finish top eight in 2025. They might not remain at better than even money for long, but for the time being look like decent value.