March 17, 2026

NRL Predictions for Round 3

Team Ratings for Round 3

The basic method is described on my Department home page.
Here are the team ratings prior to this week’s games, along with the ratings at the start of the season.

Current Rating Rating at Season Start Difference
Panthers 11.70 8.77 2.90
Storm 10.40 6.96 3.40
Sharks 7.65 7.25 0.40
Roosters 6.71 9.50 -2.80
Broncos 3.78 7.06 -3.30
Warriors 2.89 -1.18 4.10
Bulldogs 1.26 2.13 -0.90
Raiders -0.03 1.62 -1.60
Dolphins -0.38 1.85 -2.20
Eels -1.33 -0.37 -1.00
Sea Eagles -2.52 0.21 -2.70
Rabbitohs -2.82 -5.05 2.20
Wests Tigers -5.44 -7.26 1.80
Cowboys -5.99 -2.69 -3.30
Dragons -6.94 -6.72 -0.20
Titans -8.70 -8.02 -0.70
Knights -10.24 -14.06 3.80

 

Performance So Far

So far there have been 16 matches played, 9 of which were correctly predicted, a success rate of 56.2%.
Here are the predictions for last week’s games.

Game Date Score Prediction Correct
1 Broncos vs. Eels Mar 12 32 – 40 11.90 FALSE
2 Warriors vs. Raiders Mar 13 40 – 6 2.80 TRUE
3 Roosters vs. Rabbitohs Mar 13 26 – 18 15.10 TRUE
4 Wests Tigers vs. Cowboys Mar 14 44 – 16 0.90 TRUE
5 Dragons vs. Storm Mar 14 20 – 46 -11.20 TRUE
6 Panthers vs. Sharks Mar 14 26 – 6 6.00 TRUE
7 Sea Eagles vs. Knights Mar 15 16 – 36 16.40 FALSE
8 Dolphins vs. Titans Mar 15 18 – 14 13.90 TRUE

 

Predictions for Round 3

Here are the predictions for Round 3. The prediction is my estimated expected points difference with a positive margin being a win to the home team, and a negative margin a win to the away team.

Game Date Winner Prediction
1 Raiders vs. Bulldogs Mar 19 Raiders 2.70
2 Roosters vs. Panthers Mar 20 Panthers -1.00
3 Storm vs. Broncos Mar 20 Storm 10.60
4 Knights vs. Warriors Mar 21 Warriors -9.10
5 Sharks vs. Dolphins Mar 21 Sharks 12.00
6 Rabbitohs vs. Wests Tigers Mar 21 Rabbitohs 6.60
7 Eels vs. Dragons Mar 22 Eels 9.60
8 Cowboys vs. Titans Mar 22 Cowboys 6.70

 

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David Scott obtained a BA and PhD from the Australian National University and then commenced his university teaching career at La Trobe University in 1972. He has taught at La Trobe University, the University of Sheffield, Bond University and Colorado State University, joining the University of Auckland, based at Tamaki Campus, in mid-1995. He has been Head of Department at La Trobe University, Acting Dean and Associate Dean (Academic) at Bond University, and Associate Director of the Centre for Quality Management and Data Analysis at Bond University with responsibility for Short Courses. He was Head of the Department of Statistics in 2000, and is a past President of the New Zealand Statistical Assocation. See all posts by David Scott »

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