NRL Ladder Predictions 2026

[Five&Last]

1. Broncos
2. Rabbitohs
3. Roosters
4. Panthers
5. Warriors
6. Storm
7. Dolphins
8. Bulldogs
9. Raiders
10. Sharks
11. Eels
12. Titans
13. Knights
14. Tigers
15. Sea Eagles
16. Dragons
17. Cowboys

Bunnies biggest range, could win the comp on paper or could get decimated by injuries like usual and potentially get the spoon

 

[sydneywarrior92]

what's with everyone putting bunnies in their top 8. Their roster depth seems very weak again. If they have a couple of big injuries like last year, I can see them struggling again.

 

[BabylonPink]

what's with everyone putting bunnies in their top 8. Their roster depth seems very weak again. If they have a couple of big injuries like last year, I can see them struggling again.

Wayne effect I dunno , I think they'll be bottom 8.

 

[Tokyo Warrior]

At full strength they look pretty impressive

 

[sydneywarrior92]

At full strength they look pretty impressive

their full strength team last year was ok too. I think they started as well as we did: 4/5. But no one is ever at full strength for any extended period in this comp. What matters is depth and I don't think they've fixed their depth issues from last year. MGT and Kosi aren't going to be their saviors when shit hits the fan for them injury wise.

 

[Po11um]

Warriors have a tough early season with some players out if they win 50% of their games up to round 6 they should be happy.
Broncos to reach final and could even go back to back.

 

[3rdstriker]

If the warriors don't suffer major injuries in key positions they could finish between 4th & 8th. The warriors are one of teams on the improve.

Love the positivity here, if you can keep it up through the majority of the Rollercoaster season we may just scrape in.

 

[Five&Last]

what's with everyone putting bunnies in their top 8. Their roster depth seems very weak again. If they have a couple of big injuries like last year, I can see them struggling again.

Nah their roster on paper is impressive. Elite outside backs, above average starting halves pairing, great forward pack. They maybe a bit weak in spots 24 - 30 of their roster (i.e. Kosi, MGT etc) but no moreso than Storm/Panthers etc. The problem is getting a full season out of their big guns. Trell barely plays more than half a season. Massive if, but if they can somehow get a full season out of everybody they wont fall any lower than 4 imo and will be in the minor prem mix. Already off to poor start with Tyrone Munro being out the year. Could realistically see them finishing anywhere from 1 - 14.

 

[Jonno13]

I did one of these a few weeks back but here’s my ladder for ‘26. Really think Recce Robson will be signing of the season. Roosters got an elite backline but think their pack is legit. In saying that, pretty sure this year is our year. Up the Wahs!!

1. Roosters
2. Canberra
3. Penrith
4. Brisbane
5. Souths
6. Wahs
7. Bulldogs
8. Dolphins

Melbourne
Cronulla
Tigers
Eels
Knights
Dragons
Titans
Cowboys
Manly

 

[CWC]

So our biggest test of where we are really at will be the storm game in R6, then we have broncos and panthers twice

 

[CWC]

Looked at the draw, man we have a tough run home in the last 5 weeks lol, better to lock up as high as possible before that run, maybe we can rest players in the last 1-2 games anyway

We're 1/3 through the season and can't ask for a brilliant 7:2 start, the middle 1/3 of 9 rounds I'm hoping for at least a 4:2 so around 11:4 before the final lap of 9 games.

 

[jonesy101]

Looked at the draw, man we have a tough run home in the last 5 weeks lol, better to lock up as high as possible before that run, maybe we can rest players in the last 1-2 games anyway

We're 1/3 through the season and can't ask for a brilliant 7:2 start, the middle 1/3 of 9 rounds I'm hoping for at least a 4:2 so around 11:4 before the final lap of 9 games.

This next game against the Broncos is huge. Win it in magic round and it proves this team can do it under immense pressure, it's in a way the barometer for the remainder of the season.

Was looking at my ladder predictions. 1 out of 17 correct. Atrocious!

 

[sydneywarrior92]

Looked at the draw, man we have a tough run home in the last 5 weeks lol, better to lock up as high as possible before that run, maybe we can rest players in the last 1-2 games anyway

We're 1/3 through the season and can't ask for a brilliant 7:2 start, the middle 1/3 of 9 rounds I'm hoping for at least a 4:2 so around 11:4 before the final lap of 9 games.

I don't know if we should look that far ahead. Form is so ephemeral in the NRL these days, it's hard to know how tough those games are going to be at the back end of the season. Manly, Knights and Bunnies all fell away badly last year when the injury curse got them. Bunnies injuries are mounting up again and the real test for Foran is how Manly deals with no turbo in 10 weeks times, not today. For all we know, the Sea Eagles, Knights and Bunnies could all fall off a cliff in the next few weeks. After all, we all thought pre-season that our start was rough and we'd be holding on to a 50% record and hoping for Mets to come back and save us. Now we're 7-2, sitting 2nd and we're opting to leave Mets out.

As others have said, the 3 games between the first 2 byes, will determine how far we go. If we slip up in magic round against the baby broncs or lose heavily to Penrith, this year might end up being like 2023 where we can still make the top 4 due to our strong start but aren't serious contenders. If however we go 3/3 and beat both Brisbane and Penrith, I'm prepared to say we can finish top 2 and make a real push for the prem.

 

[Wahs_Ultras]

The ladder exactly a year ago today. Touch wood we remain largely injury free for the rest of the season and we could be on!

 

[sydneywarrior92]

The ladder exactly a year ago today. Touch wood we remain largely injury free for the rest of the season and we could be on!

View attachment 17316

Pretty crazy that other than us, last year's top 4 is in this year's bottom 8 and vice versa.

 

[Theking267]

Pretty crazy that other than us, last year's top 4 is in this year's bottom 8 and vice versa.

Must mean the salary cap is working

 

[CWC]

The ladder exactly a year ago today. Touch wood we remain largely injury free for the rest of the season and we could be on!

View attachment 17316

We're the Tom Cruise of league, exactly the same

 

[Theking267]

We're the Tom Cruise of league, exactly the same

Hopefully we don’t have the drop off like we did last year

 

[KPWarrior]

View: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1048333503421328/posts/1500373028217371/

 

[sydneywarrior92]

Magic round should have us aiming for top 2, not just top 4. The gaps are starting to open: we have now opened up a 2 pt lead on 3rd, 4 pt lead on 4th and a 6pt lead on 8th. With our far superior p/d relative to the chooks, that is effectively a 4 pt gap on 3rd. We are effectively the 2nd best team in the comp now- 2nd best attack and 2nd best defense after 10 games. Even the attack happy rabbits or knights haven't scored as much points as we have and the Knights have had one more game to play than us.