Talk » the Citizens 3-1 at the Etihad in February. That

Saturday, September 24Melbourne Storm ($1.40) vs Canberra Raiders ($3.05), AAMI Park at 7:40pmTeam news:The Storms controversial wrestling tactics have come under fire again this week with the Cowboys lodging an official complaint with the NRL and this unnecessary distraction could benefit the Raiders as they prepare for Saturday nights preliminary final.Melbourne have been forced to defend their tactics all week while Canberra have gone about their business quietly and with little fuss which will suit Raiders coach Ricky Stuart.The Storm suffered a major blow last week with hulking forward Nelson Asofa Solomona ruled out for the season but expect to have lock Dale Finucane available after he suffered an ankle injury in the qualifying final against the Cowboys.The Raiders are a lot more settled this week -- Josh Hodgson (ankle) and Blake Austin (hand) overcame serious injuries to play against the Panthers and will line up again. Austin has also revealed he rolled an ankle against Penrith but declared himself a certain starter against Melbourne.Key head-to-head: Cameron Smith vs Josh HodgsonIt is the NRLs smartest player against arguably the NRLs best player this year.Cameron Smith needs no introduction and there is no end to his talent, skills and ability -- he manipulates his team, the opposition and even the officials like few ever have.Hes not big so wont run over his opponents, hes not fast so wont run around them either but he understands the game more than anyone else and his scheming earns him space and time to set up his team mates to finish off the Storms set plays to devastating perfection.Josh Hodgson has been a revelation since switching from the English Super League to the NRL. He arrived at Canberra with little hype or fanfare but has built a huge reputation for himself in quick time.Hodgson was awarded the Mal Meninga Medal alongside Josh Papalii for the Raiders Player of the Year this week and is considered one of the leading contenders to become the first Englishman to win the Dally M Medal.Hodgson proved in last weeks semi-final win against Penrith that he is as tough as he is talented. He defied everybody by overcoming a serious ankle injury to play a leading role in the Raiders win and it was also later revealed he spent most of the week in bed with a virus so a semi-final against Smith will pose no fears for him.Storm:?1. Cameron Munster, 2. Suliasi Vunivalu, 3. William Chambers, 4. Cheyse Blair, 5. Marika Koroibete, 6. Blake Green, 7. Cooper Cronk, 8. Jesse Bromwich, 9. Cameron Smith (c), 10. Jordan McLean, 11. Kevin Proctor, 12. Tohu Harris, 13. Dale Finucane. Interchange: 14. Kenny Bromwich, 15. Tim Glasby, 16. Christian Welch, 17. Ben Hampton, 20. Matt White, 21. Felise KaufusiRaiders:?1. Jack Wighton, 2. Edrick Lee, 3. Jarrod Croker (c), 4. Joey Leilua, 5. Jordan Rapana, 6. Blake Austin, 7. Aidan Sezer, 8. Junior Paulo, 9. Josh Hodgson, 10. Shannon Boyd, 11. Josh Papalii, 12. Elliott Whitehead, 13. Sia Soliola. Interchange: 14. Kurt Baptiste, 15. Luke Bateman, 16. Paul Vaughan, 17. Joe TapineKey Stats:The Storm boast a dominant winning record against the Raiders of 70.3 percentThe Raiders won their only meeting with the Storm this season but have not won in Melbourne since 2013Storm halfback Cooper Cronk will become the second Melbourne player behind Cameron Smith to reach 300 NRL appearanceUBET verdict:$1.40 Storm, $3.05 RaidersIt is only a few weeks ago that Canberra defeated Melbourne in Canberra, but the betting trend on their match in Melbourne on Saturday night suggests that the Storm will avenge that loss, and go on to play in the Grand Final next week. The other worrying thing with the Raiders is that they have been outscored by their opponents (22-120 in the second half of the 2 finals matches they have played so far. The Storm are relentless in attack and defence, and the inexperience in finals has to be a major concern for Raiders fans against a side with plenty of the same. All of the money has been with Melbourne who have already been cut to $1.40 from $1.45, and judging by what UBET customers have been doing to date, that price may well disappear as game day approachesWeather:?An 80 percent chance of showers late in the day with expected temperature of 15 degrees at kick-off.Prediction:?Canberra have been entertaining, gutsy and captured everyones imagination this year but they now come face to face with arguably the NRLs most professional, experienced and ruthless outfit.This game looms as a battle between offence and defence - the Raiders have been the most prolific scorers in the NRL this year while the Storm are the best defensive unit in the competition.It is often said that defence wins big matches and this is just one reason why I lean towards the Storm to prevail in this one. The other reasons I favour Melbourne include the fact they have too much world class experience, are playing at home and Canberra havent played at this stage of a season in 22 years.This is exactly the type of situation that Cameron Smith and Cooper Cronk thrive on and I just get the feeling their calmness and big match experience will sway the result in favour of Melbourne.Tip: Storm by 4Enter your ESPNfootytips NRL selections Nick Bosa Super Bowl Jersey . It just didnt show when he hit the ice. Berra made 42 saves and Kris Russell scored at 1:32 of overtime, lifting the Calgary Flames to a 3-2 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday night. Jimmie Ward Super Bowl Jersey .B. - Sebastien Auger made 44 saves as the Saint John Sea Dogs edged the visiting Acadie-Bathurst Titan 2-1 on Saturday in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. http://www.authenticsf49erspro.com/Nick-mullens-49ers-jersey/ . "Were just throwing s--- at the wall hoping something sticks," said Tortorella about the possible line combinations for Fridays game against Columbus. The Canucks have lost five straight games and six of their last seven, leaving them in a logjam in the Pacific Division, currently sitting fifth - good for ninth in the Western Conference. Dee Ford Super Bowl Jersey . - Raiders general manager Reggie McKenzie never doubted he would bring back coach Dennis Allen for a third year despite back-to-back 4-12 records. Jason Verrett Super Bowl Jersey . Third-seeded Murray had the easiest path to victory on New Years Eve, barely breaking a sweat during his 6-0, 6-0 win over 2,129th-ranked Qatari wildcard recipient Mousa Shanan Zayed. It has already been a trying December for Pep Guardiola, and it will get no easier between now and when the calendar finally turns to 2017.Without at least three key players for the short term, he and Manchester City face a daunting task in trying to regroup Saturday at King Power Stadium, where title-holders Leicester City are facing desperate times in their bid to simply stay out of the drop zone.The talk of Guardiola as Manchester Citys saviour after winning his first 10 matches in all competitions has given way to whether his side has the bottle to mount even a Premier League title challenge after being humbled by front-runners Chelsea 3-1 at home last Saturday.The Citizens had taken the lead right before halftime via an own goal by Chelsea defender Gary Cahill. However, the London side ran rampant in the final 30 minutes as their 3-4-3 formation tore apart Citys defence -- the long-established weakness of this team with or without talisman Vincent Kompany -- and got goals from Diego Costa, Willian and Eden Hazard in the final half-hour.In the boxes we are not strong enough, especially here at home said Guardiola, rueing a string of missed opportunities throughout the first half and Kevin De Bruynes effort off the crossbar shortly before Costas equaliser. The opponents, when they arrive they score, when we arrive sometimes not, mentally thats tough.The match then turned ugly after Hazards goal in the 90th minute, with striker Sergio Agueros reckless challenge on David Luiz -- somewhat in retribution for a physical challenge Luiz made earlier in the match that went without a card -- triggering a wild fracas in which Aguero received a red card as did midfielder Fernandinho for putting Chelsea midfielder Cesc Fabregas in a chokehold and driving him over the advertising boards.Aguero, who leads Manchester City with 10 goals and 16 overall, will miss at least the next four matches since this is his second suspension of the season. He was given a three-match ban retroactively for elbowing West Hams Winston Reid on Aug. 28, and Fernandinho was handed a three-match suspension. To further add to Guardiolas backline woes, Nicolas Otamendi will not be available for this match after picking up his fifth yellow card.For all the talk of Citys attack, and with good reason, it has been the defence that causes worry. The Citizens (9-3-2) have recorded just two clean sheets in league play. Central defender John Stones has yet to show a comfort level marshalling the backline without the injured Kompany. Until Guardiola finds wing backs who can bomb forward to augment his 3-5-2 formation, he likely will tinker with a rotating cast of bodies throughout the next two months and perhaps find reinforcements in the January transfer window.Those tinkerings began in earnest Tuesday with Citys dead rubber versus Celtic to close out group play in Champions League. The match ended in a 1-1 draw as Kelechi Iheanacho canceled out a goal by City loanee Patrick Roberts in the first eight minutes, and Guardiola included 16-year-old midfielder Phil Foden to the match-day roster. For Iheanacho, it was his first goal since Oct. 23, and the Nigeria international is hopeful Guardiola will call on him to help replace Aguero up front.I have a responsibility to be the striker for the team, replacing Sergio when he is not around, said Iheanacho, who has 13 goals in 18 starts, to Citys official website. I have to prove myself, give my best and work hard for the team and make sure wwe get the wins we need.dddddddddddd(Aguero) is telling me I should do very well and they are words of encouragement from him. So Im going to do it.Leicester City, meanwhile, are looking for any signs of encouragement that will help their domestic form come anywhere near their Champions League success. But even that silver lining didnt materialise this week in their dead rubber at Porto, where an understrength side missing both Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez were overrun 5-0.The Foxes had already clinched the top spot in Group G, but the malaise in England -- where they have just one win in nine league matches (1-3-5) spread to their play on the continent, where they had conceded just one goal in while going unbeaten in the previous five contests.I have no regrets because I wanted to give an opportunity to all my players, said manager Claudio Ranieri, who made 10 changes to his starting lineup from their 2-1 defeat last weekend at Sunderland. If I needed to win or draw, I would bring all my first team to fight. But when you know there is another difficult match Saturday against Man City and you are top of the group, why not give a chance to players who say why dont I play? We are losing in the Premier League, give me a chance.Midfielder Danny Drinkwater picked up a knock in the heavy defeat, but he is suspended for this match as he completes a three-match ban for elbowing Watfords Valon Behrami in a 2-1 loss to the Hornets on Nov. 19.Ranieri rightly left his two superstars home in the Midlands to get extra rest ahead of this match, which takes on plenty of urgency since the Foxes (3-4-7) are in 16th place, own a minus-7 goal difference and are just two points above the relegation spots. Its a far cry from last season, when Leicester had 29 points through 14 matches and sported a plus-9 in the scoring columns.Vardys goal-scoring drought for Leicester has reached 16 matches since bagging one against Liverpool on Sept. 10, and while Mahrez leads the team with seven goals in all competitions, five have come from the penalty spot. The Foxes have totaled just 26 goals in their 21 matches, and Kasper Schmeichels injuries have done them no favours on the other side of the ball as theyve shipped 34 overall.But with both Guardiola and Ranieri needing to tinker with their lineups, the midfield will all but certain be where this match is decided. Nampalys Mendy played the full 90 minutes Wednesday in his first action since injuring his ankle against Arsenal on Aug. 20, and the former Nice midfielder who was counted upon to compensate for some of the loss of NGolo Kante to Chelsea may be primed for his first Premier League start this weekend since that injury for Leicester.The Foxes took four points off Manchester City last season, playing to a cagey scoreless draw in the corresponding fixture last season before blowing the doors of the Citizens 3-1 at the Etihad in February. That win removed the last doubts over whether Leicester had any staying power and also that Manchester City were just not good enough to overtake them.It also ended a seven-match winless spell against Manchester City (0-3-4) in all competitions since a 3-0 road victory in 2003. Leicester City are also winless in seven all-time home matches (0-3-4) against the Citizens in the Premier League era, getting outscored 5-2 while going 0-2-3 in the regular season. ' ' '