Ducking for cover like a Melbourne Storm Assistant Coach, in training for the next mascot race, spending time in the lab working out how that magic spray works on soccer players at the World Cup and trying to find a new way of funneling money to FIFA for various reasons, it’s time for some Rugby League tips and opinion from The Gurgler’s NRL Donkey. The NRL Donkey provides his NRL Donkey’s 2026 NRL Round 20 Expert Tips as well as offers an alternative, slightly unhinged view full of sass of the world of rugby league and beyond for another week.
Related
- NRL Round 20 Tips Predictions & Stats
- NRL Betting Analysis
- NRL Round 19 NRL Team of the Week
- NRL Round 19 NRL Weekly Stats & One Minute Match Reviews
- NRL Donkey Round 19 NRL Review
The NRL Donkey’s NRL Round 20 Weekly Opinion
Back for another week of rugby league opinion, but before I go ant further I should really stop to flog my new post-round review piece the NRL Dinkey’s NRL Round 19 Review & Ratings. It’s similar to this without the massive rant but still in the same acerbic style that people have told us they dislike, or have left threatening comments on the website. Can’t please everyone.
Talking about not pleasing everyone, I see the broadcast deal has been solved since I last went on a rant. The positive is that unlike football aka soccer aka the FIFA money grab, we don’t have to have multiple subscriptions to watch rugby league. Just one Kayo. And you don’t have to pay for Channel Nein. For good reason. Well, not paying money, as long as the girl’s happy, but you pay in other ways. Like State of Origin being a painful intrusion into the NRL competition for two months every year for the next seven years or however long the deal is for. Can’t be bothered looking. The best part of no standalone Origin is that everyone wants it, and everyone would love the weekend turning into a festival of various international and state based contests. And the NRL doing what Channel Nein want.
Going back to FIFA just briefly before I forget something I think is funny, I’d love to see one of those booths where the money flies around and desperate people pluck at the flying notes and love to think this is how FIFA pocket their bribes, I mean donations. I did find it extremely funny when after the US President stepped in to overturn the Red Card for whoever that player from the USA was, the Sepp Blatter drew the line at the wrong thing being done. You know you’ve crossed a line when Sepp mounts a high horse of sporting ethics.
You do wonder if Anthony Albanese would ever step in and get a suspension overturned in the NRL. We presume it would be for Cody Walker. It would give the social media warriors another reason to hate Albo.
Talk about hate, it’s time to move on and talk about the only person in rugby league who hates tries being scored, well aside from The Bunker.
Rumours that the Dolphins’ cult hero, hard man, heart and soul Ray Stone is being tempted by an offer from Penrith.
How could the Dolphins let any team, let alone the Panthers get near Ray Stone. Giving the most dominant post-Covid team Ray Stone is an almost FIFA-like handing over the keys to a premiership.
Penrith will benefit from the game’s best decoy runner and hardest tackler. A man who gives everything every day, and every minute. A man who admitted in the off season his favourite part of the day was getting needles. Injury recovery ones of course.
Wayne Bennett said that Ray Stone was one of the first people he wanted when setting up the Dolphins, and who’s going to argue. Not me, Ray scares me. But you can imagine a Ray Stone just standing quietly and menacingly in the corner of the Redcliffe Leagues Club just casually flipping a coin in the air to himself, occasionally glancing over to Wayne Bennett’s office. That’s if Wayne had an office, and you can see the League Club carpark from that office. Maybe Wayne didn’t need to see Ray Stone in the carpark and he could just imagine the scene. Given Wayne Bennett was a police officer in Queensland in the 1970’s, I’m sure he’s not easily scared either. That’s the Ray Stone effect.
So if the inaugural coach of the Dolphins thought that highly of Ray Stone, why are the Dolphins even allowing a sniff of Ray Stone to leave.
The club should know better.
Ray Stone played in every game of the Dolphins eight game winning streak. Then they lost two in a row and guess who didn’t play? Ray Stone. Imagine sabotaging your club full time going forward by allowing Penrith to bolster their club.
With Ray Stone the Dolphins’ record is W10 L4, which is close to top four form. And they only have themselves to blame for those losses after just a paltry 13 minutes in one of those games.
Maybe news of Ray Stone leaving was the catalyst to the Dolphins pisspoor showing last weekend. Maybe they knew he was on the market by the club and were simply too heartbroken to play any good. Although if that was the case they should have been tackling machines in honour of the great man.
Or the players are so going to miss his ae-felling tackling, pinpoint decoy running, occasional sidestep, and hatred of tries so much that Saturday’s 66-0 loss to the Sharks was a silent protest against the way the club is being run and not re-signing Ray Stone. I can imagine Herbie Farnworth, Tramplin’ Trai Fuller and Morgan “Beyonce” Knowles doing a mini sit-in at training until they are guanranteed the club will make a respectable offer to Ray Stone. It would better explain a 66-0 loss to the Sharks. Nicho Hynes isn’t that good.
So all that’s left to say is “enjoy” my Round 20 “Expert” Tips below. And….
Re-sign Ray Stone. Now.
READ MORE: CORNERSTONE – Ray Stone Rugby League Stats
READ MORE: Ray Stone vs Comics
The NRL Donkey’s NRL Round 20 Expert Tips & Match Analysis
THU 8PM – PENRITH v BRISBANE @ CommBank Stadium
Hmmm, I could think of easier ways to break an eight game losing streak than to play Penrith at CommBank Stadium on a Thursday. But I guess if the Broncos are looking to crash through anything it’s great that Ezra Mam is back this week.
Penrith by 16
FRI 6PM – CRONULLA v NEWCASTLE
We could refer to history and ask what kind of drugs the Sharks were using last weekend to can the Dolphins 66-0 in Redcliffe. The Bee Gees statues near the Esplanade in Redcliffe have been lowered to half mast after the loss. But as our Donkey R19 Review suggests, that the Knights were too scared to spoil the Jai Arrow party, and so could have easily won and will easily win this weekend.
Newcastle by 6
FRI 8PM – ROOSTERS v MELBOURNE
I want to see a low-scoring game, filled with agro (not the puppet) and loads of errors, if only for the coach blow ups during the game. As for the game itself, I’m not overly fussed. Roosters do have a woeful record against Melbourne, but Melbourne are missing both halves.
Storm by 2
SAT 3PM – CANBERRA v SOUTH SYDNEY
This could be the sneaky Game of the Week if these two teams play at their best. Although the chances of that are less than a blow up from Ricky Stuart but more than a smile from Wayne Bennett.
Souths by 6
SAT 5:30PM – WAHS v ST GEORGE ILLAWARRA
Nothing better for a team with the NRL’s worst away record since Covid to have to travel to another country and face a team currently second and in no mood to give up any generosity on their march to the top four. And beyond. Although, now I think about it, the Wests Tigers beat the Wahs earlier this season. Gee, that must have been an off day. That said, Covid era away form and winning twice in 2026 allows the Wahs to have a pretty big off day and still. That’s probably harsh on the Dragons, but they have only beaten the Tigers and Broncos.
Wahs by 20
SAT 7:30PM – BULLDOGS v WESTS TIGERS @ Accor Stadium
Ugh, Lachlan Galvin this, and Lachlan Galvin that. And it’s at the world’s most boring ground. Pfffft. Next game please.
Bulldogs by 2
SUN 2PM – GOLD COAST v MANLY
I’m not tipping the Gold Coast again until they permanently change back to the Gold Coast Chargers jerseys. Luckily for my barnyard tipping comp they are the Titans so I won’t lose too many tips.
Manly by 10
SUN 4PM – DOLPHINS v NORTH QUEENSLAND @ Suncorp Stadium
In a piece of draw scheduling that is almost as convenient as the referee allocations at a FIFA World Cup match, the Dolphins can try and bounce back from their worst ever result against a side that they have beaten four times in a row. Now, I can say that the reason the Dolphins didn’t win was because of Origin absentees, uncertainty in key positions, the fact that Redcliffe can be a scary place to be on a Saturday within 100 metres of places that serve Bundy Rum, and that an injury could mean you need to attended to at the Redcliffe hospital, but there’s only one reason. Not a coincidence. Concrete evidence of loss. No Ray Stone the last two weeks, no win. He’s not playing this week either, so no tip from me.
And, Re-sign Ray Stone. Now.
Cowboys by 8
READ MORE: THE GURGLER’S FULL NRL 2026 GEAR
We’ve been working hard for you to bring you the 2026 NRL Season Previews from every angle and angel possible. But never Jo Angel.
NRL DONKEY’S 2026 SEASON PREVIEW
BOLD NRL 2026 SEASON PREDICTIONS
CAPTAIN HINDSIGHT’S SENSIBLE NRL 2026 SEASON PREDICTIONS
WHY YOUR TEAM CAN’T WIN THE 2026 NRL PREMIERSHIP
NRL 2026 RATINGS PREDICTIONS
2026 NRL JERSEY RATINGS WITH AI GREK NORMAN
2026 NRL DRAW ANALYSIS
2026 NRL DRAW ANALYSIS – TEAM BY TEAM
THE A TO Z OF THE 2025 NRL SEASON
