Betting tips / David Murdoch / 20 May 2012 / Leave a comment Bet Now View Market

Going into their Monday night NRL match against the Bulldgos, David Murdoch wonders whether the Sharks will be the same formidable force without Paul Gallen and Todd Carney...

We're yet to see the impact of losing Carney, but the Sharks have won just two of their past nine matches without Gallen, and one of those was last Sunday against Melbourne.

Canterbury has an impressive recent record against the Sharks, winning 13 of its 17 matches since 2001 (76.5%), the best record for any team in that period against them.

After winning its opening three matches, Canterbury has won just two of its past seven matches against the teams sitting in 14th (Titans) and 16th (Eels) on the ladder at the end of round 10.

The Sharks most impressive change this season is their ability to prevail in the tight matches. Seven of their 10 games have been decided by six points or less. Last year the Sharks won only one match by six points or less, but lost eight by eight points or less.

* Cronulla have won seven of their last eight matches
* Canterbury has won five of their last six matches against Cronulla
* Cronulla have lost five of their last six matches at ANZ Stadium

Canterbury's left-side defence will need to be on its game; Cronulla has scored 19 tries through its right side attack this season, compared with just eight through the left and six through the middle.

After shutting down Billy Slater in their win over the Storm, the Sharks will no doubt apply the same strategy to Ben Barba.

Barba has scored 14 tries in his past 14 matches and 16 tries in his past 15 matches at ANZ Stadium. He has four tries in three games against the Sharks, scoring at least once in each of his three games against them.

Canterbury will be desperate to bounce back after a disappointing loss to the Titans last week and meet the Sharks at just the right time to do so.

Canterbury by 6 @ Betfair Odds of 1.53