Friday Focus: Round 4 vs Storm

While there are several exciting match-ups across the field, many fans will be eager to see the battle of the two star dummy-halves, Api Koroisau and Harry Grant.

The pair are no strangers to facing off, having played five games against one another last year across the NRL, State of Origin and World Cup.

With just hours until kick-off in Melbourne, we’re taking a deeper dive into the battle of the hookers for this week’s Friday Focus.

After making the move down the M4 over the offseason, Api Koroisau has shaken off an early calf injury to play in each of Wests Tigers first three matches of the season.

In sweltering conditions at Belmore last Sunday, the three-time premiership winner played the full 80 minutes and accumulated an impressive 125 running metres and 44 tackles.

While he only has one try assist to his name so far in 2023, Koroisau demonstrated his attacking guile last season as he registered twelve assists and helped Penrith win 22 of the 25 games he played. 

These performances saw the Fijian skipper win the Dally M Hooker of the Year award and unseat Damien Cook to claim the coveted number nine jersey for the NSW Blues.

His opponent in that State of Origin series was his Melbourne counterpart Harry Grant.

Wests Tigers members and fans will have fond memories of Grant’s stint at the club during the pandemic-riddled year of 2020, where he scored three tries and had five try assists as he forced his way into the Origin frame in his debut season.

Grant has emerged victorious in his three previous encounters against Koroisau and most recently scored a try for Australia as he knocked Koroisau’s Fijian side out of the Rugby League World Cup on his way to claiming a spot in the Team of the Tournament.

The Melbourne rake has enjoyed his start to the new season, scoring the winning try in Golden Point against Parramatta before accumulating three try assists in last week’s loss to the Titans.

Should be a great battle between two of the best #9s in the business.