This Week's Biggest Matches On Rugby Pass

We preview the best matches to catch on Rugby Pass this weekend, when the 2016 NRL Grand Finalists will be revealed, Bath will try to do something they haven’t done in over a decade, and life will most likely keep getting worse for Toulon.

NRL: Sharks vs Cowboys (Friday September 23, 5:55pm HKT)
Despite a loss to the Storm in the first week of the finals which put them on the brink of elimination, the Cowboys go into Friday’s Preliminary Final at Allianz Stadium as the favourites with the bookies. They’ve been in this situation before – last year they lost to the Broncos in week one of the finals before coming back to beat them in the final – and JT and co showed they still have the finals footy mettle in their come-from-behind extra time win last weekend. For the Sharks, on the other hand, this is uncharted territory: the club hasn’t reached a Grand Final since the wild old Super League days of 1997.

NRL: Storm vs Raiders (Saturday September 24, 5:40pm HKT)
The second Preliminary Final sees the tournament favourites host the people’s favourites as the Raiders head south-west to play the Storm at AAMI Park. The Raiders shut the Panthers out of their Semi Final last week, showing that while they’re the best attacking team in the competition their defence isn’t bad either. To beat the infuriatingly consistent Storm will require them to bring the best of both parts of their game, lest they be ground down the way the Cowboys were in Week 1. In their favour, Canberra have tasted the sweet nectar of victory over the Storm once already this season – winning 22-8 in Round 23.

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Aviva Premiership: Leicester vs Bath (Sunday September 25, 10:00pm HKT)
It’s early days yet, but three rounds into the Premiership season Bath look a vastly superior outfit to the side that finished 9th last year. They remain unbeaten under Todd Blackadder and Tabai Matson, and went to the top of the table on points difference after their come-from-behind win against Worcester last weekend. They haven’t won at Welford Road since 2003, though, and the last five fixtures between these sides have all been won by the home team. But Tigers have had an unusually slow start to the season, losing at home to Wasps in Round 2 and only narrowly sneaking past Newcastle last weekend. This could be Bath’s best chance in years.

Top 14: Toulon vs Clermont (Sunday September 25, 10:15pm HKT)
Diego Dominguez will be cursing whoever is responsible for the Top 14 draw this week. The under-fire Toulon coach, who was reportedly going to be fired if his side didn’t beat Toulouse two weeks ago, has had to back that win up against arguably the two toughest opponents in the Top 14. Racing 92 were too good for them in Paris last weekend, and this weekend they host Clermont, the only remaining unbeaten side after 5 rounds. Clermont haven’t been quite as good as their ‘unbeaten’ tag might suggest – two of their games have been tied after they let the opposition back into the game, so Toulon would be well-advised to hang in there right to the bitter end on Sunday.