Tackle 1: Folau won't be back

Speculation that Israel Folau is about to return to rugby league is a long way off the mark with Folau absolutely no chance of returning to rugby league before his four-year, $1 million a season contract with the AFL expires after the 2014 season. Folau may find the new game trying, he may even yearn for his days as a rugby league superstar, but there is absolutely no chance of the AFL releasing Folau and there is little chance that Folau will turn his back on such money. The embarrassment of having Folau play and fail is simply not on the same level for the AFL as having Folau leave before he even plays a senior game. The rumblings in rugby league circles that Folau is about to return show a fundamental misunderstanding of how much of an investment the AFL has made in Folau, how much they genuinely believe he can succeed and how much they believe they seek to gain if he does succeed. Israel Folau will be a Giant for a long while yet.

Tackle 2: State of Origin sells

The key to achieving value in the next television rights deal is the unbundling of the game, selling off matches individually or by the day, as well as selling off State of Origin in its own three-game package. The ratings are such for Origin, even as Queensland chases a record sixth straight series victory, that stations will pay incredible sums for the matches, with Seven believed to be extremely interested. The NRL has to leverage State of Origin into a deal that brings not only added money to the code but added exposure. The annual three-game series is critical to the immediate future of rugby league and it can no longer be flogged off on the cheap to Nine again.

Tackle 3: The Value of a Contract

Players signed to Newcastle next year and beyond should not be bullied into leaving; they should simply be reminding the club that they have a contract and will be seeing it out. There have been wide-ranging reports that Cory Paterson and Beau Henry are unwanted by Wayne Bennett and have been told to look elsewhere for 2012, despite both being contracted to the Knights until 2012 and 2013 respectively. In fact, Newcastle have 19 current players contracted. There is no need for these players to help the Knights sign Darius Boyd or any other superstar. Loyalty runs both ways and a contract still has value.

Tackle 4: Defending Dave Taylor

The defence of Dave Taylor has reached absurd levels with South Sydney players trying to convince the rugby league world and themselves that Taylor is contributing to the Bunnies this year. Dave Taylor, simply, is playing like a fringe first-grader, not a big-name, big-money recruit. His numbers this year have been woeful, the most notable of which are his 14 handling errors in 10 games and the fact he has only broken 100 running metres/game twice this season. Taylor's defence team seems shocked he was dropped from Queensland. He should count himself lucky to be their 18th man as he is not in Queensland's best 25 players on current form. He is playing dreadfully and is one of the busts of 2011.

Tackle 5: Braith back to six

Braith Anasta may no longer be in the mix for rep honours and may no longer have the boom on him as one of the top pivots in the game but he is at the peak of his powers. Unfortunately for both Anasta and the Roosters, his best football comes when he is wearing the No.6 jersey, a rarity these days with Todd Carney and Mitchell Pearce also at Bondi Junction. Anasta played his best game of the year against Newcastle and is creating plenty when given the opportunity to play five-eighth. The Roosters should look to move Todd Carney to the centres or hooker or let Anasta move to a new club, as his skills are being wasted in the back row.

Tackle 6: Warriors loom large

Led by the most underrated coach in the NRL, Ivan Cleary, the New Zealand Warriors are shaping as legitimate title threats. The Warriors have won seven of their last eight, including wins in Melbourne, the Gold Coast and Newcastle. With their attack off-key against South Sydney on Sunday, they fell back to their defence, which held the high scoring Bunnies to a meagre six points, even as Krisnan Inu did his best to lose the match for the Warriors with a display unrivalled in selfishness, laziness and stupidity. The Warriors have allowed only four tries once in the last two months-in their only loss, to Manly. With contenders falling like dominoes, the Warriors are real players this year.