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AAP | 04/09/08 | 0
AUDIO - Nathan Brown previews tonight's blockbuster
AUDIO - Andrew Moore's Round 26 preview
AUDIO - Brian Smith previews the Knights' clash with Brisbane
AUDIO - Tonie Carroll on farewelling the Broncos
VIDEO - 'We can beat anyone': New Roosters skipper Braith Anasta
It's shaping as the most important night of rugby league this year and by the end we will know who else can challenge Melbourne for the NRL premiership.
No team in NRL history has come from outside the top four to win the title and - with Manly, Melbourne and Cronulla secured in the top three - tomorrow's season-defining Friday night football will decide who finishes fourth.
The Sydney Roosters (fourth, 32 points) play St George Illawarra (6th, 30pts) at the Sydney Football Stadium while Brisbane (5th, 31pts) host Newcastle (8th, 28pts) at Suncorp Stadium.
The stakes are huge for everyone as the Knights must win to guarantee their place in the finals.
However, the Roosters are arguably under the most pressure as a loss could see the former frontrunners drop as low as sixth and into a disastrous first-week finals match-up.
Last week's unconvincing 22-20 win over South Sydney snapped a three-game losing streak but questions about their title credentials still linger.
But skipper Braith Anasta insists they can still go all the way.
"I suppose there is a lot at stake but to be honest the team hasn't put much pressure on ourselves," said Anasta.
"I actually think it's the most relaxed our team has been for the past three months.
"It's been a good refreshing week for us. We've been able to clear our heads and we know what our job is and hopefully we can do it.
"There is still an air of confidence around here that we can beat anyone on our day."
Brisbane are likely to claim fourth spot if the Roosters stumble as the Broncos are determined to send departing coach Wayne Bennett and retiring veteran Tonie Carroll away from Lang Park as winners.
With Test stars Darren Lockyer, Justin Hodges and Karmichael Hunt all fit heading into the finals, the 2006 premiers are still rated big title threats.
But Bennett insists another premiership, taking his Brisbane tally to seven in 21 years, is not what he needs for a fairytale finish before joining the Dragons in 2009.
"I don't have to win a premiership to cap it off. I don't have to do anything other than what I do," he said.
"I think I'm leaving them in pretty good shape.
"I don't think I could do much more and I've got no regrets."
The Dragons have won three straight and will start favourites to beat the Roosters tomorrow, but must rely on a Knights upset in Brisbane to secure an unlikely fourth place.
It is an incredible fightback for coach Nathan Brown's side after they started with just one win from their first six games.
"At the start of the year, we got written off a fair bit," skipper Mark Gasnier said.
"I think when we strung seven in a row there and we started to get up amongst it, (top four) started to become a reality but still it probably seemed a bit beyond reach.
"If someone said to us five or six weeks ago you might get into the top four, we probably would have laughed but here we are."
The Friday night blockbusters will kick-start an enthralling final round of action as the battle for the minor premiership and top eight will go down to the last day of the regular season.
Manly, Melbourne and Cronulla (all tied on 36pts) are jostling for top spot while Canberra (7th, 28pts), Newcastle (8th, 28pts), the New Zealand Warriors (9th, 28pts) and Parramatta (10th, 26pts) are all vying for the finals.
But the Warriors' campaign suffered a setback tonight when the NRL rejected a leave to appeal request over Wade McKinnon's three-game ban for spitting at a touch judge.
If someone said to us five or six weeks ago you might get into the top four, we probably would have laughed but here we are.
Dragons coach Nathan Brown
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