THE DEBATE: With four sides still alive, who will be left fighting for the ultimate NRL prize?

JENNO: Well JB, we've had brawls, blowouts and bow outs, but the whips are truly cracking when you hit the prelim final stage.

There's some juicy match-ups. A grand final rematch between Souths and Penrith obviously wets the appetite, while Parramatta heading north to take on the Cowboys offers up its fair share of intrigue.

There's plenty to like about both but, before we get there, what do you think of the final four that we have; any of them surprise you?

BARTLETT: Mate, I'd be lying if I didn't admit the Cowboys have blown me away in 2022.

At the start of the year, I didn't expect them to find their way outside the bottom four and didn't see too many things to get excited for up north. Boy, have they proven me - and many others - wrong.

Todd Payten has got this group humming, which has allowed Scott Drinkwater to weave his magic, the halves have been exceptional, Jason Taumololo has found another gear again, and guys like Reuben Cotter and Jeremiah Nanai have run amok.

Conversely, it doesn't shock me too much that Penrith and Souths remain standing. The Panthers have been the clear standouts for the past two-three seasons, while the Rabbitohs have got an incredible recent record of reaching preliminary finals. They've managed it with a new coach and new halfback this year, so I think they deserve plenty of credit for that.

The wildcard to me is Parramatta. They've had one of the strongest sides on paper for several years, and they've finally got the monkey off the back by getting past week two of the finals. Can Brad Arthur's men take another huge step forward on Friday night?

JENNO: I've got to say I'm staggered that both Melbourne and the Roosters were week-one exits. I thought they were more capable of knocking off the Panthers than the other top-four sides.

I was with you on the Cowboys at the start of the season, but by the latter stages I was fairly convinced they could get where they are, though I did tip the Sharks in week one.

They've now gone out in straight sets so it shows how my tipping has gone through the finals. I'm 2-4, but I have to say the Eels clash with the Raiders on the weekend went exactly how I expected.

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I know the Raiders had some people excited, but I was never that enamoured with Ricky Stuart's side. It did well to pull itself out of a hole to get into the finals but beating the Titans twice, the Knights, Dragons, Sea Eagles and Tigers on the road in didn't give me a whole lot of belief they could make a deep finals run.

Take nothing away from what they produced against Melbourne, but I had the feeling they'd run their race at that point. They were playing with house money after that and that can work for you or against you.

With the start they produced, the Eels just took the wind right out of their sails from the jump and it was just 'by how much' from there. It didn't take a lot of juice out of them either and, with the Cowboys enjoying a week off, it promises to be an absolute barn-burner in Townsville.

Who do you like?

BARTLETT: It promises to be red-hot on Friday night - literally - with temperatures expected to hit the early 30s. I think this plays right into the Cowboys' hands. They proved far too strong when the two sides met earlier this year in similar conditions in Darwin.

The Cowboys also have the huge benefit of an extra week's rest, though I'm not sure it will make too much of a difference considering Parra's victory over the Raiders last week was a park run.

I think we'll know pretty early which Eels outfit has rocked up on Friday night. When the likes of Junior Paulo and Reagan Campbell-Gillard are steaming forward, the men in blue and yellow are usually in a pretty good spot, which allows Dylan Brown and Mitch Moses to dictate terms in attack.

That, of course, is an ideal scenario for Parramatta - but they're the real Jekyll and Hyde of the NRL. How about you? Are you convinced by the Eels?

JENNO: I'm not entirely sure the Eels have shrugged the finals monkey off their back. The win last week did ease some of the pressure on Brad Arthur and turned down the volume on the outside noise.

It provides some valuable clear air to prepare for the Cowboys but, given the thoughts on the Raiders I outlined above, I'm not sure beating them, even as convincingly as they did, is proof of their premiership credentials.

A win over the Cowboys would be. They're two very similar sides, I just think the Cowboys have shown a greater ability to absorb pressure and get into the grind in games.

I think you hit the nail on the head pointing out how good they are when they're dictating terms. Their issue comes when they're not, because, in a prelim final, you'll inevitably be playing off the back foot at some point.

Fair or not, the Eels have developed a reputation for being flat-track bullies. It must make the game so exciting for them, they can prove so many different points with one win.

I'm leaning towards the home side but I wouldn't be the slightest bit surprised if the Eels get the win. You're right, it'll come down to the start because chasing points is not the Eels' go.

I will admit I am surprised Souths are where they are, not based on their talent, but purely because I had the Roosters right in the premiership frame and they met in week one.

That was a bizarre stop-start game of footy and the Roosters were without Joey Manu and lost James Tedesco early on.

It's the reason I tipped the Sharks last week. I thought they'd played better footy the week before to only get edged out by an extra-time field goal but, there's no other way to put it, they were abysmal on the weekend.

Whether that hinders or helps Souths remains to be seen. They have got those game breakers all over the park and I've got no doubt they'd have finished top four had Latrell not got injured earlier in the year.

That said, you wouldn't win many regular-season games making 14 errors and completing at 68 per cent, let alone a finals game. Their class, and Cronulla being off the pace, saw them do it easy, but they'll need to improve massively to be any chance of derailing the Panthers train. Can they do it?

BARTLETT: I think Souths are one of the few teams that can stop Penrith going back-to-back. They shocked the Panthers in week one of last year's finals, and then were one intercept away from causing a grand final boil-over just three weeks later.

Tom Burgess being out concerns me, he has been huge in their engine room this year, while Jai Arrow and Siliva Havili both remain under injury clouds.

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I believe the Bunnies need both men on deck to stand any chance of winning because Arrow brings so much aggression and Havili has been a revelation off the bench in 2022.

Glass half full, Souths have two huge X-factors that no other side in the competition have: Mitchell and Walker.

While his stats won't blow you away, Latrell has been tremendous to Souths' structure since coming back from that hamstring injury, and I think his goal kicking is seriously underrated. As for Cody, he isn't the most consistent footballer, but he is an absolute delight to watch when he's on.

Having said all of that, I can't look past the Panthers. That forward pack, led by Fisher-Harris and Yeo, is just so damn imposing. What do you think, Jenno?

JENNO: It seems ridiculous to say, but Penrith have somehow managed to go under the radar over the back half of the year.

Having sewn up the minor premiership so early, and with so many stars not playing, they've been able to simply go about their business in a way reigning premiers rarely can.

I honestly can't see them getting beaten this weekend or the following but much stranger things have happened.

I'm tipping a Panthers-Cowboys decider and, if my tipping form through the finals is anything to go by, the odds of an Eels-Rabbitohs grand final have now tightened dramatically.

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