The firing order of this weekend's games is also an interesting indicator to the eight-team McIntyre System. In week one, all eight teams play.

The two highest-ranked winners go straight through to week three and the two lowest-ranked losers are out. If team one (Broncos) beats team eight (Sharks) and team two (Roosters) beats team seven (Eels), the outcome is straightforward. The top two-ranked teams have won, they go straight to week three and the two lowest-ranked teams (ie, 7 and 8) have lost. So, the Sharks and the Eels would be out.

The trouble is those two games are played last on Saturday night and Sunday afternoon. So, the losers of the Friday night game between teams four and five (Canberra and Penrith) and Saturday afternoon's game between three and six (Newcastle and Melbourne) face a nailbiting wait hoping that seven and eight lose. If team seven (Eels) beats team two (Roosters) and team eight (Sharks) beats team one (Broncos), the two lowest-ranked losers have to come from the three and six clash and the four and five match. Phew, complicated or what!

The series, though, promises some tremendous, good old fashioned, hell-for-leather action with the first qualifying final between Canberra and Penrith at the Bruce Stadium on Friday night, and Sunday's Sharks v Brisbane clash at the ANZ Stadium arguably the pick of the four ties.

Penrith recently had a big win over the Sharks but Canberra are almost unbeatable at home. Canberra fullback Brett Mullins (hernia) replaces Brad Kelly on the bench. Penrith have cleared halfback Matthew Rodwell (ankle) but second-rower Matt Adamson (knee) is set to pull out with Scott Sattler starting. Canberra's Jason Croker plays his 200th first-grade game, while its Panther Peter Jorgensen's 100th

Penrith skipper Steve Carter, who most league fans know simply as "the Dog," is one to watch. Carter is not a man opponents look forward to playing against. He's all elbows, loves nothing more than turning the attacker into the attacked, and gets under the skin of opponents more than just about anyone in the NRL.

Melbourne's title defence faces its toughest challenge before 25,000 Novocastrians in the second qualifying final at Marathon Stadium on Saturday. Newcastle five-eighth Matthew Johns (hamstring) trained strongly on Wednesday night, while second-rower Ben Kennedy (ankle) did not complete the session but will play with the aid of a painkilling injection. Ben Roarty, Peter Robinson and Fafita Moala travelled to Newcastle with the unscathed Storm.

Sydney skipper Brad Fittler said this week it was always the Roosters' plan to finish second, win their first final and get the week off. The Roosters have never beaten Parramatta in a finals match. Sydney have, however, now won 10 consecutive matches at the SFS and have taken out both premiership games this year against the Eels, 20-16 and 26-0. The Roosters have conceded the most number of tries (25) from kicks - over a quarter of all four-pointers scored against them this year. Their opponents in Saturday night's third qualifying final at Sydney Football Stadium were in a kicking mood last week, and Eels players report doing plenty of kicking drills at training.

The Sharks play Brisbane in the fourth qualifying final at ANZ Stadium on Sunday and both will remember their semi-final last year when the Sharks scored two tries from kicks. Sharks skipper Andrew Ettingshausen (hamstring) was ruled out yesterday, while halfback Jason Ferris (thigh) and reserve forward Dean Treister (ankle) are in doubt. Colin Best moves into the centres and Brett Howland comes on to the wing. If Ferris is out, Scott Murray would move up from a seven-man bench. Injured Broncos Brad Thorn, Gorden Tallis, Michael Hancock, Michael De Vere and Wendell Sailor are fit.

Sportlist prediction: Canberra to beat Penrith, Roosters to beat the Eels, Broncos to beat the Sharks, and Newcastle to beat Melbourne.