Confirmation that the inspirational Briers, 31, is to stay with the Wolves for a 14th season will end speculation linking him with a move to neighbours Widnes.

His future had been unclear as new coach Tony Smith assessed his playing squad but the England boss is happy to have the former Wales international in his club side.

Smith said: (quote) Lee and I have a good working relationship and we understand what we require from one another. We work happily together and have formed a good partnership so far. Lee is certainly one of the brightest rugby league talents in the game and I look forward to continuing to work with him next season. He added that; Vinnie also brings a wealth of experience to the team having had success in both the international and domestic game. Whilst for a young guy Mike has been around the first team for quite a long time. He continues to improve and is set to establish himself as a regular first-team player of the future. (end quote)

The deal means 30-year-old utility man Anderson, who joined Warrington from St Helens in 2006, will still play alongside brother Louis in the Wolves side.

Prop Cooper, 20, is a local product who made his engage Super League début in 2006.
Mike Cooper

Leigh Centurions the Championship side have pulled off a major coup with the return of Ian Millward to the club as chief coach on a three-year deal. The Australian is the assistant coach at Canberra Raiders at the moment but began coaching at Leigh before six years at St Helens and a spell at Wigan.

Millward said (quote) Leigh gave me a start in 1999 and I’ll endeavour to repay the club and fans in the coming seasons, he added my other reason is to be closer to my children who still live in England. (end quote)

Leigh chairman Arthur Thomas said he was delighted to have Ian return to the club that brought him to England from Australia in 1999.

Bulldogs 30-18 Cowboys
Wests Tigers 10-21 Dragons
Gold Coast Titans 28-12 New Zealand Warriors
Sydney Roosters 19-12 Cronulla Sharks
Canberra Raiders 26-16 Melbourne Storm
Parramatta Eels 21-14 Brisbane Broncos
Newcastle Knights 25-20 South Sydney Rabbitohs

Round 17

Fri 3 Jul 8:35 Brisbane Broncos v New Zealand Warriors
Fri 3 Jul 8:35 Dragons v Sydney Roosters
Sat 4 Jul 6:30 South Sydney Rabbitohs v Wests Tigers
Sat 4 Jul 8:30 Melbourne Storm v Newcastle Knights
Sat 4 Jul 8:30 Cowboys v Cronulla Sharks
Sun 5 Jul 3:00 Canberra Raiders v Gold Coast Titans
Sun 5 Jul 4:00 Penrith Panthers v Parramatta Eels
Mon 6 Jul 8:00 Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles v Bulldogs

Predictions

4 from 7 this week, the State of Origin did have its effect as Sharks, Storm and Broncos went down to teams you would expect them to beat, they were all away games as well so maybe that was and excuse. Full list this week and teams should be at full strength, so here are our predictions:

Broncos
Dragons
Rabbitohs
Storm
Cowboys
Titans
Panthers
Bulldogs

Leeds Rhinos 33-30 Bradford Bulls
Salford City Reds 10-34 Huddersfield Giants
St. Helens 30-0 Celtic Crusaders
Castleford Tigers 20-22 Catalans Dragons
Hull Kingston Rovers 28-36 Wigan Warriors
Warrington Wolves 24-12 Hull FC
Wakefield Wildcats 20-18 Harlequins RL

Fixtures Round 19

Fri 3 Jul 20:00 Salford City Reds v St. Helens
Fri 3 Jul 20:00 Wigan Warriors v Harlequins RL Sky Sports
Sat 4 Jul 17:00 Hull FC v Leeds Rhinos Sky Sports
Sat 4 Jul 18:00 Celtic Crusaders v Warrington Wolves
Sat 4 Jul 21:00 Catalans Dragons v Hull Kingston Rovers
Sun 5 Jul 15:00 Huddersfield Giants v Wakefield Wildcats

Predictions

Just 3 out of 7 correct this week, went for some lonh shots and they did not come through for us. Some more tight calls and here are our predictions:

St Helens
Wigan
Leeds
Warrington
Catalans
Huddersfield

Lime Property, a local estate agent, are already in partnership with the club after becoming their official relocation agent for new players and staff at the beginning of the year. They are seen as one of the fastest growing property firms in the region with a passion for Hull FC and the City of Hull.

Hull FC Chief Executive James Rule said; (quote) Our partnership with Lime Property has continued to evolve and we are excited to be working with an organisation that so evidently is a proud supporter of Hull FC. (end quote)

Managing Director at Lime Property, Paul Fielder said; (quote) We are delighted to be extending our sponsorship with Hull FC for the 2010 season and to have our name on the famous black & white shirts is an honour. For Lime Property to be sitting alongside the likes of P&O Ferries & Chrysler shows how far we have come in a little over 12 months.(end quote)

The deal will also see Lime Property continue as Official Relocation Agent for Hull FC whereby players are provided with serviced apartments or luxury homes when they first arrive in the city.

The second period and NSW Blues made the match a spectacle as Jarryd Hayne touched down twice, one an intercept try and then David Williams scored to bring the match to 18-14. But it was the Maroons who took the spoils thanks to a late score from Cameron Smith. Queensland had to make their tackles in the second period and this they did. There is no doubt that had NSW Blues been better in the first period the game could have been theirs, though it would not have been deserved. So thanks to a superb first period and enough to keep control in the second, we reached the final score of:

NSW 14-24 Queensland

Scorers

NSW
Tries: Hayne (2) Williams Goals: Gidley
Queensland
Tries: Inglis, Folau, Lockyer, Smith Goals: Thurston 4

Teams

New South Wales: Gidley, Hayne, Lyon, Monaghan, Williams, Barrett, Wallace, Kite, Farah, Weyman, Creagh, O’Donnell, Gallen.
Replacements: Poore, G. Stewart, Watmough, Morris.

Queensland: Slater, Boyd, Inglis, Tonga, Folau, Lockyer, Thurston, Price, Smith, Civoniceva, Harrison, Thaiday, Johnson.
Replacements: Hunt, Hannant, Myles, Crocker.

Bulldogs 19-12 Penrith Panthers
Cowboys 24-22 Sydney Roosters
Melbourne Storm 14-12 Wests Tigers
Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles 20-14 Canberra Raiders
Cronulla Sharks 46-12 Brisbane Broncos

Round 16

Fri 26 Jun 8:35 Bulldogs v Cowboys
Fri 26 Jun 8:35 Wests Tigers v Dragons
Sat 27 Jun 6:30 Gold Coast Titans v New Zealand Warriors
Sat 27 Jun 8:30 Sydney Roosters v Cronulla Sharks
Sun 28 Jun 3:00 Canberra Raiders v Melbourne Storm
Sun 28 Jun 4:00 Parramatta Eels v Brisbane Broncos
Mon 29 Jun 8:00 Newcastle Knights v South Sydney Rabbitohs

Predictions

4 from 5 this week, just the Broncos who let us down, but it was a big ask away to the Sharks. 7 match’s this week and the State of Origin will affect a few, but here are our predictions:

Bulldogs
Dragons
Titans
Sharks
Storm
Broncos
Knights

Smith has scored 42 tries in 88 games since making his Leeds debut in 2005 and was man of the match in the Rhinos’ 2008 Grand Final victory. Smith, who is comfortable at full-back, wing or centre, won the Harry Sunderland Trophy in last year’s Grand Final for his man of the match display in Leeds’ victory over St Helens and went on to play for England at the World Cup.

Smith said: (quote)It’s a massive challenge, not only as a league player moving to union, but also moving to London. Wasps are one of the biggest clubs in the Guinness Premiership and have some of the best players in England. The opportunity to train alongside players of such calibre with a coaching team of (director of rugby) Tony Hanks and (head coach) Shaun Edwards couldn’t be missed. I have enjoyed some great success at Leeds Rhinos and Wasps were the obvious choice with their history of success in the Premiership and Europe. (end quote)

Tony Hanks said: (quote) Lee is a quality player who will again add strength to our squad for the upcoming season. While still only 22, he has developed an impressive CV already with Leeds and England in rugby league and we are excited about the skill set and experience he will bring with him. Working alongside someone like Shaun, who has worked in both codes, will of course be a massive benefit to Lee and we look forward to welcoming him to the club in November. (end quote)

Hull FC 14-12 Salford City Reds
Huddersfield Giants 6-13 Castleford Tigers
Celtic Crusaders 18-32 Hull Kingston Rovers
Harlequins RL 14-48 Leeds Rhinos
Catalans Dragons 12-24 Warrington Wolves
Bradford Bulls 18-44 St. Helens

Fixtures Round 18

Fri 26 Jun 20:00 Leeds Rhinos v Bradford Bulls
Fri 26 Jun 20:00 Salford City Reds v Huddersfield Giants
Fri 26 Jun 20:00 St. Helens v Celtic Crusaders
Sat 27 Jun 18:00 Castleford Tigers v Catalans Dragons Sky Sports
Sun 28 Jun 18:15 Hull Kingston Rovers v Wigan Warriors Sky Sports
Sun 28 Jun 15:00 Warrington Wolves v Hull FC
Sun 28 Jun 15:30 Wakefield Wildcats v Harlequins RL

Predictions

Just 2 correct this week, home games did not help our tips to win through. Some exciting match-ups this week and here are our predictions:

Leeds Rhinos
Salford City Reds
St Helens
Castleford Tigers
Hull Kingston Rovers
Warrington Wolves
Harlequins RL

Sovereign is the largest provider of healthcare in the Bradford District and their Chief Executive, David Lewis said (quote) As a Bradford Company we are delighted to continue our partnership with Bradford Bulls. The city has not had a lot of good news in the recent past but one of the most successful elements has been the Bradford Bulls. Not only have they brought prestige to the city on the field but also through their off field activities with their Community Development programme. Their work in the Bradford Community is what first attracted Sovereign Health Care to the club because there is a lot of synergy between the charitable work the Bulls have done, which is exceptional and what we do at Sovereign. Some of the initiatives the Bulls pioneered have now been adopted both nationally and internationally, which is a credit to the club and something with which we are proud to be associated. (end quote)

Bradford Bulls Head of Sponsorship, Debbie Mortimer said: (quote) We are delighted to renew our partnership with Sovereign Health Care. They have been associated with the club for many years and I feel the partnership has benefited both parties and we hope to continue in that vein for next season. (end quote)