The Canberra Raiders won 34-20 against the Canterbury Bulldogs because they are better. It took them a while to remember that, and they spent too much time chasing the game. But once they got on top they were irrepressible. Good sides can win like this, but harder tests await that won’t afford them the luxury … More Raiders Review: Time to Build
BY ROB Week in, week out the Raiders find a way to get the job done (the Panthers not withstanding). Despite having one of the more decimated lists in the league they find a way to either grind out a win against a ranked competitor or finally break their points drought against a cellar-dweller. A … More Raiders Rumble! Raiders vs Bulldogs Round 16 Preview
BY DAN In the last week Josh Papalii has rumbled for 150 plus metres, sprinted 70 to catch a runaway halfback that literally no one else in the team could catch, all while rocking a tremendous mullet and making sure his good mate Dunamis Lui got his due for reaching a milestone. It’s also emerged … More Josh Papalii is a rugby league hero
BY DAN In the last few weeks Joe Tapine has been on a tear. Aided by a style of football that puts winning quick rucks at the heart of success, Tapine has been stepping and driving the Raiders down the park. In recent weeks he’s outgained even the great Josh Papalii regularly, even with limited … More Tapine Finds A Home
BY DAN The Canberra Raiders’ 36-16 victory over the Gold Coast Titans was a thorough dismantling of a inferior team. Canberra’s middle dominated, and their attack enjoyed a day of rare space in which to play. They should rejoice in such a substantial victory, but there is also work to do to get this side … More Raiders Review: The Search for Perfection
After an unceremonious blip against the Panthers, the Raiders bounced back with something of a blowout win over 2020 sad sacks the Broncos. It wasn’t a perfect performance by any measure, but it showed that when focussed the Green Machine is easily capable of dominating the strugglers this season. The Titans, of all the Queensland … More Raiders Rumble! Raiders vs Titans Round 15 Preview
BY DAN According to David Polkinghorne at The Canberra Times, the Canberra Raiders have extended a one-year extension offer to emerging hooker Tom Starling. (Update: And Alicia Newton from NRL.com has reported he seems likely to take it). Regardless of whether Starling takes the offer (and we certainly hope he does), it shows the Milk … More Future-proofing
BY DAN After another impressive performance on the weekend, most observers of the Canberra Raiders now consider Tom Starling moving to starting hooker to be a fait acommpli. It’s not that Siliva Havili has done a bad job, just there’s a superior – and notably faster – option on the bench ready to hyper-charge the … More Why Starling Isn’t Starting
BY DAN The Canberra Raiders 36-8 victory over the Brisbane Broncos was a necessary dismantling of a substandard football side. It took them a while, as they battled with themselves and a limited game plan, but eventually they overwhelmed the Queenslanders and finally put them to the sword. It was relieving, if not necessarily pleasing, … More Raiders Review: The Need for Speed
BY DAN It’s been been over a year since the Canberra Raiders scored five tries in the same game. It was August 2, 2019, few days after the Green Machine had taken part in a team-bonding outing to a haunted amusement park call Spookers on the outskirts of Auckland. They turned that camaraderie and bonhomie … More The Curse of Spookers
