BY DAN

The Canberra Raiders 28-12 victory over the Newcastle Knights was quiet but powerful. It wasn’t a sudden surprise, an ambush an opposition wasn’t ready for. It was instead simple, hard-working football. It was consistent; wearing down an opposition that thought the game was a celebration of their existence rather than a competition to win. They waited for Canberra to wilt. The Raiders refused to.

It wasn’t meant to be this way. The Knights are everyone’s darling team this year, expected to match last year’s run with something similar. The Raiders are this year’s hot-button team; everyone’s second-favourite as always, but this time for the spoon instead of hearts. I’d ask rhetorically if anyone had asked them, but you and me know that Sticky has spent the best part of four months reminding them how people felt every day.

This victory was exciting not just for its existence but for the proof of concept it offered. Success here was built on a foundation so solid and unspectacular an accountant would have thought to spruce it up a bit. They pared a robust defence with solid running through the middle third and a brilliant kicking game. It’s an old story, and doing those basics will get you three-quarters of the way there most nights. Add to that an impressive fitness level (hardest preseason ever!), and they simply wore down a fancied opposition with work, commitment and consistency. By gar it’s been a while! More importantly for a side in its infancy, it provides a platform from which to reach greater things.

The most important aspect of this was the defence. At no point did the quicksand of last season emerge. The Knights would win a ruck or two but the Raiders would just work hard to win the next. Newcastle consistently moved from shift movement to shift movement, testing both edges. The Milk simply maintained their structure and for the most part handled it. The young edges were offered complex equations and for the most part they solved them. On the Raiders right Matt Timoko and Zac Hosking handled Ponga and Bradman Best. Albert Hopoate proved me, and plenty of others wrong on the left, and Ethan Strange was near unbeateable. But more important than individuals this felt structurally safe in a way that we haven’t seen for a few years.

And this wasn’t even a perfect performance. There were still defensive errors that the Knights failed to take advantage of, instead offering remarkably poorly timed errors in space, staring at the try-line like the 10 that got away. There were still moments where the Canberra middle cratered, allowing the Knights freedom to push through and mostly around. But even in those moments the defence looked calm, covering inside out with vigor (although, occasionally too much, as Zac Hosking discovered when he pushed beyond Jackson Hastings late). Errors only cost the Raiders when they were compounded in multiples, such as when Hudson Young idiotically got sin-binned, Emre Guler gave away a late-set penalty, and then found himself not agile enough to defend in Young’s spot on the edge against a rampaging Tyson Frizell. When Hosking helped out too much it only cost the Milk because Tom Starling got caught up in attackers on his inside. One missed tackle on itself was generally cleaned up, or at least aided by Newcastle’s generous mishandling.

This wall of defence meant that the Green Machine were never behind the game. They never had to go beyond plan A, and they could stick to their comparative advantage in the middle. You know the story. Joey Taps (14 for 134, 45 post contact) and Josh Papalii (10 for 105m) did the first rotation and kicked some heads in. Papa in particular was agile in the line and used that to make no hit on him perfect, ensuring there was almost always an arm free for an offload. Pasami Saulo (5 for 68) and Ata Mariota (9 for 76) were sprightly in the middle 30. Morgan Smithies only left the field to get a Head Injury Assessment. He cracked 100 metres, 40 odd tackles tying up the middle, and had a big hand in the attack. Corey Horsburgh still has to fit in here somewhere.

The backs also did their job, all cracking 100 metres and being the beginning ballast of each set. Timoko looked the most damaging (oh you bet there’s going to be plenty of RMEs from this one), Hopoate got through the most work, and Rapana and Cotric looked as advertised. But a note should be reserved for Xavier Savage. That was as strong and willing as he’s looked in first grade, no better exemplified than taking Hudson Young’s White Chocolate pass and powering through Ponga and a backrower to the line. It’s not much a revelation as a confirmation of what we saw in the pre-season but it’s still brings warmth to an old man’s heart. Leave him be Stick. He’s home on that wing.

There was familiarity in the approach but also a wrinkle in Smithies involvement in distribution. Turning forwards under to keep the defence honest. Finding halves with good connections. It was instrumental in keeping the Raiders singular focus on the middle third from feeling stale. He showed that he has good instincts of where the ball needs to go, no more perfectly encapsulated when he jumped out after a quick ruck to fill the first receiver position, connecting the ruck to Strange who put Hopoate outside his man, an exciting moment only made better by Hopoate’s pass to Rapana and the fact it sealed the match. How he fits in with Horsburgh will be interesting but I’ve no doubt it opens up the options for Canberra’s attack through the middle.

Behind all this Jamal Fogarty steered the side around like an grizzled vet, unfazed by much, kicking in all its forms near picture perfect. Two tries came direct from his boot and it often looked the Raiders’ best option in attack. By the time tackle five rolled around you could smell something was going to happen, as if waiting for rain. Combined with Rapana commandeering short-side attacks like they had all the sugar, it meant that Strange could pick his spots. He stayed out of things for much of the first half but warmed to his task, and had some good moments such as the aforementioned try involvement. Just a rookie, but he looks perfectly at home in this side.

There is room for improvement but that’s good news. The attack looks as unstructured as ever and the next time they throw out a set play will be the first. It meant that on occasion they were either playing north-south through the middle, or east-west on the edges. Hudson Young ran one beautiful line off Fogarty and it stood out both for the ease of connection but for the pace of moving parts – it wasn’t common. The defence was no doubt aided by a side that dropped ball in good position but it still turned up again and again. While the extension isn’t there yet, the basis on which they can reach more stirring heights is.

Victory is an earned reward. Unlike many last year it didn’t feel like they fell out of a tree and landed in a flower patch. This was deliberate, targeted and obtained. It wasn’t flashy, though there were moments of it. It was not cohesive in attack but for a few unconnected instances of flourish. But it was gritty; built on an old school footy foundation that could support the Empire State building, our dreams, and perhaps, success in the future.

It wasn’t the finished product either. This wasn’t the master creating his opus. But it was the necessary productions that come before that. Proof that the talent exists and needs guidance. With a mix of nous and luck there could be good times ahead. I’m looking forward to it.

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