Until Next Week

Asking if the Canberra Raiders found something on Saturday evening is an impossible question. There is no answer that can be truthful without the benefit of hindsight. The victory was impressive, but in a week’s time it may just look like the Raiders took advantage of a bad night from the Dogs, rather than a good night for the Milk.

Still, Canberra found adjustments, some more obvious than others. Zac Hosking moving from backrow to lock 20 minutes into the game was profound because it opened up so many other things. It ensured that the Raiders were winning rucks in sustainable ways, and that Owen Pattie got the support he needed in defence. It meant that Noah Martin ‘only’ made 34 tackles because he didn’t need to help in all the time.

The middle actually won the day, and Owen Pattie was constantly a threat. These two things meant Ethan Sanders wasn’t constantly under pressure and could kick properly. Coach Stuart was keen to highlight the interrelation of these two factors in his post-match press conference, comparing Sanders’ underperformance with that of Nathan Cleary in State of Origin.

I got some middles back, and our middles delivered tonight. [But] No matter what half you’ve got. If you’re not getting some go-forward, if you’re not getting some dominance in the middle it’s hard kicking on the back foot. It’s hard playing on the back foot. And that’s something that Sando has had to handle over the last number of months. – Stick post match

Stick is right. The game is easier for a half with a pack winning the day. It’s just been rare the Raiders pack have owned that space this year. The returning players were huge, and rebalanced a side that had been askew for months. Jayden Brailey isn’t a lock. Zac Hosking can do the job. Owen Pattie, rather than making Ethan Sanders’ job harder (as we had theorised had driven Stick to play Brailey ahead of him) actually provides a different point of attack, reducing the degree to which defences can ‘cheat’ on to Sanders in the kicking game.

But adjustments weren’t everything. Zac Hosking did open everything up at lock, but he played lock when the Raiders dropped four in a row between round two and five this year and nothing felt open then. The injuries that crippled their edge combinations this year did not come until Canberra had well-and-truly underwhelmed to start the season. So to say ‘ok now everything is fixed’ is simplistic.

There were other times that we thought other solutions were working too. The Brailey/lock plan worked for one (1) game. Daine Laurie was an effective 13 against the Cows and then never played there again (until this weekend). The Raiders played good footy for about 65 minutes on Saturday against a side that has equally disappointed this season. Screaming “we’re back” when three different Bulldogs players blew scoreable chances feels hollow.

Canberra will simply have to continue to build a sample size. There’s no pathway forward but the direct line. Stay on it or get off. Build proof that you have learned some lessons and are finally ready to play something approaching the football that can win you games, or lose.

The options aren’t great but they’re real. This week the Raiders answered questions about who they are. Because of the season prior to this moment, they have to answer the same questions every week. So, if you want to ask if the Raiders are back, I say it’s possible. Until next week.

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