Round 9 of the Austbrokers Canberra Raiders Cup is headlined by the live stream of last year’s Grand Final rematch between the West Belconnen Warriors and the Queanbeyan Kangaroos held at Raiders Belconnen.
West Belconnen Warriors v Queanbeyan Kangaroos, 3pm Sunday 4th June at Raiders Belconnen, Streamed Live
Although the West Belconnen Warriors managed to beat the Queanbeyan Kangaroos in last year’s grand final, the Warriors face a difficult task this Sunday.
Sitting in second place on the ladder, the Kangaroos have been in impressive form having won their last three matches by more than 20 points.
For West Belconnen is has been mixed as of late, narrowly losing to the Blues last week and winning the week before against the Bushrangers.
Speaking ahead of the Grand Final rematch, Kangaroos captain coach, Aaron Gorrell, said his side weren’t focusing too much on their opposition.
“We need to keep our own backyard in order and improve every week,” Gorrell said.
Key to their chances this weekend is their influential five-eighth, Brent Crisp who leads the competition for the most tries and goals.
“He’s been one of the best players in the competition for the last couple of years,” Gorrell said. “He’s on fire in all aspects of his game. He’s massive for us but we need everyone doing their job.”
The Kangaroos are currently sitting in 2nd on the ladder and the Warriors are sitting in 5th. West Belconnen will be out to impress in front of a home crowd seeking to push towards a finals spot.
Watch the Roos take on the Warriors at 3pm Sunday!
Tuggeranong Bushrangers v Queanbeyan Blues, 3pm Saturday 3rd June, Greenway
The third placed Tuggeranong Bushrangers face off against an undefeated Queanbeyan Blues outfit in a mouth-watering match up.
The Bushrangers are coming off a big twenty point win against the Sharks whilst the Queanbeyan Blues were strong in a ten point win over West Belconnen.
This could be the hardest test yet for the Blues, travelling all the way down to Greenway from Queanbeyan, having to face an in form Bushrangers on their home soil.
Dayne Ewings from the Bushrangers says that they are definitely ready to cause an upset and is excited to play the best team in the competition at the moment.
“Obviously we want to win every game we can, but it will be good to test ourselves because obviously they’re unbeaten and going pretty well, so it will be good to see what it takes to play the top team”, he said.
Woden Valley Rams v Gungahlin Bulls, 3pm Saturday 3rd June, Phillip District
Both these two sides will be eager to turn around their current form in order to push hard for a finals spot with the Bulls currently second last on the ladder and the Rams sitting in sixth.
Last week the Rams were taught a lesson away to the Kangaroo’s and the week before that they were beaten convincingly by the Blues. Two tough games and now with a great opportunity to get a win back against a struggling Gungahlin side.
Coming off a bye leading into round 8 the Bulls suffered a disappointing loss at home to the Yass Magpies. Gungahlin have scored the least amount of points compared to any team this season whilst the Rams are not far behind at 3rd in that category.
Woden Second Row Michael Gilmour believes the game will be won by being clinical in taking chances when it matters.
“With both teams it’s a fitness battle, seeing who can last longest and be the most clinical as in no dropped balls and keeping errors low, and just getting into the grind”, he said.
Yass Magpies v Goulburn Workers Bulldogs, 3pm Saturday 3rd June, Walker Park
A fourth placed Yass Magpies will square off against the seventh placed Bulldogs side that will be fresh coming off a bye last week.
The Magpies soared to a gutsy 24-18 win over the Bulls in Gungahlin last Saturday as they will be eager to improve on that form in front of a home crowd at Walker Park.
In terms of contests, this match shapes up to be very unpredictable as both teams have been plagued by inconsistency throughout the season.
Yass Magpies centre Willie Pearce insists the ‘Highway Rivalry’ clash is just like any other game of footy.
“We have got a couple of boys that have come from Goulbourn, it’s like any team but I guess, we will need to get on top of them and put our best foot forward”, he said.
A win for Yass could propel their season and help them remain inside the top four while a win for Goulburn could see them move up to third on the table.
