The Canberra Raiders S.G. Ball side face the Penrith Panthers in a do or die semi-final at Leichardt Oval this Saturday.
Having celebrated a come from behind win against the Manly Sea Eagles in week one of the finals, the Raiders face a Penrith side who finished the regular season undefeated.
With injuries striking throughout the junior representative season, S.G. Ball coach Dean Souter believes his side has developed in the face adversity.
“The confidence builder for this particular group is they’ve been finding ways to win with whatever group we can put forward,” Souter said. “It’s no secret we’ve had a lot of guys out for the last few weeks, but the guys that have stepped up are getting the job done.”
The Panthers finished second on the ladder but lost to the Newcastle Knights 18-6 in their qualifying final last weekend.
“The mindset to take to Penrith is that the season they’ve had and the game they’ve had recently has nothing to do with how we play them,” Souter said. “We need to look at our strengths and what we can put forward, where they are vulnerable.”
The Raiders will take on the Panthers at 3pm this Saturday with the winner going on to the preliminary final the following week.
UNE SG Ball Finals week 1 Highlights
