NSW Cup & Jersey Flegg: Round 24 Wrap

The Canberra Raiders NSW Cup team stood tall after a gritty 26-22 victory over the Bulldogs at home in Raiders Belconnen last Saturday, claiming their fifth win in a row.

It was the Raiders who struck first, after a quick shift to the left edge found centre Kain Anderson who found the line to put the Raiders on board.  

Still, the Raiders went to the sheds down 6-10 as the Bulldogs notched two tries in response.

But in the second half, the game opened up for Canberra as second rower Noah Martin found himself on the receiving end of Ethan Sanders’ high ball and scored in the left corner.

In the 47th minute, a dummy from five-eighth Adam Cook parted the Bulldogs and opened up a gap for the Raiders’ skipper to slip through untouched and offload to fullback Chevy Stewart who scored next to the uprights.

Not lying down, the Bulldogs threatened a late comeback, with a pair of tries to put them up by two points with eight minutes to go – but a surgical kick off the boot of Adam Cook sat up nicely for right centre Manaia Waitere who scored to seal the game.

This win puts the Raiders at seventh on the ladder – three points back from the top five.

This means finals is still well and truly within reach and the Raiders will have to be in top form this weekend when they face the Rabbitohs at home at Redfern Oval.

Jersey Flegg Cup

In an eerily similar turn of events, our Jersey Flegg boys kept the Bulldogs at bay in a nail-biting 24-22 victory at home in Raiders Belconnen.

A slow start kept the Raiders scoreless until the 20th minute when winger Luke Tuialii broke the line and scored to open for Canberra.

Not content with just one, Tuialii nabbed another just five minutes later which linked up with skipper and fullback Braydan Darmody’s conversions to put the Raiders on 12 points.

Picking up one more before the half, a try from winger Mutua Brown sent the boys to the sheds up 18-6.

Some second half efforts from the Bulldogs put them within sniffing distance of the Raiders, but a late effort from Cooper Johnston off the bench and a perfect kicking game from Darmody kept the Raiders ahead.

A 76th minute try from Canterbury brought the clash into nailbiter territory, but ultimately the Raiders managed to hold out.

This win keeps the Raiders squarely in the top five, a spot they’ll look to secure as they march up to Sydney this weekend to play the Rabbitohs at Redfern Oval.