NRL Match Preview: Raiders v Dolphins

Breaking a 35-year-long drought, the Canberra Raiders secured the 2025 minor premiership with a commanding 24-10 win over the Tigers last weekend as they extended their ladder-lead over the second-placed Melbourne Storm to four points and brought home the JJ Giltinan Shield.

This weekend, Ricky Stuart will give his hard workers a rest before finals, locking down the likes of Kaeo Weekes, Jed Stuart, Ethan Strange, Jamal Fogarty, Joe Tapine, Tom Starling, Simi Sasagi, Josh Papalii, Zac Hosking and Hudson Young who will take the week off ahead of week one of finals.

In doing so, the Raiders will blood four rookies in Michael Asomua, Manaia Waitere, Joe Roddy and Kain Anderson who have all come through the NSW Cup side this season.

The fresh-faced outfit also features interchange impact hooker Owen Pattie starting at nine, Chevy Stewart at fullback, Ethan Sanders and Adam Cook linking up in the halves and Corey Horsburgh at the helm – in Big Red’s first time captaining the Raiders.

Meanwhile, after an 18-0 start, the Dolphins scraped into finals contention after a grinding 36-30 win over the Titans at Suncorp Stadium. A series of losses in the pointy end of the season has tempered their momentum with their fate resting on the outcome of Friday night’s Sydney derby between the Roosters and the Rabbitohs.

Talking Points:

• Corey Horsburgh leads a new-look Raiders side in their last game of regular season footy before finals.
• The Raiders have won their last three games against the Dolphins.
• This season, the Raiders have an 80%-win rate against teams in the bottom nine – winning 12 from 15.
• Second rower Matty Nicholson returns to the field in his first game since round 10 after recovering from a syndesmosis injury.
• Dolphins star centre Herbie Farnworth is named on the extended bench and will look to make his way into the side if the Dolphins are still in with a shot at finals.
• Raiders halves Ethan Sanders and Adam Cook have won seven straight games in the NSW Cup.
• The Raiders are aiming for 20 wins in a season for the first time since 1995.

Last time they met

Last time these two teams met, the Raiders defeated the Dolphins 40-28 at GIO Stadium in Canberra during round 8, 2025.

Key Match-Up: Owen Pattie v Jeremy Marshall-King

One of the most specialised positions on the field, two hookers of this calibre – each with his own patented style of play – set up Sunday’s clash through the middle.

In his first season in the NRL, Owen Pattie has been touted as ‘Ricky’s secret weapon,’ and has been instrumental to the Raiders late domination of matches. They have won 17 of 23 second halves this season.

Despite only averaging just under 20 minutes a game, Pattie more than pulls his weight in every imaginable metric. Subbing in for Tom Starling at the back end of games, the strike-weapon catches out tired defenders and reignites the Raiders spine out of dummy half.

As a ball-running threat, Pattie claimed a double in just sixteen minutes against the Eels in round 20. Off the boot, he provides support for Fogarty, having kicked three 40/20's this year. In defence he’s a wall, maintaining a 92% tackle efficiency with a total of 332 tackles made this season.

Standing opposite Pattie in the scrum, Jeremy Marshall-King is a veteran of the game with 150 appearance in the NRL under his belt since he made his debut for the Tigers in 2017.

This season, JMK has anchored the Dolphin’s spine with his stable and consistent presence out of dummy half. With a 94% tackle efficiency, ball runners have had a hard time finding gaps around the ruck.

With the ball in hand, JMK is a danger at the line, notching four tries and four assists this season.

As a full-time hooker, JMK averages 70 minutes a game and offers a very different threat to the Pattie. However, this weekend the NRL will witness an eighty-minute Owen Pattie playing JMK’s brand of footy.

Head-to-head:

Since 2023, the Raiders have played the Dolphins 4 times, winning 3 of them for a 75% efficiency rate.