The Toyota Forklifts Canberra Raiders have fallen to a 1-4 record to start the season, following a 32-12 defeat against the Newcastle Knights on Sunday afternoon at McDonald Jones Stadium.
In the opening phases of the match, the Raiders were tasked with defending multiple sets on their own line, as a lack of discipline gifted Newcastle early attacking possession.
Having remained resilient in defence through the opening 10 minutes of the match, Canberra struck off the back of a brilliant display of footwork from Ethan Strange, who found Simi Sasagi in support for the opening try of the match.
Having settled into a back-and-forth brand of play, Noah Martin looked to have broken the game wide open as he made a break down the right edge. However, Newcastle’s cover defence was enough to force an error in contact.
In the following possession, Newcastle went the length of the field aided by two restarts to the tackle count, scoring their first try of the afternoon through Greg Marzhew down the left edge.
Sandon Smith was unable to convert, leaving the Raiders narrowly in front 6-4.
The Knights took full advantage of the swing in momentum, taking the lead moments later through Fletcher Sharpe, who benefitted from a lack of communication under the high ball from the Raiders.
Looking certain to concede their third try within 10 minutes, Kaeo Weekes produced a moment of defensive brilliance, stripping Smith of possession as he made his way to over the line.
Surviving one last roll of the dice from Newcastle before the break, the Raiders trailed 10-6 heading into the sheds.
Returning from the half-time break, Newcastle were dealt a huge injury blow, with Bradman Best sidelined with a groin strain suffered in the first half.
An error from Savelio Tamale under the highball gifted the Knights an early attacking opportunity, which was further compounded by Tamale’s sin-binning following a professional foul.
Newcastle immediately targeted the gap left by Tamale’s absence, with Dominic Young continuing his try scoring start to year, picking up the Knights third of the afternoon.
The one-man disadvantage in defence proved too much for Canberra again, with the Knights crossing the line again only moments later through Phoenix Crossland.
Despite facing continuous pressure down their left edge, the Raiders refused to give up, with Sasagi producing yet another ball-and-all try saving tackle on Smith.
Having defended for the best part of the second half, the Raiders were afforded possession deep within Newcastle’s half following a handling error from Fletcher Hunt.
Despite challenging the line on more than one occasion, Canberra failed to find the finishing touches in their pursuit for their first points of the second half.
The Raiders hopes of a comeback were prolonged, after the video referee confirmed that Dominic Young had knocked the ball forward while contesting a kick close to Canberra’s line.
The injection of Jayden Brailey off the bench sparked the Raiders attack through the middle of the field, with a handful of runs from the base of the ruck finding the Knights on their heels.
Having looked to have finally broken through Newcastle’s defences, Zac Hosking’s try in the 63rd minute was overturned following a review from the video referee deemed Josh Papalii to have obstructed Trey Mooney in the lead up.
Following Marzhew’s second try in the 68th minute, Canberra refused to drop their heads scoring immediately from a short kick off, with Sasagi finding Stange in support to keep their hopes alive at 26-12.
Regardless of the Raiders trying their hand in attack, the Knights proved too dominant on both sides of the ball, running in one more try before the full-time siren, defeating Canberra 32-12.
Canberra will be looking to bounce back next Saturday afternoon, when they travel to Perth to take on the South Sydney Rabbitohs.
