2019 Rd 17 V Dragons: Game Day
Posted: July 8, 2019, 2:51 pm
2019 Rd 17 V Dragons: Game Day
Canberra Raiders V St George Illawarra Dragons
Sunday 14 July 6:10pm
Wollongong Stadium
Gates open: 3:30pm
NSW Cup: Mounties V St George Illawarra Dragons 3:45pm
Tickets: Click here
TV coverage: Fox League Channel 502
Radio: ABC, Mix 106.3
Weather: Windy. Sunny. Winds westerly 30 to 45 km/h. Chance of any rain: 5 per cent. Min 7 Max 14
Round 15 2019. Parramatta Eels 22 - Canberra Raiders 16. The Canberra Raiders played well against Parramatta Eels in Darwin for 35 minutes. The energy was good. They completion rates were good. The forwards were making big in roads in the middle. The kicking was outstanding and the Raiders controlled the territory and tempo of the game. Canberra was starting their sets on their 30 metre line, the Eels on their goal line. The Raiders scored three good tries. They then conceded 22 unanswered points. The Raiders repeatedly invited the Eels back into the contest. The completion rates went out of the window. There were some awful errors, silly penalties and soft tries conceded.
More on Round 15: As I saw it
Canberra has had a chance to put that behind them, after having a week off for a bye. They now travel to Wollongong for a clash with the Dragons - in the dreaded Sunday night timeslot. Nick Cotric returns from injury for the Raiders at centre, in the only change to the team that met Parramatta.
The Dragons have named Origin players Tyson Frizell, Paul Vaughan and Ben Hunt on their reserves list, but included Queensland debutant Corey Norman in the starting side. Tariq Sims returns from suspension, with Korbin Sims dropping to the bench. James Graham (recovering from a broken leg) is also named amongst the reserves.
Late changes: The Raiders ruled out Ryan Sutton with a calf strain on Saturday evening, with Emre Guler replacing him in the top 17, The Raiders also omitted Royce Hunt from their squad, leaving Sam Williams and Michael Oldfield on the reserves list.
Josh Kerr and Patrick Kaufusi have dropped out of the Dragons top 17 and the squad. James Graham and Jason Saab have also been omitted, allowing all the Dragons Origin stars to remain.
History: The Raiders have won 17 of 29 games against St George Illawarra, and drawn one. Between 2003 and 2013, the Raiders were the Dragons' "hoodoo" team, with Canberra losing just one of the 16 matches played. However, the Raiders have now won just once in the past six matches between the clubs - an 18-14 golden point victory in Round 19 at Canberra Stadium in 2017. In the only contest between the clubs last year, the Raider lost 25-28 at Mudgee's Glen Willow Stadium. At Wollongong, the Raiders have won three and drawn one of the eight matches played.
2018 Round 11: Canberra Raiders V St George Illawarra Dragons
Form: Raiders: LWWWL
Dragons: LWLWL
The Dragons lost in their last match, 16-14, to the Melbourne Storm at Wollongong - in a contest where both teams were impacted by State of Origin duties. They have had recent wins over the Cowboys (22-14) and Bulldogs (36-12), but recorded losses against the Sea Eagles (34-14) and Sharks (22-9). The Raiders have won three of their past five.
Betting: The Dragons started the week as favourites, but that has now turned around. The Raiders are paying $1.78, while the Dragons are returning $2.05. The Dragons now have 2.0 points start in the line betting.
Stat attack: It is a battle between fourth and 12th on the ladder. The Raiders have a slightly better attacking record than the Dragons - but neither team is really firing in attack. The Raiders rank eighth for tries scored - and now that State of Origin is just about over, that is going to have to start improving if Canberra wants to be a genuine premiership contender. There have only been three premiers in the era of the NRL that did not have a top four attacking record.
Both teams are relatively conservative in their attacking styles. Neither team pass or offload a lot. But they don't make a lot of errors and have relatively high completion rates as a result. According to Fox Sports Lab, the Raiders have made the least number of general play passes in the league, while the Dragons have the third least. Both teams produce a lot of one pass hit ups, ranking top six in that department. To boot, the Raiders rank first in the league for dummy half runs (Dragons 11th).
Both teams are bottom eight for running metres gained - and are well down the list for tackle breaks and line breaks. They either aim to - or have to - make up for that with their kicking. Both are in the top four for kicking metres gained - with the Raiders now ranking second in the NRL, marginally behind the Broncos.
The Raiders have a clear advantage in defence. Only the Storm has a better defensive record than the Raiders in 2019, while the Dragons rank a lowly 14th. Only the Bulldogs and Titans have given up more tries than the Dragons, while only the Bulldogs concede more metres. The Dragons have also come up with more ineffective tackles than any other club.
Season record: Raiders 9 and 6 (4th, +81)
Dragons 6 and 9 (12th, -56)
Home and away: Raiders 5 of 8 away
Dragons 3 of 7 at home
Against top eight opposition: Raiders have won 3 of 8
Dragons have won 2 of 9
Attack: Raiders 20 points and 3.3 tries scored per match, ranked 8th
Dragons 18 points and 3.0 tries scored per match, ranked 10th
Defence: Raiders 15 points and 2.5 tries conceded per match, ranked 2nd
Dragons 22 points and 3.8 tries conceded per match, ranked 14th
Completion rate: Raiders 79 per cent
Dragons 78 per cent
Running: Raiders 1550 running metres from 173 runs, 184 kick return metres, 439 post contact metres per match
Dragons 1554 running metres from 176 runs, 173 kick return metres, 375 post contact metres per match
Tackle breaks: Raiders 30, Dragons 30 per match
Line breaks: Raiders 3, Dragons 3 per match
Try assists: Raiders 2, Dragons 2 per match
Line break assists: Raiders 2, Dragons 2 per match
Offloads: Raiders 7, Dragons 9 per match
Kicking: Raiders 606 kicking metres from 22 kicks per match
Dragons 594 kicking metres from 21 kicks per match
Tackling: Raiders 330 made, 31 missed, 14 ineffective per match
Dragons 355 made, 29 missed, 17 ineffective per match
Running metres conceded: Raiders 1376, Dragons 1491 metres per match
Errors: Raiders 10, Dragons 10 per match
Penalties: Raiders 7, Dragons 6 per match
Our tip: The past two games have raised the spectre of the "faiders" of the last two seasons. They have produced some fast starts, put on a lot of points - but then switched off and conceded lots of points. Against the Sharks, they steadied and got the narrow win - but failed to do so against the Eels. Ricky Stuart didn't miss with his post match comments after the Eels game. There probably were some mitigating factors - the dramas with travelling to Darwin and the humidity of Darwin. But, appropriately, Stuart was having none of that. I think that will have an impact on the attitude for this match. But the break over the bye weekend will also probably help the Raiders mentally and physically.
The Dragons will have four players backing up from Origin (Paul Vaughan, Tyson Frizell, Ben Hunt and Corey Norman), the Raiders two (Josh Papalii and Jack Wighton). The Dragons played well last week, even without their Origin stars, against the Storm - and they have a good record in Wollongong (63 per cent win rate). But if Canberra bring their best defensive performance, they should be too good for the Dragons. Raiders by four.
What they're saying:
Ricky Stuart after the loss to the Parramatta Eels: "You don't get to a 16-0 lead 30 minutes into a game of football and have that rot for the next 50. If you want to go for soft excuses, they'll be there. If you want to be fair dinkum, you want to be tough, you want to work to find out the real reasons and fix it the season mightn't be all over. But if we want to deliver that kind of crap, we're wasting our time."
Jordan Rapana on the performance against the Eels: "As a playing group we are filthy... It was well below our standards and I know the boys will want to bounce back against the Dragons. The biggest thing it comes down to is individually owning your mistakes and learning from them. We sat down and had a good meeting and individually took ownership of where we stuffed up and hopefully we learn from it. The Dragons are a quality team and we and don't have the best record in Wollongong, so it's going to be a tough game."
Canberra Raiders
1. Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad
2. Bailey Simonsson
3. Jarrod Croker (C)
4. Nick Cotric
5. Jordan Rapana
6. Jack Wighton
7. Aidan Sezer
8. Josh Papalii
9. Josh Hodgson (C)
10. Dunamis Lui
11. John Bateman
12. Elliott Whitehead
13. Joe Tapine
14. Siliva Havili
15. Corey Horsburgh
16. Sia Soliola
21. Emre Guler
18. Sam Williams
19. Michael Oldfield
St George Illawarra Dragons
1. Matt Dufty
2. Jonus Pearson
3. Euan Aitken
4. Tim Lafai
5. Mikaele Ravalawa
6. Corey Norman
7. Darren Nicholls
8. Jeremy Latimore
9. Cameron McInnes (c)
10. Blake Lawrie
11. Jacob Host
12. Tariq Sims
13. Luciano Leilua
14. Korbin Sims
15. Reece Robson
21. Ben Hunt
23. Tyson Frizell
18. Tristan Sailor
22. Paul Vaughan
Officials
Referees: Ashley Klein, Todd Smith
Sideline Officials: Kasey Badger, Nick Beashel
Video Referees: Jared Maxwell, Ben Galea
Match Hashtags: #NRL #WeareRaiders #BleedGreen #NRLDragonsRaiders
The Greenhouse Hashtags: #WearGreen2019 #FromAllAngles
NSW Cup team: Click here
Plus follow us on Twitter: @TheGHRaiders and Instagram: @TheGHRaiders
Canberra Raiders V St George Illawarra Dragons
Sunday 14 July 6:10pm
Wollongong Stadium
Gates open: 3:30pm
NSW Cup: Mounties V St George Illawarra Dragons 3:45pm
Tickets: Click here
TV coverage: Fox League Channel 502
Radio: ABC, Mix 106.3
Weather: Windy. Sunny. Winds westerly 30 to 45 km/h. Chance of any rain: 5 per cent. Min 7 Max 14
Round 15 2019. Parramatta Eels 22 - Canberra Raiders 16. The Canberra Raiders played well against Parramatta Eels in Darwin for 35 minutes. The energy was good. They completion rates were good. The forwards were making big in roads in the middle. The kicking was outstanding and the Raiders controlled the territory and tempo of the game. Canberra was starting their sets on their 30 metre line, the Eels on their goal line. The Raiders scored three good tries. They then conceded 22 unanswered points. The Raiders repeatedly invited the Eels back into the contest. The completion rates went out of the window. There were some awful errors, silly penalties and soft tries conceded.
More on Round 15: As I saw it
Canberra has had a chance to put that behind them, after having a week off for a bye. They now travel to Wollongong for a clash with the Dragons - in the dreaded Sunday night timeslot. Nick Cotric returns from injury for the Raiders at centre, in the only change to the team that met Parramatta.
The Dragons have named Origin players Tyson Frizell, Paul Vaughan and Ben Hunt on their reserves list, but included Queensland debutant Corey Norman in the starting side. Tariq Sims returns from suspension, with Korbin Sims dropping to the bench. James Graham (recovering from a broken leg) is also named amongst the reserves.
Late changes: The Raiders ruled out Ryan Sutton with a calf strain on Saturday evening, with Emre Guler replacing him in the top 17, The Raiders also omitted Royce Hunt from their squad, leaving Sam Williams and Michael Oldfield on the reserves list.
Josh Kerr and Patrick Kaufusi have dropped out of the Dragons top 17 and the squad. James Graham and Jason Saab have also been omitted, allowing all the Dragons Origin stars to remain.
History: The Raiders have won 17 of 29 games against St George Illawarra, and drawn one. Between 2003 and 2013, the Raiders were the Dragons' "hoodoo" team, with Canberra losing just one of the 16 matches played. However, the Raiders have now won just once in the past six matches between the clubs - an 18-14 golden point victory in Round 19 at Canberra Stadium in 2017. In the only contest between the clubs last year, the Raider lost 25-28 at Mudgee's Glen Willow Stadium. At Wollongong, the Raiders have won three and drawn one of the eight matches played.
2018 Round 11: Canberra Raiders V St George Illawarra Dragons
Form: Raiders: LWWWL
Dragons: LWLWL
The Dragons lost in their last match, 16-14, to the Melbourne Storm at Wollongong - in a contest where both teams were impacted by State of Origin duties. They have had recent wins over the Cowboys (22-14) and Bulldogs (36-12), but recorded losses against the Sea Eagles (34-14) and Sharks (22-9). The Raiders have won three of their past five.
Betting: The Dragons started the week as favourites, but that has now turned around. The Raiders are paying $1.78, while the Dragons are returning $2.05. The Dragons now have 2.0 points start in the line betting.
Stat attack: It is a battle between fourth and 12th on the ladder. The Raiders have a slightly better attacking record than the Dragons - but neither team is really firing in attack. The Raiders rank eighth for tries scored - and now that State of Origin is just about over, that is going to have to start improving if Canberra wants to be a genuine premiership contender. There have only been three premiers in the era of the NRL that did not have a top four attacking record.
Both teams are relatively conservative in their attacking styles. Neither team pass or offload a lot. But they don't make a lot of errors and have relatively high completion rates as a result. According to Fox Sports Lab, the Raiders have made the least number of general play passes in the league, while the Dragons have the third least. Both teams produce a lot of one pass hit ups, ranking top six in that department. To boot, the Raiders rank first in the league for dummy half runs (Dragons 11th).
Both teams are bottom eight for running metres gained - and are well down the list for tackle breaks and line breaks. They either aim to - or have to - make up for that with their kicking. Both are in the top four for kicking metres gained - with the Raiders now ranking second in the NRL, marginally behind the Broncos.
The Raiders have a clear advantage in defence. Only the Storm has a better defensive record than the Raiders in 2019, while the Dragons rank a lowly 14th. Only the Bulldogs and Titans have given up more tries than the Dragons, while only the Bulldogs concede more metres. The Dragons have also come up with more ineffective tackles than any other club.
Season record: Raiders 9 and 6 (4th, +81)
Dragons 6 and 9 (12th, -56)
Home and away: Raiders 5 of 8 away
Dragons 3 of 7 at home
Against top eight opposition: Raiders have won 3 of 8
Dragons have won 2 of 9
Attack: Raiders 20 points and 3.3 tries scored per match, ranked 8th
Dragons 18 points and 3.0 tries scored per match, ranked 10th
Defence: Raiders 15 points and 2.5 tries conceded per match, ranked 2nd
Dragons 22 points and 3.8 tries conceded per match, ranked 14th
Completion rate: Raiders 79 per cent
Dragons 78 per cent
Running: Raiders 1550 running metres from 173 runs, 184 kick return metres, 439 post contact metres per match
Dragons 1554 running metres from 176 runs, 173 kick return metres, 375 post contact metres per match
Tackle breaks: Raiders 30, Dragons 30 per match
Line breaks: Raiders 3, Dragons 3 per match
Try assists: Raiders 2, Dragons 2 per match
Line break assists: Raiders 2, Dragons 2 per match
Offloads: Raiders 7, Dragons 9 per match
Kicking: Raiders 606 kicking metres from 22 kicks per match
Dragons 594 kicking metres from 21 kicks per match
Tackling: Raiders 330 made, 31 missed, 14 ineffective per match
Dragons 355 made, 29 missed, 17 ineffective per match
Running metres conceded: Raiders 1376, Dragons 1491 metres per match
Errors: Raiders 10, Dragons 10 per match
Penalties: Raiders 7, Dragons 6 per match
Our tip: The past two games have raised the spectre of the "faiders" of the last two seasons. They have produced some fast starts, put on a lot of points - but then switched off and conceded lots of points. Against the Sharks, they steadied and got the narrow win - but failed to do so against the Eels. Ricky Stuart didn't miss with his post match comments after the Eels game. There probably were some mitigating factors - the dramas with travelling to Darwin and the humidity of Darwin. But, appropriately, Stuart was having none of that. I think that will have an impact on the attitude for this match. But the break over the bye weekend will also probably help the Raiders mentally and physically.
The Dragons will have four players backing up from Origin (Paul Vaughan, Tyson Frizell, Ben Hunt and Corey Norman), the Raiders two (Josh Papalii and Jack Wighton). The Dragons played well last week, even without their Origin stars, against the Storm - and they have a good record in Wollongong (63 per cent win rate). But if Canberra bring their best defensive performance, they should be too good for the Dragons. Raiders by four.
What they're saying:
Ricky Stuart after the loss to the Parramatta Eels: "You don't get to a 16-0 lead 30 minutes into a game of football and have that rot for the next 50. If you want to go for soft excuses, they'll be there. If you want to be fair dinkum, you want to be tough, you want to work to find out the real reasons and fix it the season mightn't be all over. But if we want to deliver that kind of crap, we're wasting our time."
Jordan Rapana on the performance against the Eels: "As a playing group we are filthy... It was well below our standards and I know the boys will want to bounce back against the Dragons. The biggest thing it comes down to is individually owning your mistakes and learning from them. We sat down and had a good meeting and individually took ownership of where we stuffed up and hopefully we learn from it. The Dragons are a quality team and we and don't have the best record in Wollongong, so it's going to be a tough game."
Canberra Raiders
1. Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad
2. Bailey Simonsson
3. Jarrod Croker (C)
4. Nick Cotric
5. Jordan Rapana
6. Jack Wighton
7. Aidan Sezer
8. Josh Papalii
9. Josh Hodgson (C)
10. Dunamis Lui
11. John Bateman
12. Elliott Whitehead
13. Joe Tapine
14. Siliva Havili
15. Corey Horsburgh
16. Sia Soliola
21. Emre Guler
18. Sam Williams
19. Michael Oldfield
St George Illawarra Dragons
1. Matt Dufty
2. Jonus Pearson
3. Euan Aitken
4. Tim Lafai
5. Mikaele Ravalawa
6. Corey Norman
7. Darren Nicholls
8. Jeremy Latimore
9. Cameron McInnes (c)
10. Blake Lawrie
11. Jacob Host
12. Tariq Sims
13. Luciano Leilua
14. Korbin Sims
15. Reece Robson
21. Ben Hunt
23. Tyson Frizell
18. Tristan Sailor
22. Paul Vaughan
Officials
Referees: Ashley Klein, Todd Smith
Sideline Officials: Kasey Badger, Nick Beashel
Video Referees: Jared Maxwell, Ben Galea
Match Hashtags: #NRL #WeareRaiders #BleedGreen #NRLDragonsRaiders
The Greenhouse Hashtags: #WearGreen2019 #FromAllAngles
NSW Cup team: Click here
Plus follow us on Twitter: @TheGHRaiders and Instagram: @TheGHRaiders