2025 Canberra Raiders NSW Cup

[Bluesbrother]

Not a great endorsement of the halves we had in this game. Sanders is a while away from making first grade. Get that fogarty deal done for 26.

[The Nickman]

I actually thought both Sanders and Cook looked pretty good… must’ve been watching a different game to bb

[BadnMean]

Michael Asomua is a first grade talent
Hope he gets a shot at it next week

There is absolutely nothing that Albert Hopoate is showing playing in the same game at the same level than what Asomoa has shown today

Asomoa is streets ahead

Prepare for Hoppa to be named anyway...

Was nice to share a beer with you in Vegas btw

[greeneyed]

MATCH REPORT: Narrow defeat for NSW Cup Green Machine in season opener



The Canberra Raiders suffered a narrow two point defeat in their Round 1 NSW Cup clash with the New Zealand Warriors on Saturday at Leichhardt Oval. The Raiders led 10-0 at half time and were in control for the majority of the match. But a disappointing second half from Canberra saw the Warriors produce an 18-16, come from behind victory.

The Raiders produced two early tries to winger Michael Asomua and prop Trey Mooney. The Asomua try was the result of a lovely tip on from Manaia Waitere, while Mooney just charged over from short range. A ten point lead after just 15 minutes. Canberra looked bright in attack at times, but the defence was even better. They looked well drilled in that department.

It took 50 minutes for the Warriors to get their first try, with half Tanah Boyd resorting to the grubber kick in order to breach the Canberra defences. Centre Moala Graham-Taufa chased and planted the ball in the in goal. Buoyed by that, the Warriors started to get on top. A shift to the left in the 57th minute saw Warriors fullback Geronimo Doyle break through the tackle of Jed Stuart for a four pointer. The Warriors had the lead for the first time in the match, 12-10.

Canberra struck back with a second try for Michael Asomua, and it looked like the Raiders had halted the Warriors’ momentum. A great long pass from Adam Cook set up the winger. But a second try for Moala Graham-Taufa, five minutes from time, proved to be the match winner for the Warriors. He easily brushed past Noah Martin and Adam Cook on the way to the line. It was a tackle that really should have been made.

The Warriors had a 54 per cent share of possession, despite making 17 errors (Raiders 11). However the Raiders were hammered in the penalties and set restarts (13-3). The Warriors made more running metres (1514-1384), post contact metres (565-446) and tackle breaks (40-25). Canberra made more line breaks (5-3). The Raiders ended up having to make a lot more tackles (326-273) and missed a lot more (40-25). They also posted more ineffective tackles (11-8). The effective tackle rate wasn’t that bad (Raiders 86 per cent, Warriors 89 per cent). In the end it was remarkable the Raiders only conceded three tries, like the Warriors.

Winger Michael Asomua topped the running metres (191), followed by Albert Hopoate (149) and Jed Stuart (125). Asomua also made three line breaks. Trey Mooney (114) was the only forward to break 100 running metres. The top tacklers were Joe Roddy (41), Noah Martin (30), Trey Mooney (29) and Danny Levi (29).

The Raiders have an early season bye in Round 2 and will next face the Sea Eagles at Brookvale Oval in Round 3.

MATCH HIGHLIGHTS: Raiders v Warriors: https://www.nswrl.com.au/news/2025/03/0 ... -warriors/

MATCH REPORT: Centre Moala Graham-Taufa started and iced a terrific second half comeback to earn the New Zealand Warriors a gritty 18-16 win in their Round 1 NSW Cup encounter with Canberra at Leichhardt Oval in Sydney on Saturday: https://www.nswrl.com.au/news/2025/03/0 ... #RaidersNZ

[The Nickman]

Michael Asomua is a first grade talent
Hope he gets a shot at it next week

There is absolutely nothing that Albert Hopoate is showing playing in the same game at the same level than what Asomoa has shown today

Asomoa is streets ahead

Prepare for Hoppa to be named anyway...

Was nice to share a beer with you in Vegas btw

Yeah, was great meeting you, pal!

[Bluesbrother]

I actually thought both Sanders and Cook looked pretty good… must’ve been watching a different game to bb

It's not that they didn't play well. Just shouldn't let games like that go. We were infront twice and let them back in. Good halves look to lock up the game and control the flow, get us into the right areas and shut out the opposition. They weren't able to do that. Plenty of positives but we shouldn't have lost that game.

[Rick]

Not a Hoppa fan but I imagine he would not have been prepared properly for this game. Wonder if this goes in his favour.


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[BadnMean]

It might, it can be real rough if not everything goes to plan with birth and feeding etc in that first week or so. Ricky tends to give some empathy for family matters.

On raw data and promise though, I'd be going Asomua. He's run for almost 200m, made 50m more than the next bloke, 3 line breaks, 3 kicks defused and no errors (on the stats, is that right? Haven't watched it yet).

Bert had 9 cracks at FG last season and made 1 linebreak. Asomua has shown he can make yards and I want a bit more threat from a winger, rather than "settle" for such a limited player. Who is the poster who has the "blocker" theory of limited players? A bit like that. Hoppa is a decent backup but produces nothing that should see him automatically stay there as first choice backup ahead of someone else who probably offers more in the medium and even short term.

[greeneyed]

2025 NSW Cup Round 3: Canberra Raiders v Manly Sea Eagles



Canberra Raiders v Manly Sea Eagles
Sunday 23 March, 3:50pm
Brookvale Oval
Live stream: Bar TV Sports

Canberra Raiders

1. Chevy Stewart 2. Michael Asomua 3. Manaia Waitere 4. TBA 5. Jenson Taumoepeau 6. Adam Cook 7. TBA 8. Jordan Martin 9. Shaun Packer 10. Peter Taateo 11. Noah Martin 12. Joseph Roddy 13. Myles Martin

14. TBA 15. TBA 16. Mitchell Prest 17. Vena Patuki-Case

Manly Sea Eagles

1. Charlie Thompson 2. Navren Willett 3. Jordan Swann 4. Aaron Schoupp 5. Raymond Tuiamalo Vaega 6. Brandon Wakeham 7. Jakob Arthur (c) 8. TBA 9. Gordon Chan Kum Tong 10. TBA 11. Michael Chee Kam 12. Dean Matterson 13. Caleb Navale

15. Jacob Sykes 16. Aitasi James 17. Chris Patolo 18. D'Jazirhae Pua'avase

This week: The NSW Cup Canberra Raiders suffered a two point loss to the New Zealand Warriors in Round 1 at Leichhardt Oval. It was a game that the Raiders were in a position to win - but they let it slip. In the end, goal kicking was the difference in the 18-16 defeat for the Green Machine. The Raiders would have wanted to get straight back on the horse, but they had an unwanted Round 2 bye instead.

In Round 3, the Raiders head to the northern beaches for a clash with the Manly Sea Eagles at Brookvale Oval. After an eight year absence, the Sea Eagles are back in the NSW Cup in their own right in 2025 - having terminated their feeder club arrangement with Blacktown. The Sea Eagles have started the season with back to back losses. In Round 1, they lost to the Rabbitohs, 22-20, in a see-sawing match. The Rabbitohs scored the winning try with just five minutes remaining. They travelled to Auckland in Round 2, losing to the Warriors, 31-20. The Warriors scored two late tries to take victory.

Team news: There are plenty holes in the team named by the Raiders... for both sides actually. The NSWRL should start enforcing its rules on team lists, because it is becoming ridiculous. We can expect that Albert Hopoate will slot into the vacant centre position, while Ethan Sanders will start in the No. 7. Jed Stuart was a late inclusion for Jenson Taumoepeau on the wing in Round 1, and it is likely we'll see a repeat on Sunday. Danny Levi and Pasami Saulo are likely late inclusions at hooker and lock.

2025 season record: Raiders 0 and 1 (8th, -2)
Sea Eagles 0 and 2 (11th, -12)
Form: Raiders LLWLL
Sea Eagles LL
Attacking record: Raiders 16, Sea Eagles 20 points scored per match
Defensive record: Raiders 18, Sea Eagles 26 points conceded per match