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The Raiders finished 15th in the 2014 NRL season and never looked like they were going to become a fluent football team or improve from what they dished up in the early season under new coach Ricky Stuart.
In 2015 they will be sweating on some sort of improvement, but it looks like a long, hard road ahead, with a lack of star recruitment but plenty of players lost.
Pre-season fixtures
January 31 – Feb 1: NRL Auckland Nines
February 7 – versus Melbourne Storm at Griffith
February 21 – versus Newcastle Knights at Seiffert Oval
The Raiders will be looking to use the pre-season to build new combinations between existing and new players, and to remove their reliance on the departed Terry Campese and Anthony Milford.
After the Nines they play the Melbourne Storm and the Newcastle Knights. The Raiders have a good record against the Storm, and they will be keen to test out combinations and prove a point to the rest of the league. The Knights, like the Raiders, finished at the wrong end of the table last season so it could be a good game.
Ins and outs
2015 gains: Blake Austin (Wests Tigers, 2017), Josh Hodgson (Hull Kingston Rovers, 2016), Rhys Kennedy (Melbourne Storm, 2016), Frank-Paul Nu’uausala (Sydney Roosters, 2017), Iosia Soliola (St Helens RLFC, 2016), Sisa Waqa (Melbourne Storm, 2016), Sam Williams (Catalan Dragons, 2016)
2015 losses: Matthew Allwood (New Zealand Warriors), Terry Campese (Hull Kingston Rovers), Jake Foster (Queensland Cup), Matt Frawley (Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs), Tom Learoyd-Lahrs (Melbourne Storm), Sam Mataora (Newcastle Knights), Matt McIlwrick (Sydney Roosters), Anthony Milford (Brisbane Broncos), Mosese Pangai (Queensland Cup), Reece Robinson (Parramatta Eels), Sami Sauiluma (Cronulla Sharks), Lagi Setu (Sydney Roosters), Brett White (retired)
Clearly the Raiders have not recruited as well as they should have, having lost some quality players. Their biggest loss is Milford to the Broncos, who looks to have a massive future in the NRL and indeed at representative level. They have also lost Campese, who hasn’t played much over the last couple of years anyway.
The Raiders had massive trouble recruiting players. They reportedly had four big-name players sorted last year – James Tedesco had even signed on but then backflipped on the deal. They ended up making some decent signings – Blake Austin, Sisa Waqa and Frank-Paul Nu’uausala are their best – but it simply won’t be enough.
Season fixtures
R1 Sun 08 Mar 2015, 6:30pm, Remondis Stadium Sharks V Raiders
R2 Sun 15 Mar 2015, 6:30pm, GIO Stadium Raiders V Warriors
R3 Sat 21 Mar 2015, 5:30pm, GIO Stadium Raiders V Dragons
R4 Sun 29 Mar 2015, 2:00pm, Allianz Stadium Roosters V Raiders
R5 Sat 04 Apr 2015, 5:30pm, To Be Confirmed Sea Eagles V Raiders
R6 Sun 12 Apr 2015, 2:00pm, GIO Stadium Raiders V Storm
R7 Sun 19 Apr 2015, 2:00pm, Leichhardt Oval Wests Tigers V Raiders
R8 Sun 26 Apr 2015, 4:00pm, To Be Confirmed Rabbitohs V Raiders
R9 Sat 09 May 2015, 3:00pm, GIO Stadium Raiders V Titans
R10 Sun 17 May 2015, 2:00pm, WIN Stadium Dragons V Raiders
R11 Sun 24 May 2015, 4:00pm, GIO Stadium Raiders V Bulldogs
R12 Sat 30 May 2015, 5:30pm, GIO Stadium Raiders V Broncos
R13 Sat 06 Jun 2015, 3:00pm, Hunter Stadium Knights V Raiders
R15 Sat 20 Jun 2015, 3:00pm, GIO Stadium Raiders V Cowboys
R16 Sat 27 Jun 2015, 3:00pm, Mt Smart Stadium Warriors V Raiders
R18 Fri 10 Jul 2015, 7:45pm, GIO Stadium Raiders V Knights
R19 Sat 18 Jul 2015, 3:00pm, GIO Stadium Raiders V Sharks
R20 Sun 26 Jul 2015, 2:00pm, Sportingbet Stadium Panthers V Raiders
R21 TBC, 1300 Smiles Stadium Cowboys V Raiders
R22 TBC, GIO Stadium Raiders V Wests Tigers
R23 TBC, GIO Stadium Raiders V Sea Eagles
R24 TBC, Cbus Super Stadium Titans V Raiders
R25 TBC, GIO Stadium Raiders V Panthers
R26 TBC, Pirtek Stadium Eels V Raiders
Draw analysis
The Raiders start the season with three of their first six games at home and it would seem their three rounds against the Cronulla Sharks, New Zealand Warriors and St George Illawarra Dragons are all winnable. Things then get harder as they play the Sydney Roosters, Manly Sea Eagles and Melbourne Storm over the next three weeks.
What works well for the Raiders is their run home, with three of their last five games on home soil and also playing the Wests Tigers, Gold Coast Titans and the Parramatta Eels in the last five rounds.
The Raiders play the Dragons, Titans, Warriors, Panthers, Cowboys, Sharks, Tigers, Knights and Sea Eagles twice throughout the season.
Predicted impact of State of Origin
The Raiders shouldn’t suffer much from Origin at all, as they don’t have players in their squad good enough to be playing at Origin level. This will serve as an advantage in some ways, because their squad shouldn’t get dismantled come Origin.
Predicted finish and final word
The Raiders are no doubt in for another long, hard season. They haven’t recruited all that well, and have lost their best player in Anthony Milford.
My tip is for the Raiders to pick up the spoon.
Tomorrow we look at the Gold Coast Titans and how they are shaping up for 2015.