The Cronulla Sharks have recorded a dominating 24 point win over the Canberra Raiders away from home on Sunday afternoon, confirming their position in the top four on the NRL ladder.
After a positive start to the season, this continues a dismal few weeks for the Raiders who were coming into this game on the back of a 30-point drubbing at the hands of the Parramatta Eels last week.
The Sharks were fantastic right throughout the course of the game today, led by creative weapons Ben Barba and Michael Ennis. Canberra were blown off the park during the first half hour, and while they only conceded two tries in that time frame didn’t even look like they were close to being in the contest.
James Maloney, Chad Townsend and Jack Bird were all fantastic, while the Cronulla forwards all stepped up their game and outplayed the Canberra pack for the majority of the game.
Ennis in particular with his short range kicking game was fantastic, and Barba looked dangerous every time he got the ball in hand.
For the Raiders, the only spark came from their side combination of Joey Leilua and Jordan Rapana. The pair were busy with the ball all afternoon, and while at times could have been guilty of trying to do too much overall had a fantastic afternoon.
Aiden Sezer was terrible for the Raiders though, and with their pack unable to win the battle in the middle, added with no Blake Ausin on the park it was always going to be an uphill battle. Josh Hodgson didn’t have his normal production either, and the Raiders looked like a different side when Kurt Baptiste hit the field.
The scoring opened in the 10th minute through Barba who was able to pounce on a grubber kick from Ennis out of dummy half at the Canberra line.
Ths Sharks then had a try disallowed through Jack Bird who knocked it on in a challenge off a high kick, before he scored in the 20th minute on the right-hand side with a simple burst through the line.
When the second half got underway, it was clear the Raiders had to score first, but Cronulla ended that idea in just two minutes. Jason Bukuya scored the first try of the second half barging over the line with some very soft defence presented.
Ben Barba would be next to score just five minutes later after a strong set play went to the right hand side and Barba straightened to score.
The Raiders then found some momentum with Baptiste on the field, joined by the hard running Luke Bateman. It opened the way for Rapana and Leilua to make plenty of metres, and bring the Raiders onto the attack a few times.
Baptiste scored out of dummy half in the 54th minute, before Rapana scored off a long range effort just five minutes later.
The Sharks quickly answered back with a long range effort from James Maloney translating into points for Valentine Holmes on the other side of the field.
Aiden Sezer scored one for the Titans, trying to give them some sort of chance at the end of the match but the Sharks were able to hang on with the Raiders continuing to come up with errors.
Some tries to put the icing on the cake for the Sharks came in the last few minutes, with Matt Prior scoring three minutes from time through some soft defence, and then James Maloney making an intercept and running the length of the field.
A fantastic effort from the Sharks today, and the Raiders need to find a way to turn things around.
Score:
Canberra Raiders 16
Cronulla Sharks 40
The Cronulla Sharks look to continue their strong start to the season when they go on the road to play a Canberra Raiders outfit who need to bounce back from a mauling last week. Join The Roar for live scores and commentary from 2pm (AEST).
Canberra absolutely must bounce back from the absolute hammering they copped last week at the hands of the Parramatta Eels. Pirtek Stadium is never an easy place to play, but with Kieran Foran and Corey Norman firing on all cylinders the Raiders had no hope.
Their defence was shot to bits more than once, and they conceded 36 points without really looking threatening in attack themselves.
The question has to be though, exactly how much can you read into that performance? Not a hell of a lot really, considering they still have a record of three wins, two losses and one draw. It leaves them in seventh on the NRL ladder.
It should also be remembered that the week before they have the Canterbury Bulldogs a touch up at Belmore, winning by 14 points and were coming off an eight-day turnaround.
The Sharks, on the other hand haven’t lost a game since Round 3, and have been strong in each of their performances. The best of those was a visit to Melbourne where they beat the Storm by eight points, but wins against the Gold Coast Titans and Wests Tigers have left them sitting very comfortably in fourth position on the table.
Questions though must be asked of Cronulla, who suffered two tough away losses in the first three rounds against the North Queensland Cowboys and Manly Sea Eagles – games they really must be winning to be considered premiership front runners.
This, a trip to Caberra where Blake Austin and Aiden Sezer could fire, is going to be a real test of the Sharks’ mettle.
Between the sides, only one team chance has been made with Jason Bukuya coming into replace Luke Lewis in the second row for Cronulla.
Austin and Sezer are just about undoubtedly the key for the hosts. If they click, then the Canberra attack clicks. With a strong forward pack doing the damage it all comes down to the creativity of the halves.
The Sharks pack though is similarly strong, and may well outclass that of the Raiders, meaning even more pressure is placed on Sezer and Austin.
Prediction
The Sharks have looked strong, but the Raiders don’t look like a side who are going to stay down two weeks in a row. Expect them to bounce back strongly.
Raiders by 10.
Be sure to join The Roar for live scores and coverage of this important Round 7 match from 2pm (AEST) and don’t forget to add your own comments in the section below as the match unfolds.
Follow Scott on Twitter @sk_pryde
The eye
Guest
Raiders are suffering from the same disease as Souths..too many not having a fair dinkum dig..the only backs to earn their feed tonight were Joey and Rapana...and Whitehead Bateman and Hodgson the only forwards..sure,Soliola is a loss..but wheres the pride in performance ? Sharks are the best of the rest (after Broncos and Cowboys) and are travelling very comfortably..I thought Maloney had his best game yet in Sharks colours and looked good organising with Townsend..and Bird,hes outstanding..
turbodewd
Guest
Ive suffered thru watching many tries conceded by the Green Machine. Croker is involved in way too many. I hope he is released! He is a sacred cow and a turnstyle in defence.
Big J
Guest
The sharkies are looking good this year, hey question for the older members of the roar, if the sharkies win the premership this year does that mean that Harold Holt will finally come home???? Hahaha!
Geoff from Bruce Stadium
Guest
The Raiders looked devoid of enthusiasm in the first half and it was only when Baptiste and Bateman were brought on that they showed some spark. Can't quite put my finger on it. Austin would make a difference in the halves and Soliola and Lima would stiffen up the forwards. But the whole side needs to collectively lift their intensity - particularly in defence. They showed absolutely no line speed in defence. They just seem to stand there like statues waiting for the attacking team so they lose 50 to 60 metres plus every set of 6. Is this the fault of the players or the defensive coach? And I really wonder about Wighton as a full back. He looks really dodgy under the high ball and doesn't offer much in attack. All this talk about potential but I don't see it. But what does Stuart do? Does he scrap the experiment and put Rapana at full back? The partnership of BJ Leilua and Rapana actually looks threatening so he risks losing some attacking potency by breaking that partnership up. And I wonder about the attitude of FPN and Eddie Lee at times. They can be real bludgers. FPN is almost permanently on the bludge. I'd rather have blokes in there who will have a crack. The Raiders could do worse than bring Barnett and Waqa or Ottio from the Mounties for a start.
Cugel
Roar Rookie
Doesn't come the off the line enough.
sham
Guest
I can only judge the raiders on what I see but they are playing with no confidence. Furner got the raiders to the finals not sure that Stuart will. I hope he does not least because he has a better roster than Furner did. He had built a good team but does he build their confidence? I just don't know. He should make some changes and reward players that show energy. Barnett should get a run and when Croker is marking a big centre like Bird some consideration should be given to having him defend on the wing. He missed Bird badly twice today.
Parrafan
Guest
Most over rater underrated player in the NRL.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Jeez I don't know about that. Croker is pretty damn good I reckon.
turbodewd
Guest
I dont think Croker in the centers is sustainable, he is too small, always involved in conceding tries. We must hide him on the wing.
Geoff from Bruce Stadium
Guest
Just got back from Bruce. Dismal day but credit where its due - the Sharks are a top 4 team and they played like it. Couldn't understand why so many people picked the Raiders before the match given their indifferent form and the Sharks form was good. Ennis and Maloney were very good for the Sharks and they were pretty consistent across the ground. Sezer, Hodgson and Williams didn't offer many attacking options. Thought Baptiste offered a lot when he came on as did Bateman. Rapana and Leilua get some credit for enthusiasm and a wonderful combination for a try. FPN is a fraud and I'm just not convinced that Wighton is a full back. Where to from here? Barnett has to be given a crack and FPN banished to the Mounties. Eddie Lee didn't look switched on. If Sisa Waqa was fit I'd be giving him a crack. A season of promise is going rapidly pear shaped for the Raiders and they need to fix it up quickly. They really need to fix their defence. After a terrific effort against the Bulldogs they've had 76 points put on them in 2 weeks. I thought they were top 4 or 6 material after 3 rounds but at the moment they will be battling to make the 8.
Scott Pryde
Expert
MATCH RESULTS The Cronulla Sharks have recorded a dominating 24 point win over the Canberra Raiders away from home on Sunday Afternoon, confirming their position in the top four on the NRL ladder. After a positive start to the season, this continues a dismal few weeks for the Raiders who were coming into this game on the back of a 30 point drubbing at the hands of the Parramatta Eels last week. The Sharks were fantastic right throughout the course of the game today, led by creative weapons Ben Barba and Michael Ennis. Canberra were blown off the park during the first half hour, and while they only conceded two tries in that time frame didn't even look like they were close to being in the contest. James Maloney, Chad Townsend and Jack Bird were all fantastic, while the Cronulla forwards all stepped up their game and outplayed the Canberra pack for the majority of the game. Ennis in particular, with his short range kicking game was fantastic, and Barba looked dangerous every time he got the ball in hand. For the Raiders, the only spark came from their side combination of Joey Leilua and Jordan Rapana. The pair were busy with the ball all afternoon, and while at times could have been guilty of trying to do too much overall had a fantastic afternoon. Aiden Sezer was terrible for the Raiders though, and with their pack unable to win the battle in the middle, added with no Blake Ausin on the park it was always going to be an uphill battle. Josh Hodgson didn't have his normal production either, and the Raiders looked like a different side when Kurt Baptiste hit the field. The scoring opened in the 10th minute through Barba who was able to pounce on a grubber kick from Ennis out of dummy half at the Canberra line. Ths Sharks then had a try disallowed through Jack Bird who knocked it on in a challenge off a high kick, before he scored in the 20th minute on the right-hand side with a simple burst through the line. When the second half got underway, it was clear the Raiders had to score first, but Cronulla ended that idea in just two minutes. Jason Bukuya scored the first try of the second half barging over the line with some very soft defence presented. Ben Barba would be next to score just five minutes later after a strong set play went to the right hand side and Barba straightened to score. The Raiders then found some momentum with Baptiste on the field, joined by the hard running Luke Bateman. It opened the way for Rapana and Leilua to make plenty of metres, and bring the Raiders onto the attack a few times. Baptiste scored out of dummy half in the 54th minute, before Rapana scored off a long range effort just five minutes later. The Sharks quickly answered back with a long range effort from James Maloney translating into points for Valentine Holmes on the other side of the field. Aiden Sezer scored one for the Titans, trying to give them some sort of chance at the end of the match but the Sharks were able to hang on with the Raiders continuing to come up with errors. Some tries to put the icing on the cake for the Sharks came in the last few minutes, with Matt Prior scoring three minutes from time through some soft defence, and then James Maloney making an intercept and running the length of the field. A fantastic effort from the Sharks today, and the Raiders need to find a way to turn things around. Score: Canberra Raiders 16 Cronulla Sharks 40
Jono
Guest
The Roarers who have been crowing about the Raiders as certainty for the top 4 have been quiet lately. The Raiders have shown next to no defensive steel in the last two weeks. The frequency sides are piling on big metres against the Raiders is simply not good enough if the team wants to make an appearance after the end of the regular season. Easy to be negative, but there is a lot to be negative about. Let's try for some positives. Credit to Rapana. Hodgson gets a lot of praise, but Rapana deserves more. He has never stopped trying and the team would do well to take after him. BJ also tries, but needs to get the errors down. Tapine is in the same boat and he was better this week in terms of ball control and not giving away penalties. Too soon to hit the panic button, but the question is what can turn it around for the Raiders?
Cugel
Roar Rookie
That was truly dismal.
Renegade
Roar Guru
There's no denying that Benny is back! Just imagine how good this side will be as the season progresses and the spine/attacking combinations click and execute better.... They are lacking polish and still scoring 40 points.
Scott Pryde
Expert
They are better than they have shown the last 2 weeks.
Scott Pryde
Expert
No problems mate! Thanks for following along.
PNG Broncos fan88
Roar Guru
Cheers.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Full report to come. Thanks for joining me here on The Roar for our live coverage of the 2016 NRL season. Hopefully you enjoyed the coverage as the Cronulla Sharks came away with a commanding victory over the Canberra Raiders. While I get the report together, be sure to join Riley Pettigrew for coverage of the other game this afternoon between the Wests Tigers and Melbourne Storm http://www.theroar.com.au/2016/04/17/wests-tigers-vs-melbourne-storm-nrl-live-scores-blog-4/ Bye for now.
sham
Guest
Based on the matches so far this year the raiders will do well to make the top 8. The Sharks on the other hand look like a top 4 side. Sure they were a tad sloppy at times but they scored 40 points. Furner got the raiders to the finals with a lesser roster will Stuart do the same? Based on the last two weeks the raiders will be in the bottom 4.
scar82
Guest
Woeful from the raiders at home. They are missing alot in attack and defence. I dont really thnk they have the depth with injuries hurting them. Ricky is under pressure again his raiders attack is deteriorating and defence is woeful. I would use Sisa till he goes to French rugby. That is till round 16 so a few good rounds to spike up the attack n defence.Wighton shud go centre n Sisa Waqa to Fullback till he leaves. Leilua is struggling defensively as well. Rapana is the only back doing the hard yards n making breaks probably give the kid from PNG a go otto. Just dont know what would spark this raiders team from here on they facing a massive uphill battle.