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The Canberra Raiders will be out to break a four-game losing streak when they tackle the mercurial New Zealand Warriors in the nation’s capital tonight. Join The Roar for live scores and a live blog of the game, starting from 7:50pm AEST.
This game is quite a tough one to call.
On the one hand, you have the Canberra Raiders who are clinging on to their top eight dreams with a grip looser than NSW’s affinity to Origin football.
On the other, you have a Dragons side who started the season in red hot form, but have whimpered to a halt in recent weeks, recording a sole win over the Knights when they came back from an 18-point half time deficit to steal it at the death.
So, where is the game won and lost between two sides who are at extremely crucial points in their season?
The Raiders will welcome back Josh Hodgson at hooker, who should bring a level head to a directionless Raiders spine.
This could be the inclusion needed to steady a flailing backline, and the cool head necessary to keep their big forwards going for the entire eighty minutes.
If Hodgson shows up and finds his rhythm early in the game, expect the Raiders to have a high completion rate, and to apply a significant amount of pressure to the inconsistent Dragons.
For the Dragons, Josh Dugan will sit on the pine, while in a major blow for the Red Vs, enforcer Tyson Frizell has been ruled out of the clash. Taane Milne starts in the centres owing to Euan Aitken’s troublesome hamstring.
The St George bench is more potent than Canberra’s, and if they are within reach with 20 to go, they could steal this late.
Prediction
This will be an absolute belter. Two sides clashing in the nations capital with literally it all to play for. Lose, and you’re probably no chance of making the eight. With that in mind, I predict the green machine will click tonight, and will be a different beast to the sides the Dragons have encountered in recent weeks.
There’ll be a viking clap around GIO Stadium when the referee blows his full-time whistle.
Raiders by 14.
Join The Roar for live scores and a blog of the match, starting from 7:50pm AEST.
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