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Cronulla Sharks vs Canberra Raiders: NRL highlights, live scores, blog

Roar Guru
20th July, 2018
Where: Southern Cross Group Stadium
When: 6pm AEST
TV: Fox League
Bettting: Cronulla $1.40, Canberra $3
Valentine Holmes of the Sharks. (Photo by Tony Feder/Getty Images)
Roar Guru
20th July, 2018
226

The first of the Friday night matches comes from the Shire, with the sixth-placed Cronulla Sharks hosting the in-form and ninth-placed Canberra Raiders. Join The Roar for live scores and coverage from 6pm (AEST).

If you had looked up this fixture a month ago, you would been lamenting the fact MasterChef isn’t shown on a Friday night.

However, here we are, and these two teams are showing the type of form that suggests this might be an absolutely rip-snorting contest.

Cronulla are simmering nicely, and seemingly timing their run, form, and luck perfectly for the finals.

Take nothing away from the Sharks’ win over the Panthers last week. Regardless of the loss of Nathan Cleary, a win in Penrith these days is like gold, and could be the difference between top four and elimination matches for the Sharks.

They looked good last weekend, and it is their ability to do the simple things better than the rest that keeps them stacking up those wins.

The joker in the pack for the Sharks has been Wade Graham. Injured to start the year and having missed out on rep footy, he is fresh for the back half of the season, and adds just that little bit of grunt to a workmanlike pack.

As for the Raiders, they were simply sublime in the capital last week, with a second-half showing that most teams in the comp would have struggled to withstand.

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They have a lot of players in form at the moment and playing smart football. The loss of Jarrod Croker is a massive blow though and tips things back in favour of the home team.

Blake Austin, who came in and filled that Croker role nicely against the Cowboys, now finds himself in the halves, filling in for the injured Aidan Sezer.

Alas, the loss of Croker and Sezer may simply be a bridge too far for the Raiders.

Prediction
On the back of a strong showing last week, and back at home, with the lift of Luke Lewis announcing his resignation, the Cronulla boys should be primed to hijack the Raiders’ good form.

But it should still be close.

Cronulla by 4.

Join The Roar for live coverage from 6pm (AEST) and don’t forget to add a comment below.

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