Check out the match preview and prediction for the round 21 clash between the Canberra Raiders and South Sydney Rabbitohs.
MATCHDAY NEWS
MATCHDAY SCHEDULE
Canberra Raiders Vs South Sydney Rabbitohs
Venue: GIO Stadium, Canberra
Date: Sunday July 28, 6:15pm
MATCHDAY TEAM NEWS
Raiders: 1. Kaeo Weekes, 2. Jordan Rapana, 3. Matthew Timoko, 4. Sebastian Kris, 5. Xavier Savage, 6. Ethan Strange, 7. Jamal Fogarty, 8. Josh Papali’i, 9. Tom Starling, 10. Joseph Tapine, 11. Hudson Young, 12. Elliott Whitehead, 13. Morgan Smithies, 14. Danny Levi, 15. Trey Mooney, 16. Ata Mariota, 17. Zac Hosking, 18. Adam Cook, 19. Albert Hopoate, 20. Simi Sasagi, 21. Zac Woolford, 22. Emre Guler
Rabbitohs: 1. Jye Gray, 2. Alex Johnston, 3. Taane Milne, 4. Michael Chee Kam, 5. Jacob Gagai, 6. Jack Wighton, 7. Cody Walker, 8. Davvy Moale, 9. Damien Cook, 10. Sean Keppie, 11. Jacob Host, 12. Tallis Duncan, 13. Keaon Koloamatangi, 14. Peter Mamouzelos, 15. Siliva Havili, 16. Thomas Burgess, 17. Liam Le Blanc, 18. Dion Teaupa, 19. Fletcher Myers, 20. Izaac Tu’itupou Thompson, 21. Shaquai Mitchell, 22. Brock Gray
Referee: Wyatt Raymond
Embed from Getty ImagesMATCHDAY PREVIEW
The Raiders and Rabbitohs battle each other, and the stakes are very high. The winner keeps their momentum going towards finals footy, while the loser can consider packing their bags and preparing for the long gruelling off-season.
Before I get into the team changes for this match, we must address the main talking point coming into this game: the highly anticipated return of Jack Wighton. The Canberra die-hards won’t forget what he said when signing for Souths after 242 games in green (including a grand final appearance in 2019, winning the Clive Churchill Medal, and also winning the 2020 Dally M Medal). Wighton claimed the main reason he joined Souths was to win a premiership before his career was over, leaving a sour taste in Canberra mouths, as it might leave the impression that he didn’t feel it was possible in Canberra, despite being close on several occasions prior. Wighton will come up against his replacement Ethan Strange, which is definitely the game’s “main event” when it comes to head-to-head battles here.
Canberra captain Elliott Whitehead recently confirmed he will depart the NRL at the end of the season to head back to the English Super League: he will play his 200th NRL match this weekend, which is an amazing milestone for anyone in this game, but especially an overseas talent having to adjust to the game in Australia. The Raiders have named the exact same 17 as last week’s win over the Warriors – so the only team news to report is injury news, which comes in the form of Chevy Stewart, who has been ruled out for roughly a month with an ankle injury, and Pasami Saulo who will succumb to a lower back injury and have surgery – ruling him out until 2025.
For the rejuvenated Rabbitohs they also have a milestone man, with their lock forward Keaon Koloamatangi playing his 100th NRL game for the Bunnies. Having made his debut only four seasons ago it shows he has been a durable and impactful addition for this team. Richard Kennar is unfortunately ineligible to play this week due to head injury protocols, causing a shift for Michael Chee Kam from the forwards to the centre position, with Jacob Host moving into Chee Kam’s starting second row spot from last round.
Souths will be confident heading into this match after winning four of their last five matches and are now teasingly just four points outside eighth spot, but time is running out and fast to close this gap. The Raiders seem to play really well in patches, and then awful in the other portions of the game, often leading to their downfall more times than not. For these reasons my gut is saying the Rabbitohs will have too much quality and momentum for Canberra in this match.
Head-to-head stats can be found at Number Crunch Stats.
MATCHDAY PREDICTION
Check out all the NRL Predictions here.
Rabbitohs by 8 points.
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