As part of Super Saturday on FOX League, the Gold Coast Titans will be hosting the Canberra Raiders at Cbus Super Stadium. Neither side has had an overly convincing start to the season; with the Raiders winning just two matches, and the Titans one. Both are looking to redeem themselves and build a strong team to progress through the remainder of the season.
Last Time Out
The Gold Coast Titans travelled to Mount Smart Stadium last Sunday to play against the Warriors, who saw the return of Kieran Foran to the halves partnership. It was a close game, with only a last minute try claiming the win for the New Zealand side. It was evident that the Titans are a good team, and that they were there for the entire game, it was just the luck of the Warriors that got over them. They completed at a total of eighty-six per cent, making only six errors. Centre Dale Copley had a great game with a try assist, as well as scoring a four-pointer himself. The entire team made strong efforts in the way that they played, and should be commended on their efforts against the Warriors. Whether or not they can continue to build momentum and put pressure on the Raiders on Saturday in the hopes of claiming their second win of the season will be seen on Saturday afternoon.
The Canberra Raiders hosted the Parramatta Eels at GIO Stadium last weekend, and claimed their second victory of the season, winning thirty points to eighteen. The match’s opening points came quickly for the home team, with Iosia Soliloa scoring the first try for the Raiders in the sixth minute, quickly followed by a Jarrod Croker conversion. Speaking of Jarrod Croker, the Canberra centre had a fantastic game, and made history, scoring his one hundredth first grade try. This makes him one of just five players to score one hundred tries and kick five hundred goals at Premiership level; congratulations! The Raiders stepped up to their opposition really well, and managed to hold a significant lead over them after building pressure and gaining momentum. They had a high completion rate of eighty-three percent, and conceded only six penalties which is improving slowly for the side. Stuart, Croker and the rest of the Canberra team will be looking to continue this and win a second consecutive match.
Key Battle
Centres Jarrod Croker and Joseph Leilua for the Canberra Raiders, and Dale Copley and Konrad Hurrell. Both these pairings have had solid starts to the season, and play well alongside each other, which is important in the way the ball is carried down the field. They provide support for the spine and the rest of the team which is an important asset for a centre, and all four of these players do that well.
Hurrell and Leilua are similar in build and are important and contribute significantly to the defence of their sides. They both make a solid amount of metres, and each make a similar amount of runs on average per game. Their match up will be interesting in seeing who will step up the most in defence for their team.
Croker and Copley are important for defence as well, however are more attacking players. Both players have made impacts in and contributed to the way that their side attacks, with Copley scoring three tries this season and Croker two. Both players make around the same amount of metres and have roughly the same amount of runs on average per game, making them and the way they attack important to their respected teams.
Prediction
Despite the history of these two sides leaning towards the Raiders, despite how close to each other with regards to amount of games won this season, and despite the fact that both sides are slowly gaining momentum as the season progresses throughout the early games, it’s hard to go past the Ricky Stuart and the Raiders who will be looking for their third win of the season, especially considering the Titans’ poor run at home recently. Raiders by 6.
Squads
Gold Coast Titans:
1. Tyronne Roberts-Davis 2. Anthony Don 3. Dale Copley 4. Konrad Hurrell 5. Daniel Vidot 6. Kane Elgey 7. Ashley Taylor 8. Jarrod Wallace 9. Ryan Simpkins 10. Ryan James 11. Kevin Proctor 12. Chris McQueen 13. Leivaha Pulu 14. Karl Lawton 15. Chris Grevsmuhl 16. Max King 17. Joe Greenwood 18. Morgan Boyle 19. Tyrone Robers 20. Paterika Vaivai 21. Alexander Brimson
Canberra Raiders
1. Jack Wighton 2. Nick Cotric 3. Jarrod Croker 4. Joseph Leilua 5. Jordan Rapana 6. Blake Austin 7. Aidan Sezer 8. Junior Paulo 9. Josh Hodgson 10. Shannon Boyd 11. Josh Papalii 12. Elliott Whitehead 13. Iosia Soliola 14. Adam Clydsdale 15. Luke Bateman 16. Clay Priest 17. Joseph Tapine 18. Dunamis Lui 19. Jordan Turner 20. Dave Taylor 21. Lachlan Croker
