RAIDERS ON THE CUSP OF FINALS AFTER OUTLASTING DOGS

The Raiders have moved four points clear of the chasing pack in the battle for the remaining top-eight spots, following a 36-24 win over a stubborn Bulldogs outfit on Sunday. After an opening 66 minutes in which the gap between the two sides was never more than six points, Jordan Rapana struck the telling blow with a four-pointer that sent a wave of relief across GIO Stadium in Canberra, before Josh Papali'i put the icing on the cake with a try under the posts. The try capped off a brilliant game from Rapana, who set up another three tries and broke the line three times from fullback. Remarkably the 12-point gap was the Raiders' biggest winning margin in 2023 and with just two regular season rounds remaining and four points up for grabs, it puts the Green Machine within touching distance of the post season. In what was one of their better performances of the year, the Bulldogs simply refused to go away for the first hour, with star recruit Viliame Kikau coming up with several big plays and Jake Averillo putting in a strong showing from the back. Canberra centres Matthew Timoko and Jarrod Croker both got over for first-half tries, but on each occasion the visitors scored next, with rookie wing Blake Wilson crossing out on the left before Jacob Kiraz juggled the ball and regathered just in time to ground it five from the break. With both goalkickers on song it was 12-all at the half. Timoko grabbed his second nine minutes after the return of play, but it was quickly cancelled out by Toby Sexton who fended through Hudson Young to get over from close range. As both sides traded blows in the second half, the Raiders appeared to be slowly gaining an advantage and began to enjoy more time on the ball. Nick Cotric battled over to give his side the lead again on the hour mark and from there they never looked back, with Rapana's try following and Papali'i sealing the deal.