NRL round 25: Raiders hammer Cowboys
The Canberra Raiders crushed the North Queensland Cowboys at home in Canberra Stadium over the weekend.
The Raiders had no problem with a terrible Cowboys side registering nine tries against an inept North Queensland defence. The Raiders got started early and scored often taking an impressive 28-point lead into half-time. After the break the home side continued to embarrass their opponents tallying four tries in the final 40 minutes for an outrageous 48-4 victory.
Recap
Reece Robinson got the scoring started early for the Raiders as he darted across the try-line in the 4th minute to give his side a quick 4-0 lead.
The Raiders kept the pressure on with Josh Dugan marching over the whitewash in the 16th minute and after a Jarod Croker conversion the Raiders extended their lead to 10-0.
Robinson made his way over for a second try on the day in the game’s 22nd minute, with Croker notching another conversion to push the score out to 16-0.
The Raiders finished off the half with two tries, the first coming from Glen Buttriss in the 35th minute and other from Dugan who notched his second try just before half in the 40th minute. Croker tacked conversions onto both scores to give the Raiders a 28-0 lead at half-time.
After the break the hosts did not let up first with Josh McCrone getting in on the action with a try in the 51st minute to make the game 32-0.
The Raiders would add three more tries, one from David Shillington and two more from Robinson who finished the day having crossed the whitewash four times.
Michael Bani was the only Cowboy to get over the line, doing so in the 75th minute, leaving the Raiders to cruise to an impressive 48-4 victory.
Analysis
The Raiders performed remarkably, getting a win in perhaps their most important game of the season. The Raiders now sit in eighth place two points up on the ninth place Sydney Rabbitohs. With one game to go a win or draw will guarantee them a spot in the post-season.
The Cowboys meanwhile failed at their role of spoiler over the weekend. As the League’s second to last team with only five wins all year the Cowboys did not represent a great threat to the Raiders missing the post-season. Nevertheless, the North Queensland side will want to finish the year on a high note by winning their last match in next week’s final round.
Tags: