Round 16: Broncos v Raiders preview
The race to September footy heats up as two finals contenders meet.
There is no other way of putting it. Saturday night's game is massive in determining who will be competing for a spot in this year's finals series. Having burst back into contention off the back of a last-start 48-12 thumping of the Tigers, a win would see the Raiders sit just one win outside the eighth-placed Broncos.
In contrast, a Brisbane victory would see Canberra fall three wins away from Wayne Bennett's men and effectively end their season.
With all that in mind, Brisbane's upset 20-16 win over the Sharks a fortnight was crucial and Bennett will be hoping they can step up again when they host the resurgent Raiders.
The Broncos have won five of their past seven games, yet they still have a negative differential, ranking 10th in the competition for attack and 12th in defence.
Coach Bennett has named all of his Origin and representative players to back up from last weekend's games.
Saturday night's game is just as, if not more important for Ricky Stuart's Raiders.
Canberra have charged back towards the top eight courtesy of a 36-point win over the Tigers a fortnight ago. The return of Josh Hodgson had an immediate impact, with the hooker setting up two tries in the opening half of the match.
The representative round came at a terrible time for the Raiders though and it will be interesting to see whether they can carry their momentum from the win into Saturday night's game.
Scoring points has never been an issue for Canberra though, as they rank as the third-best attacking side in the competition in 2018.
The Raiders are their best when they are on a roll and coach Stuart will know the importance of keeping the confidence from the Tigers win going given the tough run home that his squad has.
Last meeting: Round 16 2017 - Raiders 20 Broncos 30
Who to watch: All eyes will be on Brisbane winger Corey Oates as he looks to push for selection in Kevin Walter's Queensland side for Game 3. Oates was arguably the Broncos' best against Cronulla, running for 220 metres, busting five tackles and crossing over in the 69th minute off a spectacular aerial effort. Oates is one of Brisbane's most valuable players and essentially operates as an extra forward given his strong running game.
While Hodgson received all the attention in the Raiders' big win over the Tigers, it was the performance of Blake Austin late in the second half that caught my eye. The five-eighth is best known for his dummy and step and it was on full display in the 63rd minute when he danced through the Wests defence to score. Austin is off-contract next year and has reportedly received interest from Parramatta. However, if he is intent on staying at Canberra he will need to step up on a more consistent basis.
The favourite: Brisbane are favoured to take this one.
My tip: On the back of their last-start win, look for the Raiders to continue their surge towards the top eight. Canberra by 10.
