Raiders break losing streak off the back of Warriors woes

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Canberra Raiders v Warriors

The Raiders staved off a spirited comeback from the Warriors to claim their first victory in five games, sneaking by 20-18.

In what was an error-ridden game, it was the Raiders who came out of the gates firing first. Jamal Fogarty made sure everyone watching knew he was back with only his second bomb of the game, causing Taine Tuaupiki to knock on, giving them prime position early in the Warriors quarter, and in no time, Hudson Young took his frame to the line and got results in the 6th minute.

The Warriors looked to hit back after the try but lost their way, giving the Raiders back-to-back penalties. Fogarty took advantage of the space up the middle again, finding Hudson Young present and fast going over for his second at 10 minutes in.

At the 13-minute mark, the Warriors were dealt a blow, with Taine Tuaupiki having to leave the game with a Category 1 concussion, causing a re-shuffle. The Warriors tried to get an attack going but were not coming up with anything troubling.

Fogarty's boot again was causing trouble for the Warrior's back three as Dallin Watene-Zelezniak knocked on, giving the Raiders top-field position. A penalty for stripping was too close to the goalposts for the Raiders to pass on and Jamal Fogarty made it 14-0 after slotting a penalty goal over at the 18 minute.

The following 20 minutes was a see-sawing of errors between the two teams as the count mounted. The Warriors did keep getting chances, but white line fever was trobling them, and their last ball decisions were not the best. 

But the Warriors turned some defence into an attack after a mistake by Tom Starling gave them the ball back from an ill-fated offload, and a six again added to the momentum. The pressure on the line finally paid off as Roger Tuivasa-Sheck got the chocolates in the 37th minute.

The Warriors came out on fire in the second half,  with Dyaln Edwards making a huge break down the middle off kickoff; it got the Warriors in a good position and seemed to unhinge the Raiders over the following few sets. 

A high ball from the Warriors gave Jamal Fogarty a taste of his own medicine as he dropped the ball close to the line. The Warriors took advantage, and Kurt Capewell, fresh from Origin Three, went over getting the Warriros right back in the game.

The Raiders went down to the Warriors quarter but fumbled their chance; with a scrum feed and then a six again, the Warriors momentum was too much, and Mich Barnett, still warm from an Origin series win, showed no signs of fatigue, barnstorming over the line to put the game at a deadlock of 14 all at the 60-minute mark.

But, with the loss of Adam Pompey to a leg injury and Taine Tuaupiki to an HIA, the fatigue was starting to set in. The Raiders pushed another attack and in the 70th minute, Xavier Savage went over to break the deadlock.

It was short-lived, as the Warriors rolled the dice on a short kick-off, coming up trumps. The Raiders were caught off guard, and a rampaging Addin Fonua-Blake stormed over to give his side belief. 

After already missing two shots at goal, Chanel Harris-Tavita lined up for what would give the Warriors a chance to take the game to golden point. But he was just out of form and missed, which saw the game run out to full-time at 20-18 for the green machine.

The Warriors seemed to lack cohesion at the end of sets, which was a shame because they were finding the meters in the middle. They started too slow, and they had to play catch up. 38 missed tackles to 21 also wouldn't have helped.

Addin Founa-Blacke made 200 meters, while his fellow prop Mitch Barnett made 160. There was some considerable effort in the middle by the Warriors, with Wayde Egan making easy yards on several runs. 
Roger Tuivasa-Sheck made an impact from the back, and if he had gotten more ball, it might have been a different story for the Kiwi team.

Hudson Young was back to some of his best form, scoring two tries, running nearly 100 meters, and making 47 tackles; he was in beast mode.
Joesph Tapine and Tom Starling also put in stellar performances in the middle. Zach Hosking made another impression off the bench, and its good to see him bouncing back from injury.

And if anyone bounced back, it was Jamal Fogarty. His kicking game made a massive difference in tonight's games and gave the Raiders the advantage with the opportunities he was getting from highball. 

Even Ricky Stuart said his boys were lucky to win. The Warriors ended up scoring more tries, 4 to 3. But it was the lack of conversion kicking that gave the Raiders the game and the two points. 

Stuart was all praise for Warriors coach Webster, though, with only 15 men and two Origin players returning, it was a big call for him to get the team as competitive as they were tonight