NRL Match Preview: Raiders v Bulldogs

The Canberra Raiders will be hoping for a win on Saturday night with a new look lineup against the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs at ANZ Stadium.

With three players called up for State of Origin and an injury to Co-captain Josh Hodgson, a reshuffle to Canberra’s lineup will see new faces come in.

Siliva Havili will move to the starting hooker position after impressing in the second half last week, while Tom Starling has been named on the bench for his NRL debut.

Corey Horsburgh and Sebastian Kris get their first NRL start this week, whilst Aiden Sezer replaces Jack Wighton at five-eighth.

After three narrow losses to the Cowboys, Rabbitohs, and the Roosters, the Raiders will be looking to claim a victory to stay in the tightly contested top eight.

The Bulldogs will also be looking for a win after a 28-6 loss to the Melbourne Storm in Round 11.

Last Time:

Canberra defeated Canterbury-Bankstown 32-28 at Belmore Oval in Round 17. The Raiders led at halftime and scored three tries in the last five minutes to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.

Key Matchups:

Aidan Sezer vs Kieran Foran

Having made only two appearances for Canberra in 2019, Aidan Sezer will be making his return to the starting side when he goes head to head against Kieran Foran.

In those two games, Sezer averaged 160 kicking metres whilst also having a forced dropout and a try assist to his name.

Kieran Foran will look to produce a strong attacking game this week. The five-eighth has recorded two tries this season and has provided a solid kicking game with three forced dropouts.

Both five-eighths will search for their strong kicking game to help their respected teams get off to an early start.

Corey Horsburgh vs Aiden Tolman

Replacing Josh Papalii for Round 12, Corey Horsburgh will fill in at prop taking on the experienced veteran Aidan Tolman.

Having come off the interchange and producing 281 post contact metres this season, the high work-rate of Horsburgh will be on full display.

Playing his 12th season in the NRL, Tolman still provides a major role for the Bulldogs.

Tolman averages close to 14 hit-ups a game and in defence, has made 426 tackles this season with a 93.7% tackle efficiency.

Siliva Havili vs Jeremy Marshall-King

The injury to Raiders Co-captain Josh Hodgson will allow Siliva Havili to slot into the side where he will face Jeremy Marshall-King.

Last week against the Cowboys, the hooker scored his first try for the season whilst also providing a defensive presence with 23 tackles made.

The Tongan international also has a total of 858 running metres this season.

Marshall-King this season has been a helping hand in defence, the young hooker has made 399 tackles this season with a 90.4% tackle efficiency.

“All I can do is play a real simple game and have lots of clarity with the players around me,” – Siliva Havili

Head to Head: The Raiders have met the Bulldogs on 70 occasions, with Canberra winning 30 times and Canterbury-Bankstown winning 39 times, with the remaining match ending in a draw.