Canberra Raiders Cup: Round 16 Wrap
The Canberra Raiders Cup finals series are right around the corner, where wins at this stage of the season come at a premium. The Rams, Warriors, Kangaroos and Blues were strong enough to record victories over the weekend with only two rounds to go.
Woden Valley Rams 36 d Belconnen United Sharks 22
The Woden Valley Rams have held their spot atop of the ladder following a 14 point win over the Sharks at Bruce on Saturday afternoon.
With their season on the line, the Sharks needed to bring their A-game but even that wasn’t enough to defeat Woden Valley who have emerged as one of the competition favourites heading into the finals.
The visitors had a strong first half after repelling the Sharks on multiple occasions to take a 20-6 lead into halftime. James Desaxe was unstoppable scoring two tries as a lock-forward.
Belconnen brought themselves within ten points midway through the second half but the Rams continued to show their dominance, scoring two late tries to seal the victory.
The Rams are on the road again this weekend when they face the Gungahlin Bulls while the Sharks have the bye and will return in round 18 to finish their season against Yass at home.
West Belconnen Warriors 34 d Yass Magpies 14
The West Belconnen Warriors have ended their two-game losing streak defeating the Magpies by 20 points at Raiders Belconnen on Saturday.
The return of halfback Bobby Roberts came at a perfect time on the weekend as West Belconnen continue to surge for that top spot on the ladder.
The Warriors controlled Saturday’s contest where centre Riley Thomas bagged a late double to put the last-placed Yass side away for a comfortable win at home.
The Warriors will set their eyes on a minor premiership where they have a game in hand over the current first placed Woden side, where they will take on both Queanbeyan sides in the final fortnight.
Yass will look to avoid their wooden spoon play-off with Gungahlin with tough matches against the Blues and Sharks in their final games of the year.
Queanbeyan Kangaroos 30 d Gungahlin Bulls 26
The Queanbeyan Kangaroos have registered their sixth win of the season following their four-point win over the Bulls at Seears Workwear Oval on Saturday afternoon.
Their first half performance was outstanding running in four tries to hold a 20-10 lead heading into halftime.
The Kangaroos started the second half where they left off, scoring the opening try in the 47th minute to set-up the remainder of the game.
Both teams exchanged tries following on, until a couple of late tries from Gungahlin brought them within four points.
Unfortunately for the Bulls, one last roll of the dice in the dying seconds ended in a knock on only metres out from the line. The mistake secured the victory for the Kangaroos who needed a win following their upset loss to Yass the week before.
The Kangaroos will host the second-placed Warriors this weekend while Gungahlin host the top of the table Rams on Sunday.
Queanbeyan Blues 27 d Goulburn City Bulldogs 22
The Queanbeyan Blues have secured their place in the upcoming finals series following their five-point victory over the Bulldogs in Goulburn on Saturday.
The Blues got off to a great start, targeting the Bulldogs left edge defence and cracking it four times in the first half alone to take a 26-0 lead into halftime.
With a mountain to climb, the Bulldogs needed to get off to a solid start if they were to come back and they did just that, scoring 22 unanswered points.
Queanbeyan slotted a field goal in the 74th minute to create a bit of safety in case the Bulldogs went over again but the Blues were able to limit Goulburn City’s scoring opportunities and walked away with the 27-22 win.
The Blues travel to take on Yass in round 17 while the Bulldogs face the Bushrangers in Tuggeranong.
Image by Trisha Sullivan
