The Toyota Forklifts Raiders will be returning to GIO Stadium Canberra to take on the Penrith Panthers this weekend in the round five clash.
The Raiders have a short turnaround this week after their loss to the Newcastle Knights on Sunday night.
This game will be very important to the Raiders as they are currently sitting in 16th place on just two points.
The Raiders will be without star five-eighth Jack Wighton, suspended for two rounds after a grade two dangerous contact charge. This means Matt Frawley will stay in the side and play at five-eighth.
The Raiders will also have the inclusions of Jamal Fogarty who will come back after suffering from a virus before last weekend’s match. The side will also see Jordan Rapana back in the side after his stint on the sideline after being suspended in round two.
The Panthers are currently sitting in seventh place with four points and only one win under their belt after a one-point loss to the Eels last Thursday night.
The Panthers team will go into the game with a couple of changes to their side, with Tyrone Peachy coming into the side for Soni Luke. A few shuffles within the side as Luke Garner is out too.
Last time they met:
The Panthers beat the Raiders 26-6 in round 21 of 2022.
Key Match-Ups:
Joseph Tapine v James Fisher-Harris
The 2022 Dally M Prop of the year and 2022 Meninga Medallist Joseph Tapine goes up against the 2020 and 2021 prop of the year James Fisher-Harris.
This battle will be unlike any other as Joseph Tapine will be playing his 150th game for the Raiders this weekend which is a massive milestone. The whole crowd and every teammate will be behind him making sure that his 150th game will be a special one.
After an absolute stand-out season from Tapine last year winning almost every award possible after an absolutely dominating season, Tapine has started his season this year in a similar fashion.
His start of season stats stands out having seven tackle breaks and 275 post-contact meters in just the first four games played and only playing for 198 minutes total.
Lining up against fellow Māori All-Stars teammate and long-time friend Fisher-Harris who has also had an impeccable season so far, coming off the back of back-to-back grand final wins for the Panthers, Fisher-Harris’s stats also stand out with him only playing three games and already running 300 meters in all his games total.
Fisher-Harris has had a big impact on his side’s recent success helping the forward pack beat out other teams in recent history.
This is set to be one of the main battles this season in the competition. These two will be sure to have significant influences on the result of this round five clash.
Jamal Fogarty v Nathan Cleary
The iconic battle of the halves this week looks better than ever.
Raiders standout Jamal Fogarty has been a key player in most of the Raiders wins since coming to the club last season.
Only playing 15 games last season for the Raiders, Fogarty still managed to have 116 points under his belt and get the whole team over the line with 10 try assists. Continuing with his form this year having already 20 points to his name in just the three games he has played.
Coming up against Panthers star Nathan Cleary who consistently leads his team around the park well.
Cleary has been one of the main reasons the Panthers are where they are today also representing the NSW blues in origin and playing for Australia.
Cleary has also continued his form this season similarly having scored 14 points this season in just the three games he has played.
Both players will be looking to have full control over this match-up as will both be looking to make a statement and gain their second win of the season.
Matt Timoko v Izack Tago
Matt Timoko will be sure to come out firing just as he comes up against Panthers young gun Izack Tago.
Timoko has been one of the consistent players on the Raiders side this season, showing up to the plate in the most important situations, and being the Raiders tackle-breaking machine.
In last week’s loss he made 115 post-contact meters with six tackle breaks.
His opposition in Tago is also a hard runner of the ball having made 198 total meters in last week’s loss to the Eels.
Both of these players are hard to catch in the open field looking for a try, making it sure to be an entertaining clash between the two players having a lot of impact on the final score for the game.
Head to Head
The two sides have faced off 48 times, with the Panthers winning on 26 occasions to the Raiders 22.
