Match day guide and preview for the Canberra Raiders NRL round 22 game against the Melbourne Storm.

Who, when and where?

Melbourne Storm vs Canberra Raiders

Thursday 12 August, 7.50pm

Sunshine Coast Stadium, Sunshine Coast QLD

Head-to-head record: Played 49. Raiders 14 wins. Storm 34 wins. 1 draw.

Click here to buy tickets. Gates open at 6.50pm.

Ladder position and recent form

Canberra Raiders 8^th | 403 points for | 477 points against | 9 wins & 11 losses | WLWWW

The Raiders got back on the winners list with a scrappy win over the Dragons to make it four wins from their past five matches.

Their performance was far from convincing though and coach Ricky Stuart even said after the match his side would get “beaten by 60” if they dished up the same effort against the Storm.

Canberra have played some reasonable footy over the last five weeks, but they’ll need to play at level they haven’t shown this year to upset the Storm.

Melbourne Storm 1^st | 717 points for | 242 points against | 18 wins & 2 losses | WWWW

The Storm have won 17 matches in a row and look destined for yet another premiership in 2021.

They have a staggering plus minus of 475 and have a remarkable team that has stars Harry Grant and Ryan Papenhuyzen coming off the bench.

They’ve had a couple of close calls recently against the Cowboys and Manly, but it’s hard to see them dropping this one.

Raiders and Storm team lists

Canberra Raiders

The Raiders have made two changes with Bailey Simonsson and Sia Soliola returning to the side in place of Semi Valemei and Elijah Anderson.

Simonsson has been named on the wing but is expected to swap with Jordan Rapana and play fullback.

Melbourne Storm

The Storm side gets even stronger with Felise Kaufusi and Nelson Asofa-Solomona coming back in.

Last 5 meetings

• 2021 Round 11: Raiders 10 – Storm 34 at GIO Stadium
• 2020 Preliminary Final: Storm 30 – 10 Raiders at Suncorp Stadium
• 2020 Round 9: Raiders 14 – 20 Storm at GIO Stadium
• 2020 Round 3: Storm 6 – 22 Raiders at AAMI Park
• 2019 Qualifying Final: Storm 10 – 12 Raiders at AAMI Park

Canberra had actually built a three-win streak over Melbourne throughout 2019 and early 2020 before the Storm got back to their usual winning ways and have now won the last three.

They met once already this season where an undermanned Melbourne side embarrassed the Raiders on their home deck.

The players to watch

Raiders – Josh Papalii

If Canberra are to have any chance of upsetting the Storm, they need to win the battle in the middle of the field and Papalii is their main man in there.

He’s been down on his 2019 and 2020 form so far this season, but Papalii showed signs he was returning to his best before a nasty head knock against Parramatta in round 19.

Papalii has often been the man the Raiders turn to when they need a lift so expect him to come out firing.

Storm – Brandon Smith

Smith is having another sensational season for the Storm playing a combination of hooker and middle forward.

He’s dangerous carrying the ball from dummy half but he can be just as effective playing as a forward, illustrated by his 113 run metres from hit-ups last week against Manly. He’s also incredibly hard to stop close to the line, evidenced by his nine tries this season.

Now with Harry Grant back in the side, it gives the Storm a lethal hooker combination and the Raiders will do well to limit their impact.

Pre match predictions

Powerful Papa: Josh Papalii to run for over 150 metres and score a try.

License to Jah-roam: Jarome Hughes to play with full creative license, recording two try assists. – Denholm Samaras

Other match details

The match will be broadcast live on Channel 9 and Fox League channel 502 at 7.50pm. It is also available to stream on Kayo.

You can listen to the match on Raiders on Mix – Mix106.3 FM, Radio 2CC – 1206 AM and ABC Grandstand – 666 ABC AM.

Click here for more match day information.