Parramatta held on to win a back-and-forth NRL tussle in Canberra on Sunday, seeing off the Raiders 28-20 at GIO Stadium.
Two tries for former Raider and Canberra local Bailey Simonsson and an outstanding outing from five-eighth Dylan Brown helped the Eels come from behind twice to win, although there was rarely anything in the enthralling clash.
Brown’s display was borderline flawless, finishing with 198 metres, three line breaks and two tries, the second of which effectively iced the game 14 minutes from time.
After falling behind 20-16 early in the second half, Parramatta drew level when a classy Brown break ended with a diving effort for Simonsson’s second try, with another ice-cold Mitch Moses conversion putting the visitors ahead 22-20.
But they looked home 14 minutes from time when Brown crossed again, benefiting from a huge Shaun Lane line break after their defence absorbed plenty from the Raiders.
That also might have left the Raiders’ questioning if they should have kicked for touch after a penalty inside the Eels’ 10 metre line early in the second half, rather than extending their two-point advantage to four.
The win keeps the Eels firmly in the NRL’s top-four hunt, moving to 8-4 for the campaign to stay level with third-placed North Queensland.
Canberra had made the most of limited opportunities earlier, leading 18-16 at halftime despite missing 25 tackles compares with Parramatta’s nine.
Raider debutant Jamal Fogarty tipped off a chaotic opening term with the game’s opening try assist, his bomb allowing Seb Kris to score, but the Eels quickly leveled when Will Pennisini cut through having caught a rebound from Adam Elliott’s attempted intercept.
Brown was in sparkling touch and scored via a patient run and silky dummy, while another line break was capped by a Simonsson try in the corner.
But the Raiders hung around via a clever dummy-half dive from skipper Elliott Whitehead, and Eels’ fullback Clint Gutherson simply gifted the Raiders their 18-16 halftime lead, inexcusably dropping a Jack Wighton bomb for Kris to gather and easily find a second.
Isaiah Papali’i continued his strong form with 143m, while Junior Paulo (142m) and Ryan Matterson (155m) also stayed hot.
The defeat snapped Canberra’s winning streak at three games, and they face another stern test next weekend with Sydney Roosters headed to town.
It was another banner afternoon for the Raiders’ props, with Josh Papali’i and Joe Tapine combining for 384m and eight offloads.
