The Canberra Raiders are one win away from a place in the NRL Grand Final after defeating the Melbourne Storm 12-10 in Melbourne on Saturday 14 September.
In an unusual start to the game, Joey Leilua was benched prior to kick-off after getting some firework debris in his eye with his replacement, Bailey Simonsson, crossing for the first points of the match in the third minute.
In a low scoring affair, the Raiders held a four-point lead at halftime, up 6-2, however it could have been more if not for Jarrod Croker’s off night with the boot, missing two penalty conversions.
The Storm hit back in the second half through a try and a series of penalty goals to lead 10-6 before a Storm handling error late in the match saw Leilua put John Bateman through for a try, converted by Croker.
The Raiders have a week off before hosting the winner of the Rabbitohs versus Sea Eagles semi-final in a preliminary final match at GIO Stadium on Friday 27 September 7.50pm. Tickets for the preliminary finals will be on sale following the semi-finals. In other news,English duo Elliott Whitehead and Ryan Sutton have agreed to contract extensions with the Raiders. Both Whitehead and Sutton were signed until the end of 2020, however the club has extended their current deals for a further two seasons each.
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