In a nail-biting top four clash, the Raiders ran in a 16-10 victory over the Warriors in their first win in New Zealand since 2019.
After their last meeting in Las Vegas when the Raiders took out a dominant 30-8 win, the Warriors looked to settle the score tonight, hosting Canberra at home at a sold-out Go Media Stadium in Auckland.
Heading into this match, both the Raiders and Warriors have been two of the most in-form sides in the competition this season, sitting at fourth and second on the ladder respectively.
Conditions were wet and slippery and the Raiders largely controlled the opening 10 minutes of the game thanks to some excellent work off the boot of halfback Jamal Fogarty.
But in the 12th minute, the Warriors seized control of the game following a series of set restarts and were offered a number of shots at the Raider’s line.
Subsequently, a penalty against Raiders captain Joe Tapine for a crusher gave the Warriors a two-point lead after they slotted a penalty goal.
The wet conditions didn’t dampen the home side’s spirits as the Warriors eventually capitalised on this momentum with a try to Roger Tuivasa-Sheck in the corner.
By the 27th minute, Raiders prop Corey Horsburgh was sent to the sin bin for a dangerous tackle leaving Canberra a man short.
But with less than 10 minutes left in the half, the Raiders found their footing and a few errors from the Warriors gave Canberra ample opportunity to claw their way back into the game.
Raiders centre Sebastian Kris waltzed up through the centre of the pitch and made space for a charging Tom Starling to take the offload and cross the line for the Raiders’ first points of the day.
Jamal Fogarty has no issues with the kick, with the Raiders trailing by two points.
Fresh off Starling’s try, Canberra were back on the attack with ferocity. Repeat goal-line dropouts saw Canberra set up shop in the Warriors’ 20 as the hosts tried to hold out until half-time.
An offside call with 30 seconds to go gave Fogarty a shot at a penalty goal directly in front of the sticks which levelled the scores.
At the half-time break, both teams hit the sheds level, locked up at 8-all.
While Canberra had the momentum, the first 10 minutes of the second half was dotted with completed sets and consistent defensive efforts from both teams which kept the scores locked at 8-all.
A penalty against Starling allowed the Warriors to creep ahead with another penalty goal from Warriors halfback Luke Metcalf, the current leader of the Dally M votes.
At the 57th minute, the Raiders blooded second rower Noah Martin, who wasted no time making an impact with a ferocious run at the Warriors’ line.
A set restart saw the Warriors defending their try-line for eight straight tackles before Nicoll-Klokstad was sent to the bin for a similar crusher tackle to Horsburgh in the first half.
Fogarty opted to balance the scoreboard and take the two points to level the game up at 10-all with 20 minutes remaining.
Taking advantage of the sin bin, the Raiders struck fast as prop Ata Mariota broke the defensive line and offloaded to Fogarty who raced Tuivasa-Sheck to the Warriors line to score.
Fogarty converted his kick and extended the Raiders’ lead to six points, 16-10.
Holding onto their lead in the final minutes, a late high shot from Starling saw him sent to the sin bin with two minutes to go.
Almost finding the line two tackles later, Warriors back rower Marata Niukore was denied the equaliser thanks to a brilliant try-saving tackle by Morgan Smithies and Corey Horsburgh which kept the Raiders ahead.
90 seconds from victory, the Warriors lost the ball and the Raiders sealed the win, climbing into second place on the ladder and snapping the Warriors winning streak.
The Raiders will look to keep their winning streak alive when they meet the Sydney Roosters at Allianz Stadium next Sunday night.