Jack Wighton left South Sydney fans with a bittersweet feeling at Accor Stadium on Saturday night with the 2024 Rabbitoh leading the 2023 Raiders to a crucial victory.
Wighton did not stand out for much of the match but he came up with a couple of line breaks late in the contest as Canberra came home with a wet sail to sink Souths.
It’s hard to read too much into Canberra’s 33-26 win over South Sydney other than to say the Raiders could be able to compete with the elite teams come finals time but are not the kind of side that you can bank on.
Taking on a Souths line-up missing three Origin stars, the unpredictable Raiders floated in and out of the match but their first-half dominance ultimately proved the difference.
After leading 24-20 heading into the closing stages, they sealed two crucial competition points despite a few anxious moments down the stretch when Wighton sent Albert Hopoate flying away to complete his hat-trick.
Play was held up for several minutes 15 minutes from full-time when Raiders forward Corey Harawira-Naera received extensive treatment after he appeared to suffer a seizure after being brought to ground in a regulation tackle.
He was able to speak with medical officials and was coherent when taken from the field in a medicab, receiving a standing ovation from the players, on-field officials and crowd as they sent their best wishes to the veteran forward who was making his return to the NRL after a stint in NSW Cup.
The former Kiwi international was due to be taken to hospital for further treatment.
Lead changes galore as both teams blow hot and cold
South Sydney took a swipe at the Blues earlier in the week when they released 18th man Campbell Graham from camp due his sternum injury with the Bunnies confident he could play this weekend.
He was ultimately ruled out but Jed Cartwright, filling in at right centre, did his best Graham impersonation to score the first try of the match within six minutes with a strong run to the stripe.
Canberra hit back when Corey Horsburgh unveiled a rarely seen right-foot step to score and a pair of tries to winger Albert Hopoate midway through the first half put the Green Machine up16-8.
Corey Horsburgh. (Photo by Brendon Thorne/Getty Images)
Rabbitohs winger Alex Johnston finished off a typically slick left-edge sweep but the Raiders held a 10-point margin at the break.
Isaiah Tass continued South Sydney’s momentum when he crossed five minutes after the restart and the centre then turned provider for Johnston’s second as the hosts surged to a 20-18 lead.
Canberra regained the lead at the mid-point of the second term when Jack Wighton sent Jarrod Croker into open spaces and the veteran centre then snubbed the five-eighth, perhaps unintentionally, when he drew the fullback to put Tom Starling over.
After the delay to treat Harawira-Naera, the Bunnies converted a judicious captain’s challenge to go 26-24 up with 10 remaining when Damien Cook capitalised on a Cody Walker grubber to remind NSW selectors he’s not even close to a spent force.
But the Bunnies couldn’t close it out with Wighton’s set-up for Hopoate and a field goal to Jamal Fogarty completed the scoring.
Raiders impossible to predict
There’s no harder team in the NRL to get an accurate gauge on than the Green Machine.
After starting the season with a 1-4 record and looking like they were certainties to finish among the also-rans, they bounced back with a five-game winning streak before copping a 42-14 thumping at home from Manly heading into this match.
They were favourites in this clash with the Bunnies due to the discrepancies in Origin reps unavailable (one Raider in Hudson Young versus three Rabbitohs in Latrell Mitchell, Jai Arrow and Cameron Murray).
And 80 minutes later, it’s still guesswork to say the Raiders definitely will or won’t be in the top eight after the 27th round is done and dusted in the first week of September.
They are now just two competition points off first place with a 7-5 record but due to the congested nature of the top of the ladder, are still a long way from being anything close to ensconced in the contending group.
With an upcoming schedule of the Wests Tigers, Warriors, a bye, the struggling Roosters, Titans and Dragons, there is a mid-year window opening up for the Raiders to advance up the ladder before their third and final bye in Round 20.
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