It's the final bitter pill of a frustrating year - a crucial refereeing gaffe has ended the Canberra Raiders' season.

The Raiders' finals hopes have ended in controversial style after Manly fullback Brett Stewart scored the match-winning try from an offside position in Sunday's 26-24 win at Canberra Stadium.

Stewart scored with two minutes left to give Manly victory, but replays confirmed he was in front of the play-the-ball before he backed up a Daly Cherry-Evans pass in the same play to score.

Under the rules he cannot be run back onside and the clanger is the final body blow for the Raiders, whose top-eight chances are now officially over after yet another heartbreaking tight home loss.

The Stewart saga aside, the Raiders again failed to do the little things right when it mattered most after storming back from 16-0 down to lead 24-16 with 13 minutes left.

But late tries to Jamie Lyon and Stewart ensured they'll go down in the history books as the worst-performed Raiders team at home.

They have won just two of 11 in Canberra, seven of those by seven points or less. With just Penrith to come at home, the Raiders will now break the club's previous low of four home wins in a season.

Unlike Groundhog Day where Bill Murray's character gets the girl, the Raiders haven't learned from their mistakes after virtually re-living the same day over and over again in 2015.

Raiders coach Ricky Stuart was in no mood for reflection.

"Yep, it's been a very common occurrence this year," Stuart said.

"I've got my thoughts on it, it's not the time to discuss it now though.

"We should have won it, it's as simple as that.

"You can dance around it as much as you want, we should have won it."

The close losses have clearly taken a mental toll on the players but Canberra skipper Jarrod Croker insisted the demons didn't surface when Manly launched its fightback.

"There was no talk of that, we remained positive behind the line when we were four in front, there was no talk of previous games," Croker said.

"Its an old cliche but we have to play for 80 minutes. We didn't start well and I'll put my hand up there, that Jamie Lyon try [I conceded in the first half] was just pure soft."

Now 8-13 after three straight losses, the Raiders will have to wait at least one more year for its first finals campaign since 2012.

To make matters worse prop Paul Vaughan limped off with what appeared to be a serious leg injury in the second half, while Manly's Jake Trbojevic exited just after half-time with concussion.

Even more frustrating for the group is that their predicament is largely their doing due to a lack of game management. But one of the youngest sides in the NRL should be better for the experience.

After four straight wins, Manly, who looked gone a month ago, are now only outside the top eight on for-and-against differential.

Sea Eagles winger Jorge Taufua was also the latest to be placed on report for a shoulder charge on Jack Wighton in the first half, while Raiders youngster Mitch Barnett went into the book for a swinging arm.

Manly coach Geoff Toovey conceded his team got out of jail but hopes his side can capitalise on its good fortune and continue its finals march.

"We've been on a high for probably a month now and I think it showed a bit today with the players, we'll take a lucky victory," Toovey said.

"I'm sure Ricky and the Raiders will be rueing on it and they probably thought they had a good chance of winning as well."

Toovey described Taufua's booking as "ridiculous", and said officials are jumping at shadows with the shoulder charge crackdown after Manly prop Willie Mason missed the match for an innocuous shot on South Sydney's Tom Burgess.

"That was ridiculous but I can understand the referees being nervous," Toovey said.

"They've been instructed by [NRL boss] David Smith for some reason, I suppose, to be very careful with it.

"The players are nervous and don't know what's going on. The refs are nervous and don't know what's going on.

"I dare say the officials don't really know what's going on. They just ran into each other but stranger things have happened, haven't they?"

MANLY SEA EAGLES 26 Jamie Lyon 2, Brett Stewart 2, Steve Matai tries; Lyon 3 goals) bt CANBERRA RAIDERS 24 (Paul Vaughan, Edrick Lee, Blake Austin, Jarrad Kennedy tries; Jarrod Croker 4 goals) at Canberra Stadium on Sunday. Crowd: 13,113. Referees: Matt Cecchin and David Munro.