The Canberra Raiders have not only propelled themselves into finals contention, but the top-four conversation as well — made more visible since the NRL finally stripped the Parramatta Eels of points for their salary-cap infringements. The Raiders' 26-12 win against the third-placed North Queensland Cowboys puts them just one point outside the top four and third spot. They go into the bye knowing they are perfectly placed for a run home to the finals, which they'll be hoping is their first finals campaign since 2012.
Left edge, right edge
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Has the Raiders' left edge gone past the right one in potency? Early in the season the right-edge pairing of Jordan Rapana and Joey Leilua was almost scoring at will. And while Rapana scored a brilliant match-winner last week against the Newcastle Knights, it's probably been the left edge in recent weeks that's looking the most threatening. Jarrod Croker has scored four tries in the last three games, while both of Wighton's tries against the Cowboys came raiding down the left edge. It'll please Raiders coach Ricky Stuart knowing he has points on both sides, giving him the freedom to target particular teams down their weakest edge.
Sezer is a Canberra Milk kid
Aidan Sezer's kicking game is really starting to kick into gear for the Canberra Raiders. He switched between the high bomb and taking advantage of the greasy Canberra Stadium surface with some worm-burners, one of which was perfectly targeted at the Canberra Milk goalpost pads in the first half. It skidded into the massive pads, leaving Cowboys fullback Lachlan Coote stranded on the wrong side of the upright as the ball bounced into the arms of Canberra hooker Josh Hodgson for the home team's second try. He also showed he has a running game in his armoury, with a delightful step to score the decider late in the second half after they'd weathered the Cowboys storm.
Boyd by Paulo
How scary can Shannon Boyd and Junior Paulo become? The pair of props were a big reason behind the Raiders' early dominance against the Cowboys, with both hungry for work. Every time either one of them got the ball, Canberra was guaranteed to get its set off to a flying start with metres guaranteed. If their 120-plus kilogram frames weren't enough, they're only 23 and 22, respectively. That means they could be terrorising Raiders' opponents for years to come. It was noticeable when they were given a breather the Cowboys worked their way back into the game and started to dominate the back end of the first half. Raiders coach Ricky Stuart has been switching up his front row combinations in recent weeks, sometimes using Boyd and Paulo together, while others he's opted to split them up. Will he settle on one pairing or continue his horses for courses approach?
Chudleigh's happy return
Bungendore boy Josh Chudleigh had the perfect homecoming at Canberra Stadium, scoring a brilliant try in his NRL debut on the ground he used to play junior football on. He scooted away out of dummy-half to score just minutes into the second half to bring the Cowboys back within two points of the Raiders to make it well and truly game on. Cowboys coach Paul Green was "really pleased" for pleased for his young hooker. "He's a good kid, he's been working hard now for a couple of years, he's come through our under-20s," Green said. "He really took his opportunity tonight. I thought he played really well, [it was] a great try he scored. It showed a fair bit of guts there to back himself and to come up with a try from that play, so I was really pleased for Chuds."
