Canberra and Newcastle are at GIO Stadium on Sunday afternoon with form lines showing just one win in the last five rounds, but the full picture of where these teams are may be lost.
Led by the stoic efforts of Joseph Tapine and Jack Wighton, the Raiders can be considered an unfortunate point to have fallen by eight to the Eels, six to the Roosters and six to the Broncos over the past three weeks.
Before that, Ricky Stuart’s men were excellent at eliminating the Rabbitohs in Dubbo and the Sharks in the County, but in the end, they still faced off in Sunday’s showdown. with only two Premiership points more than the Novocastrians.
The Knights were defeated at home by Penrith in what is quickly becoming too familiar a sight for Newcastle fans, having been beaten 197-28 in their last five games at McDonald Jones Stadium.
As such, coach Adam O’Brien can take the opportunity to hit the road this weekend, having won his last two away games against the Bulldogs (in round 10) and the Warriors (in round 12). Newcastle have not lost to Canberra since O’Brien took over in 2020, but each of those results came from the country’s capital.
Looking ahead to the 11th and 12th place rounds respectively, he is starting to get closer to the essential territory for both sides to keep in touch with the top eight and a place in the Telstra Premiership final at the end of ‘year.
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Until next time
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The Rundown
Team news
Raiders: Jack Wighton (COVID-19) is down, replaced by Matt Frawley in the halves. Jordan Rapana returns from the penalty spot with James Schiller coming on the bench. Corey Harawira-Naera passes to 18th man. Josh Papalii returns to the starting lineup after leaving the bench last week after his engagements with Origin.
Gentlemen: Adam Clune is a late inclusion, replacing Jake Clifford in the halves. Leo Thompson will start with Jacob Saifiti on the bench. Kalyn Ponga (concussion protocols) will play. Kurt Mann moves to the starting lineup on the block with Mitch Barnett going to the second row and Lachlan Fitzgibbon playing in the reserve on Sunday.
Key match
Joseph Tapine v. David Klemmer: While their respective teams may not be doing their best, it’s hard to question the commitment or effort put in by Joseph Tapine or David Klemmer week in and week out as the two collectors continue to disappear in the middle. No player has made more contact meters this year than Tapine (964 m), who also ranks fourth in the download competition (26), while the international kiwi leads all strikers in race meters with 2,245. Since returning from injury in round 6, Klemmer has been equally vital to his team, averaging just under 145 yards per game as he completes his innings with an efficiency rate of 97.1 percent. . In what could be a free-flowing contest, the vanguard group he can soon overcome will be key to preparing his team for victory on Sunday. Look for Tapine and Klemmer as the ones trying to get this on each side of the ball.
Statistical attack
After scoring the lowest number of points for any team this season, Newcastle are also heading into this week’s game with the fewest breaks, post-contact yards, touchdowns and rushing yards, a bleak picture for Knights fans so far this year.
But they overshadow the Raiders in terms of discipline, which could be the key to Sunday’s victory. Canberra finished third with the most penalties (92) and made the most handling errors (134) of any team, while the number of failed and ineffective entries is also significantly higher than the Knights, who are in seventh place. in ineffective (compared to Newcastle in the 14th) and eighth in lost tackles (compared to the 12th).