It remains an unlikely yet possible scenario because, put simply, three does not go into two.

The Manly Warringah Sea Eagles have drawn level with the Raiders and South Sydney on 30 competition points thanks to their thrilling 18-14 win at Canberra Stadium on Sunday.

The Green Machine have a favourable run home - first they meet the Cronulla Sharks on the road before hosting the New Zealand Warriors in round 25.

The Sharks will be desperate to rise to the occasion in Paul Gallen's final home game which makes a win at Shark Park no mean feat.

But a favourable points differential will give Canberra the inside running en route to securing a vital second chance in the finals.

Ricky Stuart thought it was a try. Jack Wighton thought it was a try.

The boos of the bulk of the fans in the stands at Canberra Stadium suggest they certainly thought it was a try.

"But it's no try at the moment. I won't be crying over that," Stuart said.

In an NRL top four battle punctuated by 26 penalties, it was another call from the chief whistleblowers that could haunt the Raiders.

Canberra five-eighth Wighton looked certain to have scored the opening try but was ruled to have lost control of the ball as he grounded it.

There was no clear separation and it would likely have been ruled a try had it gone upstairs as such - but the fact remains it didn't.

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"I've seen it a couple of times. I'd like to think I am pretty balanced in my opinion when it gets to those things," Stuart said.

"Like with BJ [Leilua dropping knees into Reuben Garrick to give away an eight-point try], yeah, that was a penalty.

"But it looked like [Wighton] still grounded it. It's no try at the moment. I won't be crying over that. They've got a little bit of time off over the next day and a half, and we've had a big month of footy.

"We're really working hard at balancing their prep so they're up for it physically and mentally. We'll get back into it and they'll learn from it."

Few would have been as happy with the bumper crowd figure as the journalist that promised he would eat his hat if Canberra fans didn't turn up in droves.

The 20,265-strong crowd was the Raiders' biggest for a regular season match at Canberra Stadium since 2010.

It will almost certainly deliver the Green Machine their highest average attendance figures since 1995 - and they still have one game up their sleeve before opening a finals campaign.

Couple that with a bundle of green sausages on offer at the local butcher and there is proof the fans believe the return of the halcyon days may be upon us.

"It's great. They were going to get a good game of footy and they got that," Stuart said.

"I'm sure there would be a few disappointed supporters as well but we're still in the fight."

Sea Eagles coach Des Hasler has a pair of fresh headaches to contend with after Joel Thompson suffered a suspected broken arm and Moses Suli left the field with an ankle injury.

The good news? Curtis Sironen is set to return for a clash with Melbourne this week.

"If you want to go anywhere in this competition I believe you have got to have that ability to hang in there and hang in there and hang in there," Hasler said.

"They really wanted to work hard as far as winning back the respect. But at the end of the day the journey for them has been hard work and it is not over yet."