As the ball sails between the posts and into the Monty Porter Stand, with it goes the pressure that has been weighing him down.

Sezer hit three clutch field goals to steal a 15-14 golden point triumph over the Cronulla Sharks in a pulsating shootout on Sunday.

It books the Raiders a place in the NRL's top four. It shatters Paul Gallen's hopes of a fairytale farewell at a packed out Shark Park.

And it certainly doesn't surprise Raiders skipper Jarrod Croker.

"I've always said, I've never seen anyone strike them so well," Croker said.

"Seze practices week in, week out on his field goals. He copped a fair bit in that first year he was here, he hit the post a lot and was just missing.

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"To see him kick three under pressure was really pleasing."

Sezer's match-winning strike is a fitting postscript, but to overlook the moments that gave Canberra a sniff would be a disservice.

For the kick that sends the specks of green in the 18,985-strong crowd into raptures is far removed from Sezer's first kick of the game.

That kick came barely 12 metres out from Canberra's line, deep inside their own red zone as a rampant Cronulla outfit signalled their intention in the opening minutes.

The late withdrawal of Sharks playmaker Shaun Johnson due to a quadriceps injury mattered little as Cronulla drew first blood.

Before long Bronson Xerri had split Canberra's defence and found Jayden Brailey looming on his inside to extend the margin before Ronaldo Mulitalo bagged his second.

Canberra's saving grace was the misguided boot of Sharks playmaker Kyle Flanagan, whose three missed conversions kept Canberra in the game. So too did the second half absence of Josh Dugan after failing a head injury assessment.

Who else but Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad would get the Raiders on the board, the fullback who rolled the dice in his move across the Tasman that has emerged as one of the game's premier custodians.

"His energy is infectious and he is always working for his teammates. That's all you can ask for from your teammates," Sezer said.

But trailing by six, the Raiders still needed something more than Nicoll-Klokstad and the herculean effort of John Bateman that Sezer jokes is simply not impressive anymore - it's just par for the course.

So Croker swoops on a ball in his own in-goal. If he gets tackled, the Sharks earn a repeat set. If he finds his way out, he runs 80 metres before Nick Cotric scores on the next play.

As Raiders back-rower Elliott Whitehead walks past and calls out "make sure you ask about his break", it's clear which option Croker took.

"How'd it look?," Croker laughed.

"I did feel like I was going alright until I got to about halfway, and then I went 'ah, my legs are gone here'. I saw on screen that [Josh] Morris was coming and he is pretty quick for an old boy.

"I'm just glad to get the points just after it, but I wasn't really happy with having to kick that goal, just quietly."

His legs, if only for those few moments, were as weary as could be. Though he would nail the conversion and tie up the scores.

Much like Sezer nailed every field goal attempt to put Canberra ahead three times as he and Chad Townsend went toe-to-toe.

"Once you knock one over, you're like 'I can do it again'," Sezer said.

"I was very confident, they were coming off the boot pretty nice. The third one, you could see how much it meant to the boys.

"At the Titans I was pretty confident. Over the first few years at Canberra I missed some opportunities and the pressure mounted.

"As soon as I punched that one over, in the back of my mind I thought 'it makes that top four a little bit easier'."

AT A GLANCE

NRL round 24: CANBERRA RAIDERS 15 (Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, Nick Cotric tries; Jarrod Croker 2 goals; Aidan Sezer 3 field goals) bt CRONULLA SHARKS 14 (Ronaldo Mulitalo 2, Jayden Brailey tries; Chad Townsend 2 field goals) at Shark Park.