There was once a gentler Raiders anthem.
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No doubt the lines of "The Mighty Green Machine" will roar out from the ANZ stadium in Sydney on Sunday.
But some will remember a softer time. The original anthem was much less aggressive.
"Should we win, should we lose, we'll be still flying high!"
That's what they used to sing in contrast to today's: "We are the Mean Machine. We hit them hard so they see green!"
"We are the Canberra Raiders," as the original anthem was called, was written by Jeff Gallimore who played in a popular Canberra folk band called Saga.
We are the Canberra Raiders from the Capital Territory The bangs are waiting, there's no hesitation, we'll be striving for victory Should we win, should we lose, we'll be still flying high And raise our banners to the sky and be part of the Raiders teams
- The original Raiders Anthem
He told The Canberra Times he was approached by the Raiders management when the Raiders had just joined - been accepted in - what was then the Sydney Rugby League - the big time.
The club's executives felt they needed an anthem to match their status - what Mr Gallimore said was a "rousing song for the supporters".
He said he hedged his bets on victory when he wrote the words because "the expectations were for the Raiders to initially struggle to win games so I added the lyrics 'should we win, should we lose, we'll still be flying high'."
And the first season was not successful.
The Raiders won four out of the 26 games but all four victories were at the Seiffert Oval in Queanbeyan where the anthem he wrote was played "so maybe the playing of the Canberra Raiders Song at those home games played a small part in achieving those early wins".
For the recording, Mr Gallimore called in another popular local ensemble, the Franklyn B Paverty band - a five piece outfit, with a combination of guitars, banjo, fiddle and mandolin.
And then he decided to big up the sound even more by adding the Duntroon Military Band.
But it was still basically a ballad in contrast to today's thumping rock anthem, with its warlike lyrics: "Fearsome men from the ACT. Don't try try and stop those men in green cos they'll hit yuh, hit yuh, hit yuh and you'll see green!"
"The original anthem was like one of those AFL ditties," said Frank Nizynski who is still involved with the Franklyn B Paverty Band.
"It sounded a bit old-fashioned. It came from that era," he said.
Which one does he prefer - the original or the current anthem?
"I prefer the new one," Mr Nizynski said. "It's more gutsy. It's not as flowery or sweet."
But his verdict is not unanimous.
Pam Kearins and Ellie Mowlam are life-long friends, one slightly older than 80, the other slightly younger. They went to the first Raiders game and they are energised by the big final on Sunday. They have green dyed hair.
They can - and did - sing both versions as they sat in the sunshine outside their homes in Kambah.
Which one did they prefer, the first or the latest?
"The first one. I just like it," said the two of them together. "It's not brutal. It's more gentle. It's catchier. That's why we like it."
We're the bad and mean, Green Machine Fearsome men from the ACT Don't try and stop these men in green Because we'll hit ya, hit ya, hit ya And you'll see green
- Chorus, The Mighty Green Machine
Why, then, did the Raiders change their anthem? As the 80s turned into the 90s, sport was becoming more commercial. It became about television razzmatazz.
And musical tastes changed. Bush ballads faded and rock got louder.
According to Des Byrne, the Raiders' marketing manager from 1987 to 1991, the club came to feel that the old song had passed its time. "It was a bit dull", he said.
The club commissioned another one and wanted the green of the team emphasised. They wanted the lyrics to hit the phrase "Green Machine" hard.
"It was just a little bit quicker. It was a bit more modern," said Mr Byrne who, by the way, has a Manly tattoo on his left buttock (the place and team, not the masculine nature). It was put there when he was in the navy a long time ago. He is now a Raiders fan through and through.
The new Raiders anthem, he felt, was "like a call to arms. The words hit you. It was a touch aggressive and it had a bit to say: 'we were challenging people'."
They tried it out on the fans singing it on a bus and they loved it, said the marketing manager.
The Raiders chairman of the time, John McIntyre, said the old song was more like a ballad whereas the current one was for people of all shapes and sizes.
He told The Canberra Times that he liked the current version.
But does he sing it?
"I haven't sung since 1954 when I got an honourable mention in the National Eisteddfod as a boy soprano."
Steve Evans
Steve Evans is a reporter on The Canberra Times. He's been a BBC correspondent in New York, London, Berlin and Seoul and the sole reporter/photographer/paper deliverer on The Glen Innes Examiner in country New South Wales. "All the jobs have been fascinating - and so it continues."
Steve Evans is a reporter on The Canberra Times. He's been a BBC correspondent in New York, London, Berlin and Seoul and the sole reporter/photographer/paper deliverer on The Glen Innes Examiner in country New South Wales. "All the jobs have been fascinating - and so it continues."
