The Canberra Raiders are proving everyone wrong, muscling their way to another tight victory when they beat the South Sydney Rabbitohs 18-12 on Saturday night.
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It was the sort of true green grit required to win premierships, and statistics prove Ricky Stuart's men are on the right path.
The Raiders' defensive record is the best per-game average since they won their last premiership in 1994, conceding just 15 points per match after 11 rounds of 2020.
Fans became used to turning up to Canberra Stadium thinking the scoreline could blowout, regardless of whether the Raiders would win or lose.
Those days are long gone. The Green Machine have conceded 165 points in their 11 games. It's not the best record in the competition, but it's setting a new mark in the capital.
The Raiders let in 15.58 points per match last year on their charge to their first grand final appearance in 25 years.
This year they're doing even better, albeit after just 11 rounds. They refused to wilt in the second half against the Rabbitohs, desperately protecting their line even when they lost Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad and Jordan Rapana.
The Rabbitohs had plenty of chances and the Raiders had to shuffle players around to cater for injuries. Nick Cotric played in the centres, on the wing and at fullback.
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"[The Rabbitohs] are unpredictable in their attack ... we gave them so much of football at our end of the field in the second half, it was a really courageous defensive effort," Stuart said.
Stuart has built a grinding machine, capable of opening up in attack when required and, more importantly, one that can shut down any team in the competition.
The 15-point average is impressive. But what's required to win a premiership? They conceded 13 points per game in 1989, 12 points in 1990 and 13 per match in 1994. They're getting closer every time they play.
INJURY WOES AGAIN
The Raiders will be sweating on more injury news on Sunday morning after Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad suffered a compound fracture and dislocation of his finger.
It's the first major back-line setback of the year, and the Raiders do have Rapana and Cotric who can fill the No. 1 role.
Curtis Scott could also come back into selection contention after missing the past two games, with reinforcements needed for a trip to Townsville.
Nicoll-Klokstad's exit paved the way for Harley Smith-Shields to make his NRL debut, becoming Raider No. 367. Smith-Shields, a Gungahlin junior, was the third player to make his debut in the past three weeks, joining Semi Valemei and Kai O'Donnell.
Valemei, the quiet Fijian flyer, scored his first try to put the Raiders ahead with 23 minutes to go.
He was on the spot when an Elliott Whitehead ricocheted into Valemei's hands, slamming the ball down to open up a 18-12 gap.
COTRIC'S ON A WING AND A PRAYER
Coach Ricky Stuart has shuffled his centre and wing pairings this season to try to find the right mix.
Nick Cotric moved to right centre before kick-off, pushing Jordan Rapana to the right wing and Semi Valemei to the left wing.
It paid off almost immediately, with Bulldogs-bound Cotric scoring the opener after just six minutes.
It was Cotric's sixth try of the season and the sixth time the Raiders had scored the first try of a game this year.
The good omen continued, the Raiders hanging on for a tense six-point win.
SON OF A GUN GETS HIS (PAPA) SHOT
Matty Johns is rugby league's funny man, combining laughs with analysis on Fox Sports. But the Newcastle Knights premiership winner was too busy chewing his fingernails to be able to crack a smile on Saturday night.
Johns' son Jack made his NRL debut in the 17th minute, when he was thrust into the action to replace Souths flyer Alex Johnston.
The first tackle went smoothly enough, but dad's message didn't make it down to the field for his first run.
Jack ran straight into the shoulder of Raiders beast Josh Papalii and went tumbling backwards.
The rookie was solid for the rest of the game, but his teammates will joke he should turn to uncle Andrew Johns, a rugby league Immortal, for ball-running advice next week.
FINALS FEELING
The niggle. The brutal hits. The intensity. If it wasn't for the coronavirus empty stands, you would have sworn it was a final in the capital.
It's been 10 months since 26,000 Raiders fanatics packed the stands for a preliminary final epic against the Rabbitohs and there's certainly no love lost between the teams.
The hits were just as hard as they were that night back in September, which sent the Raiders into their first grand final in 25 years and fans into rugby league delirium.
Points were also hard to come by, especially when the rain started tumbling down in the second half.
TRY OR NO TRY?
Dunamis Lui transformed into the biggest halfback in the NRL when he showed the deft-touch rarely associated with front-rowers, but in the end it counted for nothing.
Lui threw a sublime pass to Elliott Whitehead, who carved his way through the Rabbitohs' line to score what appeared to be a certain try.
It was sent to the bunker for review three minutes before half-time, and was denied because Ryan Sutton made contact with Damian Cook in the lead-up to Lui's pass.
You could argue Sutton's contact actually put Cook in a better position to make a tackle on Whitehead.
The counter argument is that taking Cook, the NSW No. 9, out of the play gave Lui extra time to weigh up the situation to hit his passing target. The correct answer? Maybe the bunker is flipping a coin to decide.
AT A GLANCE
CANBERRA RAIDERS 18 (Nick Cotric, Jarrod Croker, Semi Valemei tries; Jarrod Croker 3 goals) bt SOUTH SYDNEY RABBITOHS 12 (Dane Gagai, Adam Reynolds try; Adam Reynolds 2 goals) at Canberra Stadium on Saturday night. Referee: Ashley Klein. Crowd: 1500