Canberra V Cronulla Preview

Rugby League

Canberra v Cronulla Preview

Crunch Sports Staff – 10 Mar 2021

Raiders fans expecting their team to pick up where they left off in 2010 could be in for a shock this Sunday when the Green Machine tackles Cronulla at Canberra Stadium.
The effect of Terry Campese’s loss has yet to be felt by the Raiders and he was a crucial figure in the team’s rise to the finals last season. New halfback Matt Orford has been under an injury cloud in the lead-up to this game and he has yet to establish a combination with Josh McCrone, who has had minimal experience in the five-eighth role at NRL level.
Canberra were slow starters in 2010 and in fact spent the first four months hovering in the lower half of the competition ladder.
The Sharks have been written off by all and sundry in the pre-season but opposition teams could pay a heavy price for under-estimating their forward pack. They will field an all-international back row (Paul Gallen, Anthony Tupou and Jeremy Smith), while Kade Snowden and Luke Douglas are highly rated up front.
The Raiders should have Cronulla’s measure out wide but the confrontation of rising fullback stars Josh Dugan and Nathan Gardner will be a feature of the match.
Look to a Canberra/Cronulla result in the Half/Full Double and consider the value of a Cronulla win by 1-12 points.
First Tryscoring favourites include Josh Dugan, Daniel Vidot or Joel Thompson for Canberra or Nathan Gardner, Dean Collis or Colin Best for the Sharks.You might also be interested in: