Canberra Raiders face biggest test of the season against Cronulla Sharks

CANBERRA have been great entertainment this season but if they leave the game open against Cronulla, they will get punished, writes MATTHEW JOHNS.

THERE was more than a small dose of reality in the way Ricky Stuart addressed the media after his Canberra Raiders had demolished Souths Sydney 54-4 to climb to third position.

Experienced coaches see the fickle nature of success.

Ricky recognises it more than most. A premiership in his first year, and grand final appearances in the following two.

After an amazing start to his coaching career Stuart has had his fair share of difficult times.

That’s why, at the press conference, when asked about his side’s title prospects, he spoke of two things.

Firstly he spoke of “timing”. That good fortune of playing your best football at the right time.

Getting your “timing” right. Clubs pay strength and conditioners, medical experts and dietitians good money to try and capture that timing. Truth is, while you can try and manage players’ workloads and energy levels, a team’s ability to roll into September fit, fresh and confident is in the lap of the football Gods.

In the next sentence, Ricky paused before saying, “Things can turn very nasty on you very quickly.”

Ain’t that the truth!

Sometimes winning feels almost effortless. You go out there, you play, you win. You don’t need to over analyse it, winning feels easy ... until suddenly it isn’t.

What is that? What exactly is it, that at one moment makes winning feel so effortless, and the next, as difficult as eating soup with a fork?

The fickle nature of confidence I suppose, and at the moment the Raiders are bubbling with that confidence.

The Canberra Raiders have provided enormous entertainment in 2016. They move the ball around beautifully and play a style of football that provides them with a point of difference.

I love the fact that they have looked beyond the copycat, watered-down Melbourne Storm style of football, which too many teams still try to employ.

Their two halves really challenge the defence. Blake Austin, a strong unorthodox playmaker who thinks run first, pass second, while While Aiden Sezer is looking more and more like a natural No. 7 with every passing week.

Their English dummy-half Josh Hodgson is a gem. He’s an old-school playmaker in a world of athletes.

The right side wing/centre duo of Jordan Rapana and Joey Leilua is one of the most lethal attacking combinations in the NRL.

All that said, the key to Canberra is their pack of forwards. Such is the quality and depth of the pack, Stuart can’t find a place for usual automatic selections Shaun Fensom and Paul Vaughan, who I rate as a representative class footballer. Jeff Lima can’t even get a sniff of a start.

Yes they are great to watch, however part of the entertainment of the Raiders has been their propensity to give opposition sides a fighting chance.

They’ve played their fair share of golden point classics and last minute cliffhangers against sides they really should have put away earlier, or been more ruthless with this year.

Last week’s win over Souths contained more of the balance Stuart would have been looking for.

Against Souths, the Raiders were able to exert lots of energy with their attack but then transition, and defensively absorb anything the Bunnies could throw at them.

That can be a particularly difficult thing to do, particularly for an attack-minded team like the Raiders.

So how far can the Raiders go? Well Stuart and the club will be keen to talk down all the hype and excitement but the bottom line is this, you don’t find yourself third on the ladder this close to September and decide a finals spot, or even a top 4 finish, will suffice.

How far the Raiders have come and how far they can go will be clearer after these next two games. Saturday night the Sharks, the following week the Storm.

The Raiders last met the Sharks in round seven, where Cronulla belted them 40-16. I guarantee Saturday will be nothing like that.

While this shapes as a challenge for the Raiders, there are significant challenges that need to be addressed by the Sharks also.

The Sharks need an adjustment in their game and in their attitude. When you go on a long winning run, there are certain things that start to creep into your game, which leads you to defeat.

The Sharks are a super talented attacking football team that is starting to trust that talent too much.

The Cronulla Sharks have always had the ability to graft and grind as the major part of their football DNA.

The emergence of a number of exciting and young attack-minded players has complimented this beautifully, but in the past month they have started to lose the balance.

To me, the Sharks at the moment, appear too focused on blowing opposition teams away with ball movement, come September that’s not a successful formula.

For the Sharks to go all the way they need to start rediscovering pride in their defensive line and being more ruthless, rather than relying on attacking talent.

Likewise I’m sure Shane Flanagan will be looking for greater discipline and self-control from members of his team, particularly Andrew Fifita.

The Sharks are enjoying a fabulous season, but as this week’s opposition coach said in last Sunday’s press conference; “Things can turn very nasty on you, very quickly.”

Originally published as Canberra Raiders face biggest test of the season against Cronulla Sharks