Jack-in-the-box springs Raiders from trouble

The Bulldogs missed a golden opportunity to move off the bottom of the table after they squandered a healthy lead.

Jack Wighton rescued the Raiders with two second-half solo tries Picture: Getty Images

The Bulldogs missed a golden opportunity to move off the bottom of the table after they squandered a healthy lead to go down to the Raiders 34-20 at GIO Stadium.

Kieran Foran had a huge match for the visitors in the first half as they headed to the sheds with a 20-12 advantage, but his opposite number Jack Wighton stole the show with two tries in six minutes to turn the game on its head.

Canberra coach Ricky Stuart was adamant during the week that his side wouldn’t have one eye on next week’s showdown with the Roosters, but it looked like they’d slipped on the proverbial banana peel when they leaked two tries to end the half.

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Things got worse when Tom Starling was sent to the sin bin four minutes into the second half, but that’s when Wighton stepped up with two powerful solo tries to help his side move to 22 competition points, level with the Roosters ahead of the grand final rematch that could decide who gets into the top four.

Caretaker coach Steve Georgallis must be out of answers after he watched the Bulldogs forget how to defend as they meekly surrendered another handy lead to remain anchored to the foot of the table with just two wins in 2020.

It’s a phrase that most coaches dish out in the pre-season, and the words proved to be true for the Green Machine on Sunday. Having conceded two late tries to end the first half, the Raiders were reduced to 12 men with Starling off and then lost Curtis Scott to a left foot injury moments later. Instead of crumbling, rookie Matt Timoko came on and earned a penalty with his first touch, and from there, they piled on three tries in 11 minutes in a show of strength that would have pleased their coach. Starling would later return to complete a double of his own.

If Foran isn’t the answer, then perhaps the Bulldogs are asking the wrong questions. Reports suggest the off-contract five-eighth is unwanted next year and is set to leave Belmore after three injury-ravaged seasons, even though the 30-year-old is playing exceptional footy and has strung together 13 games in a row in a sign he is capable of returning to his best.

He was at the centre of everything the Bulldogs did in attack, laying on two first-half tries and kickstarting Kerrod Holland’s contender for try of the year. The club’s young halves have struggled this season and there won’t be any relief until later in 2021 when recruit Blake Green returns from a knee injury.

Perhaps what sums up Canterbury’s struggles in 2020 was the wasted captain’s challenge inside three minutes. With just two minutes and 39 seconds gone, fullback Will Hopoate implored his skipper to contest a knock-on that he thought had been stripped. It took one replay for the Bunker to dismiss the it, making it the earliest incorrect challenge of the season.

NCA Newswire