The well-oiled Green Machine are setting themselves for a premiership charge, and their ninth consecutive win has put them on the verge of a remarkable slice of Canberra Raiders history.
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The Raiders beat the Manly Sea Eagles 44-30 at Brookvale Oval on Saturday in the highest-scoring game of the NRL season to tick another box for their premiership credentials.
The Raiders hit cruise control when they led 38-16 as Manly launched a spirited fightback – led by a Tom Trbojevic hat-trick – to try to send legend Jamie Lyon out on a high, while Canberra half Aidan Sezer left the field late in the second half with ice on his shoulder.
But the Raiders did enough for a 14-point win to secure their place in the top three and they're still alive in the battle for a top-two finish on the ladder for the first time in 19 years.
Irrespective of whether they finish second or third, if they beat the Wests Tigers in their last regular-season game they will become the first team in Canberra's history to win 10 games in a row in a season.
It's a remarkable statistic given the Raiders boasted some of the greatest players in the game in their glory years of the late 1980s and early 1990s, including Mal Meninga, Laurie Daley, Ricky Stuart and Bradley Clyde.
Canberra have won nine games in a row just three times in their 35-year history and, for Raiders fans looking for an omen, here it is: the three years were 1989, 1994 and 1995 and they won premierships in two of those seasons.
If the Raiders finish second on the ladder, they will be rewarded with a home semi-final in the first week of the play-offs.
"If [second spot] happens, it happens. If it doesn't, we're just very proud of the fact we're in the semi-finals this year," said Raiders coach Stuart.
"I'm very happy with the way the boys have really developed and progressed this season, that's been the highlight for me.
"They've kept working hard and committing to the cause and we find ourselves in the good part of the table. Whether we get a home semi-final or not is neither here nor there for us. It's just heads down and trying to get back to work."
Sam Williams was solid in his first NRL game since April after being called on to replace Blake Austin when the star playmaker broke his hand at training during the week.
Prop Paul Vaughan scored a try 10 minutes into his first game in six weeks, but the Raiders ebbed and flowed between sparkling form and some disjointed play when they relaxed towards the end of the match.
Sezer is expected to be fit for the clash against the Tigers after a knock to his shoulder while it remains unclear if Austin will be able to return before the season ends.
"We couldn't close it out until the end there and Manly were coming strong," said Josh Papalii. "We're not looking at the streak we're on at the moment, that can go downhill. We just have to keep improving as a team and we've got another tough game against the Tigers. It's getting exciting."
The pre-game hurdle of Austin's broken hand was a distant memory when right-side destroyers Jordan Rapana and Joey Leilua scored three and two tries respectively to spoil Manly's farewell party for one of the game's most respected players in Lyon.
Lyon did a lap of honour before kick-off in his farewell to Brookvale after 294 NRL games and a career littered with highlights.
But it was the Raiders who bounced into the contest when errors opened the door for a lime-green assault on the northern beaches.
Halfback Daly Cherry-Evans lamented a slow start despite Manly rallying late to try to send Lyon out in the best possible way.
"The Raiders are too good of a side to give them a lead like that. We were playing for a lot of pride and that didn't show at times, but we played at the end like we wanted to," Cherry-Evans said.
The Raiders struck first through Vaughan and Rapana pounced on a loose ball to run 90 metres and open up a 12-0 lead.
Manly closed within two points but just minutes before half-time, Rapana was at his best again when he darted through the defence to give the Raiders breathing space.
The big turning point came 60 seconds after the break when Manly were denied a try because Brayden Williame threw a forward pass to Tom Trbojevic on their charge to the line.
Less than a minute later the Raiders drove the dagger into Manly hearts when Leilua opened up the defence and ran 40 metres to score.
"We know when you come to Manly it's not a pretty game or a pretty win, but we got the two points and we'll go again," said skipper Jarrod Croker.
"We did drop off ... we probably have to handle that a bit better but we're getting stronger each week."
AT A GLANCE
NRl round 25: CANBERRA RAIDERS 44 (Jordan Rapana 3, Joey Leilua 2, Paul Vaughan, Edrick Lee, Jack Wighton tries; Jarrod Croker 6 conversions) bt MANLY SEA EAGLES 26 (Tom Trbojevic 3, Jake Trbojevic, Daly Cherry-Evans, Frank Winterstein tries; Matthew Wright 3 conversions) at Brookvale Oval on Saturday. Referees: Ben Cummins and Tim Roby. Crowd: 11,137.
