Corey Horsburgh's emotions spill over in Canberra Raiders' NRL clash with Parramatta Eels

Nobody can question Canberra Raiders firebrand Corey Horsburgh's passion but he could be due for a heart to heart with coach Ricky Stuart this week after emotion got the better of him in Sydney's west.

Horsburgh finished the night on crutches during the Raiders' heartbreaking 25-24 golden point loss to the Parramatta Eels at Western Sydney Stadium on Saturday.

The 22-year-old's foot was caught under Daniel Alvaro in a tackle late in the first half, but it was Eels back-rower Ryan Matterson he took exception to when he was on the ground.

Horsburgh shoved Matterson to find himself on the cusp of sparking a melee at the 33-minute mark.

The Raiders forward rose to his feet with a limp and pointed at Matterson in frustration as tears began to well in his eyes, before limping from the field and giving the bird to a handful of fans spread among the cardboard cut-outs in the stands.

Horsburgh continued to glare at fans as he made his way up the tunnel. Stuart was yet to speak to the fiery forward when he fronted media post-match, and as such didn't have a clear picture of the incident.

"We try to play physical, and it might frustrate other teams but we need to make sure it doesn't frustrate us," Eels coach Brad Arthur said.

Off-contract Raiders winger Nick Cotric has emerged as a target for the Canterbury Bulldogs as they hunt for a centre to bolster their backline.

Word in the capital is Cotric is best suited to the wing - and he showed another glimpse of his talent on the flank in his move back to the left outside Jarrod Croker this week.

The Raiders reshuffled the decks in search of an attacking spark and defensive resolve on the edges with Cotric and Jordan Rapana switching sides.

Rapana moved back to the right wing outside Curtis Scott - an edge which to date had been heavily exposed by opposition attacking raids.

Parramatta drew first blood on Croker and Cotric's side of the park through Matterson - but the Raiders winger had something special up his sleeve for a return serve.

Forward pass to Cotric aside, the winger put a kick back infield for Jack Wighton to put it on a platter for Elliott Whitehead to charge over.

But as Scott searches for form, is Cotric worth another shot at centre for the Raiders?

The NRL cast aside preliminary plans to shift the Raiders-Eels clash to Kogarah amid concern over the state of the playing surface at Western Sydney Stadium.

League officials cleared the surface as safe play on after Sydney Roosters Victor Radley and Sam Verrills both tore an anterior cruciate ligament at the venue on Friday night. It is understood the Roosters were set to lodge a complaint but withdrew.

Concerns about the state of the grass were raised and the Raiders and Eels were not allowed onto the ground for their pre-match warm-ups, and Parramatta playmaker Mitchell Moses suffered a calf injury midway through the contest.

But Arthur says Moses had a troublesome calf during the coronavirus-induced shutdown period.

"He'll need scans but he'll be out for a bit," Arthur said. "He had a bit of a calf complaint in the COVID period. It is what it is, the turf had nothing to do with it."

Before long there was a different problem to worry about for NRL officials.

Remember the Phantom Siren? The voice which could mimic the match day siren so well he had referees blowing half-time with 18 seconds left until the break? In Parramatta the bell to signal six again went off three times at random in the first half.

Talking turf, the Raiders are finally about to be on their own.

The Raiders' stint on the road has finally come to a close with the Green Machine set to host St George Illawarra at Canberra Stadium on Friday.

Gone are the weekly game day bus trips to and from Sydney, where the club was forced to play its home games in what the NRL dubbed a biosecurity measure.

Canberra players can find some normality in their game day routines, and their inconsistent run suggests it can't come quick enough.

"We're not the team we were last year, we'll never be that team, we can put that to rest," he said.

"We are not where we need to be as a team today. We will get a little bit of luck, we're not getting that at the moment."

AT A GLANCE

PARRAMATTA EELS 25 (Ryan Matterson, Ray Stone, Michael Jennings, Maika Sivo tries; Clint Gutherson 3, Mitchell Moses goals; Gutherson field goal) bt CANBERRA RAIDERS 24 (Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad 2, Josh Papalii, Elliott Whitehead tries; Jarrod Croker 4 goals) at Western Sydney Stadium. Referee: Ashley Klein. Crowd: 560.