Canberra Raiders captain Jarrod Croker's reaction to his 300th NRL game

He never anticipated how big his 300^th NRL game would be and by the end the Canberra Raiders just seemed to run out of legs.

They couldn't go with a New Zealand Warriors side in the second half after the visitors were atypically resolute in the first, running away 36-14 victors at Canberra Stadium on Friday night.

In a sign the occasion gets the better of teams in these massive milestones more often than not - of the 18 times there's been a 300^th game for a one-club player, they've only won six times.

After a promising first half where the Green Machine had all the ball but just couldn't find a way through the Warriors defence, the Auckland-based side ran rampant in the second - finding plenty of holes in the middle of the Raiders' defensive line.

Despite all that, it was still a moment that was going to stay with Croker.

He wanted to cherish the hundreds of interviews and photoshoots he'd had and all the excitement around the game from family, friends, strangers - everyone.

Especially since injury threatened to stop him ever getting there, joining Jason Croker as the only two Raiders ever to make it to 300.

"I'm probably more proud now to be a Raider than I ever have been," Croker said.

"The fans don't deserve the result, but we've got to give the Warriors credit.

"I've seen how much time and effort's gone into this week - from every single person downstairs and upstairs at Raiders HQ, family and friends, and the boys - they know how much I love them.

"I'll never forget this week ever. So grateful to be a Raider. The boys are as upset as me."

Croker joked the milestone had even made social media a positive place to be.

And he knew how hard his teammates had fought for him against a strong Warriors side.

Croker pointed to their line speed and their desire to keep "belting blokes" right til the end.

"It wasn't hard to stay up [emotionally] at all," he said.

"Our first 40 minutes we might not have capitalised and might not have got luck with those errors, but geez we were flying off the line.

"They didn't stop trying, they didn't stop with their line speed, they didn't stop trying to belt blokes."

Raiders coach Ricky Stuart felt sorry for Croker's teammates, knowing they'd given everything to try and get their captain the win.

Perhaps that had even been the problem - they'd tried too hard and were pushing things rather than letting them happen.

But he said he'd rather they had the massive week of hype and lost than had a quiet week and won.

Stuart felt it was a valuable experience for the young players around the club - whether it be those just making their way in the NRL or the younger ones below that.

It not only gave them an insight into what a big final-like week was about, but also what made the Raiders tick - and how they celebrated their own.

"This week has been an unbelievable example of what we're about," Stuart said.

"Those younger players that we've got in our group have enjoyed the week with Jarrod.

"By no means the week has had anything to do with our performance because I said pre-game I was really happy with our preparation this week.

"If you can't handle those weeks there's no use trying to play a semi-final ... or a grand final.

"So it's good practice for those young blokes. But it's [also] shown those young blokes what this club's about.

"What this club's about is blokes like Jarrod. That's why we're so proud of him."

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