Canberra Raiders confident of continuing NRL winning ways in Melbourne

All of those together seem like odd things to say out loud, especially after the past month of Green Machine stumbles and stutters.

How can a team capitulate against the Knights and then narrowly survive against the lowly Tigers (both games at home) and then go to Melbourne and outplay, outsmart and outwit a Craig Bellamy-coached team?

Some things in the NRL universe don't make sense. But ask any Raiders player about their recent record against the Storm and all of a sudden there's a pep in their step, despite an otherwise frustrating period.

And it comes with the stats to back it up, because when the Raiders beat the Storm in Melbourne in a knockout finals match last year, they became the only team in NRL history to beat the Storm five times in a row in Melbourne.

So whatever your fears have been in recent weeks, you need not worry. Because the Raiders live in a different world.

One where they scramble against the Knights, Tigers (twice), Warriors (twice), Dragons, Roosters and Titans, but still sit on the cusp of the top four and now face their road bunnies - the Storm.

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"It wasn't just that finals game [last year]," said hooker Zac Woolford when asked if the Raiders were confident of continuing the Melbourne trend.

"We were down there six weeks before that and we had a good win as well. So people say [Melbourne's] a daunting place to go, but we definitely love going down and travelling down there.

"For some reason, when we travel, we just seem to grow a leg. We're excited to get away together and enjoy each other's company, hopefully we have a really good performance."

Some players, like Emre Guler, don't even know what it's like to lose in Melbourne.

"It's a good challenge for us. Melbourne every year are one of the better teams in the comp and it's a good challenge for us," Guler said. "We get excited to go down there and show what we can do."

Woolford is serious when the Raiders enjoy getting away together. Last week, in an attempt to snap a run of disappointing home games, coach Ricky Stuart booked a hotel for his players the night before the game.

It's a tactic that has worked previously, and although there were some nervy moments, it worked again. The Raiders held on by the skin of their teeth to beat the Tigers.

It tipped the Raiders' record in Canberra this year to five wins and four losses, but it's on the road in Melbourne looms as a chance to send a bigger message to the rest of the competition.

The Raiders are fifth on the ladder, equal with the fourth-placed Storm and just two points behind the third-placed Warriors. Some, though, doubt the Raiders premiership credentials given they've failed to dominate lower-ranked teams.

"I'm not too sure about any of the media noise, I don't read that stuff," Guler said.

"For us, it's just coming in every day with a fresh head and a clear mind, and listening to Ricky ... [getting in the top 4] is something that we know we can do and that's what we want to do.

"Every team obviously wants to be in that top four, so I think if we tidy up a couple of things we can definitely be in there."

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