Newcastle Knights overrun Canberra Raiders in standalone NRLW clash

You would have seen why Canberra winger Madison Bartlett is regarded as one of the game's best finishers, why Newcastle fullback Tamika Upton is one of the NRLW's most unstoppable players and why 18-year-old halfback Jesse Southwell is the competition's future.

Upton and Southwell played starring roles as the Knights overturned a 10-0 half-time score line to claim a 20-12 win over the Raiders at Canberra Stadium on Saturday.

And you would have seen why giving Kippax Oval a facelift to give the Raiders NRLW side their own home ticks all the right boxes.

Fans were contained to the eastern side of Canberra Stadium but the few occupying a corporate box on the western side could still hear a Raiders chant ring across the ground - although you could have heard a pin drop when the Knights crossed the try line.

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"It was awesome. We even spoke about it when we came back out in that second half, we were just looking around and that's what we saw when we came back out, a sea of green," Raiders five-eighth Zahara Temara said. "We got a lot out of that. They always had our backs out there."

Even so, that the Raiders are targeting Kippax Oval - the home of the West Belconnen Warriors - as a new home ground for the club's NRLW side for standalone home games next year is the right call.

The Raiders Group has already invested in a new scoreboard for video replays and upgraded change rooms, but more work needs to be done to create space for broadcast cameras atop the Raiders Belconnen club and an upgraded commentary box.

The traditionalists might prefer a move to Seiffert Oval, if not for nostalgia then for its ability to cater for bigger crowds. Regardless, a smaller venue than the 25,000-seat Canberra Stadium for standalone NRLW games makes sense if the desire is to create a better atmosphere and slash some costs.

A two-game skid now has the Raiders outside the top four after the Brisbane Broncos beat Cronulla to move into fourth. The Knights move to first, knocking the Sydney Roosters off the top of the barn, if only for a day.

"We're learning lessons and we're learning them fast, but we're still in this with a good shot," Raiders coach Darrin Borthwick said.

"We've got a really good team down here but we're probably just lacking that little bit of experience in how to close a game out. That's what Newcastle did really well, they put girls on in the second half who knew how to slow the game down and win those pressure moments.

"There's a lot of belief in this team now. No one gave us a chance today, I can tell you that."

Raiders winger Bartlett scored a double in the opening half to give the Raiders a 10-0 advantage at the break. If Newcastle were searching for inspiration, they only had to think back to the day they overturned a 12-point deficit against Brisbane a fortnight ago.

The Knights struck back via English five-eighth Georgia Roche before Upton laid the platform for Sheridan Gallagher to score their second. When Southwell gave Newcastle the lead less than two minutes later, the silence was deafening.

Southwell's boot extended Newcastle's lead to eight points with little more than 10 minutes to go, which would prove more than enough to send the reigning premiers to the top of the table.

"When we get our opportunities, we've got to take them," Newcastle coach Ron Griffiths said.

"I still feel like we're a touch clunky, and we do a lot of work on that. I just think for us it's about spring boarding off our defence and making sure that's the best part of our game.

"We can't let the sight of what we've achieved here be lost on us, or the magnitude of it. [Canberra] got beat last week by Brisbane and they led early on, so no doubt their review on Tuesday night would have been a solid review and they would have been up for this one. Whenever you're playing a team that has won the grand final the previous year before, you know you've got to get up for it.

"Further to that, they haven't been beaten at home. We flew out [on Friday] afternoon and played an 11 o'clock game on a Saturday morning with a great supporter base of Canberra supporters here. Previous weeks to that, we've broken the NRLW crowd record two weeks in a row.

"The mental resolve our group showed to turn up here this morning and do what they did, it's a testament to the Newcastle way and the grit they show."

AT A GLANCE

NRLW round seven: NEWCASTLE KNIGHTS 20 (Georgia Roche, Sheridan Gallagher, Jesse Southwell tries; Jesse Southwell 4 goals) bt CANBERRA RAIDERS 12 (Madison Bartlett 2 tries; Zahara Temara 2 goals) at Canberra Stadium.

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