The battle to reach the NRLW finals will go down to the last weekend of the regular season after Canberra thrashed North Queensland to keep its hopes alive.
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Despite copping some concerning injuries, the Raiders were never threatened against the Cowboys, taking a 22-0 lead at half-time, before their intensity waned late in the 34-12 win.
"You give any team a sniff, it'll come back to bite you, but I was super proud of the girls and their effort," Raiders coach Darrin Borthwick said post-game.
"I thought Zahara [Temara] and Emma [Barnes] were good for us. It was a really good performance."
The win keeps the Raiders fifth on the NRLW table, but their last-round clash with Gold Coast next weekend in Canberra will have a place in the finals at stake.
The Raiders, Broncos and Titans were all on 10 points behind ladder-leaders Newcastle and the second-placed Roosters, but Gold Coast's Sunday win over Parramatta moved them to outright third position.
It means the Raiders must beat the Titans by 12 points next Sunday to edge them out on for and against. A win by less than that will have Canberra hoping fourth-placed Brisbane, who boast a far superior points differential, loses its last-round clash against the Dragons. The Raiders will miss the finals with a loss to the Gold Coast.
"It's going to be massive," Raiders co-captain Simaima Taufa said of next week's do-or-die clash.
"It's our house, our home, and we're looking forward to ending the season the way we want to, and that's the aim of the game - to get to the finals series. It's going to be a really big occasion for us."
In-form five-eighth Zahara Temara once again had her fingerprints all over the victory against North Queensland, scoring a try and assisting two others as she continued to push her Dally M Medal case.
Canberra got the scoring under way through prop Sophie Holyman after she busted three tackles on her way to a try, before Temara skipped her way through a gaping hole and then converted for a 12-0 lead.
Shakiah Tungai scored another before bench hooker Emma Barnes capped the first-half onslaught via Temara, who gathered her own chip-and-chase and put her teammate through for 22-0.
Madison Bartlett, Monalisa Soliola and Kerehitina Matua crossed in the second half as Canberra piled on the points.
Cowboys second-rower Tiana Raftstrand-Smith and hooker Emma Manzelmann picked up late points for their side.
Canberra No.1 Apii Nicholls continued her fantastic season with 148 metres and eight tackle busts, but it was a string of one-on-one defensive efforts at the back that impressed the most.
The only major negatives from the Raiders' biggest win in their young history were a pair of serious-looking injuries.
English second-rower Hollie-Mae Dodd went down with a non-contact knee injury and was undergoing evaluation on her anterior cruciate ligament, while centre Mackenzie Wiki left the field with a leg complaint.
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"It's not looking good for Hol," Borthwick said of Dodd's injury.
"We'll get some scans, cross our fingers and hope for the best. I think Mackenzie Wiki will be OK.
"It's definitely a knee injury [for Dodd], without saying those three letters [ACL]."
CANBERRA RAIDERS 34 (Sophie Holyman, Zahara Temara, Shakiah Tungai, Emma Barnes, Madison Bartlett, Monalisa Soliola, Kerehitina Matua tries; Temara 3 goals) bt NORTH QUEENSLAND COWBOYS 12 (Tiana Raftstrand-Smith, Emma Manzelmann tries; Kirra Dibb 2 goals) at Robina Stadium, Gold Coast, on Sunday.
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