The Raiders must regroup quickly to face the strong Cronulla Sharks in NRL semi-finals.
The Canberra Raiders need to mentally and physically regroup if they want to prolong their season against the well-performing Cronulla Sharks in the first NRL semi-final on Saturday evening.
Last weekend, the Raiders thought they had secured victory in their qualifying final against the Brisbane Broncos not just once, but three times. However, a late field goal by Ben Hunt in the 94th minute dashed their hopes, resulting in a loss that not only ended their week off but also forced them to compete against Cronulla on a tight six-day turnaround.
This situation was always a potential risk that coach Ricky Stuart acknowledged when the team requested to play on Sunday afternoon in the first week of the finals, knowing that a loss would lead to a quick turnaround for the next game.