Canberra Raiders News

The NRL season nears conclusion; playoff placements hinge on crucial upcoming matches.

LeagueNews.co

The 2025 NRL regular season is nearing its conclusion, with just two weeks left and only one spot in the top eight still available. The competition is heating up, and it could come down to the wire.

While the battle for the top four appears to be nearing its end, shifts in position could still occur as teams position themselves for the finals. The upcoming weeks promise several crucial matches that could impact playoff placements.

In a recent update, we've adjusted the forecasts, predicting that the Raiders will triumph over the Dolphins in Round 27. However, this outcome may hinge on whether coach Ricky Stuart opts to rest key players with a home qualifying final confirmed. For the time being, the minor premiership remains up for grabs.

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Ethan Strange exemplifies an impressive recruitment strategy, potentially inspiring a future movie release.

The Daily Telegraph

Ethan Strange is the poster boy for a recruitment strategy that we might just be watching a movie about one day.

Quite possibly, it could be released just after October 5.

Inside the Canberra Raiders boardroom of their head office at Braddon, an 18-year-old Strange, his father John and mother Adele, sat opposite the late and great recruitment officer Peter Mulholland and head coach Ricky Stuart.

It was 2022.

Mulholland and his recruitment understudy Joel Carbone had spent more than a year watching film of Strange dominate matches, almost in the same fashion that we witnessed in golden-point extra-time on Friday night against the Panthers.

The speed off the mark, the power through his hips,...

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The Raiders signed Sione Finau from the Dragons on a three-year deal, reuniting teammates.

LeagueNews.co

The Canberra Raiders have officially announced the signing of Sione Finau, a young outside back from St George Illawarra Dragons, despite head coach Ricky Stuart's frustrations over a leaked meeting with Finau last July. Finau's decision follows a tour of the Raiders' facilities, and he has signed a three-year deal that will keep him at the club until the end of 2028. This move reunites him with his former teammate and close friend, Savelio Tamale.

Finau's signing underscores the Raiders' focus on acquiring young talent and represents another loss for Shane Flanagan and the Dragons' roster. The 23-year-old joins a growing list of departing young talents, including Aaymon Fitzgibbon and Finau Latu.

Since making his NRL debut in 2024, Finau has participated in seven matches, scoring four tries. In 2025 alone, he recorded ten tackle busts, four line-breaks, and averaged 151 running metres across five appearances.

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