Dragons defy wind and rain to topple ladder-leading Raiders

If Ricky Stuart was prepared to stand on the sideline in the driving rain and howling wind, he deserved so much better from his Raiders.

The NRL table toppers produced their sloppiest performance of the season to go down to St George Illawarra 18-12.

The Green Machine were gunning for 10 straight wins, something they had not done since 2016.

And you would have backed them to get the job done when it was 10-all at half-time, and the fact they were going to be helped by a raging southerly at their backs in the second half.

But they struggled to hold the ball, and even struggled for field position, as the Dragons nailed their last-tackle kicks.

Canterbury can now leapfrog the Raiders and move to outright first should they defeat the Wests Tigers by 17 points or more on Sunday.

Matthew Feagai celebrates a try for the Dragons.Credit: Getty Images

The most one-eyed Raiders supporters will argue the Dragons’ only second-half try came from a forward pass. Mat Feagai’s final ball to Corey Allan was flat, but there was no flag from the touch judge. The Raiders still had ample time at that stage to win the game. They needed more from their main man Jamal Fogarty.

Maybe it was the loss the Raiders needed. But do teams ever really need a defeat? Either way, Stuart will make sure Canberra are not as uninspiring when they return home to host Manly next weekend.

The Dragons deserved the two points, especially after falling short against North Queensland last weekend, and getting dudded in the final minute against Canterbury prior to that.

Raiders coach Ricky Stuart.Credit: Getty Images

Coach Shane Flanagan nearly put a hole through the glass separating the coaching and media box when the Raiders were given a repeat set in the final minute while camped on the Red V’s line – but in the end he had nothing to worry about.

Kyle Flanagan’s kicking game was terrific, especially a sideline conversion from the south-eastern corner that was directly into the wind.

The conditions were so bad, club officials had to close the hill before kick-off for safety reasons because of lightning, rain and wind. The empty grass evoked memories of the competition when it was played behind closed doors during COVID in 2020.

The Dragons will still need a miracle to make the eight, but the two points moves them clear of the pack of teams still slugging it out for the wooden spoon. They don’t deserve the dreaded gong when you consider how many of their losses have been by six points or less.

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Raiders forward Hudson Young was placed on report for a shoulder charge on Hame Sele – the contact was minimal – while David Klemmer was also cited for a tackle on Ata Mariota, which forced the prop off the field for a head injury assessment.

Feagai opened the scoring for the Dragons, Matt Timoko hit back for the visitors, before the Dragons slotted a couple of penalty goals on offer, including one for a late Joe Tapine hit on Kyle Flanagan.

The Dragons will be up for their local derby against Cronulla next week. The Raiders are still knee-deep in this title race, and the quicker they can forget the trip to Wollongong, the better. Stuart will try to ignore it, a bit like he tried to do with the miserable weather on the sideline.

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