Match Highlights: Dragons v Raiders
MATCH REPORT
Gone with the wind: Dragons harness gale to run down Raiders
Author
Brad Walter NRL.com Senior Reporter Timestamp Sat 19 Jun 2021, 07:31 PM
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A late try by unwanted five-eighth Corey Norman snatched a 22-20 victory for St George Illawarra and saved NRL officials needing to decide whether to strip two points from Canberra for the illegal use of 18th man Xavier Savage at WIN Stadium.
Savage was thrust into action at the start of the second half after Raiders centre Sebastian Kris failed a HIA but under NRL rules the 18th man can only be used if a team suffers three HIAs or loses a player to an incident of foul play for which an opponent was sin-binned or sent off.
Kris appeared to receive a poke in the eye from St George Illawarra winger Mikaele Ravalawa but Jack Bird was placed on report and the rookie centre left the field for HIA in the 40th minute.
Raiders captain Elliott Whitehead told referee Chris Sutton at the resumption of the second half that Kris had failed his HIA and team-mates ran over to congratulate Savage as the 19-year-old winger was sent out for his first taste of NRL action.
Match: Dragons v Raiders
Round 15 - Saturday 19th June
Full Time
Home Team
Dragons
Scored 22 points
Away Team
Raiders
Scored 20 points
Venue: WIN Stadium, Wollongong
However, Savage was pulled from the field 12 minutes later and the NRL has asked the Raiders and ground officials for a please explain over the incident.
“The rules are clear that an 18th man can only be activated if a player is sin-binned or sent off - or a team has three failed HIAs,” an NRL spokesperson said.
“The Raiders incorrectly activated the 18th man at the beginning of the second half.
“The NRL has asked for full reports from the Raiders as well as our staff on duty at the ground to ascertain the circumstances which led to the 18th man being incorrectly activated.”
Vaughan offloads in traffic for Norman
The Raiders took advantage of the roaring southerly wind at their backs in the first half to dominate the early field position and race to a 12-0 lead after two converted tries in the opening 20 minutes.
Kiwi second-rower Corey Harawira-Naera crossed for the first in the 10th minute when he brushed aside an attempted tackle by Norman and Kris scored 10 minutes later after Canberra captain Elliott Whitehead spun out of two tackles to put the centre over.
Kris looked set to extend the Raiders' lead in the 27th minute but a try-saving tackle by rookie St George Illawarra fullback Tyrell Sloan stopped him short of the line.
Kris then turned try-saver at the opposite end of the field when he intercepted a Gerard Beale pass on the Raiders line after a blindside break by Hunt.
However, the Raiders couldn’t stop replacement forward Billy Burns from scoring after Hunt sent him on an angle run with a perfectly timed pass in the 32nd minute.
The controversial incident which led to the confusion over Savage’s eligibility enabled Sam Williams to extend Canberra’s lead to 14-6 just before halftime after Bird was placed on report.
The Raiders went further ahead when English forwards Josh Hodgson and Ryan Sutton combined to put Joseph Tapine over for a try in the 44th minute but with the wind now favouring the Dragons it was going to be a big ask to hang on to the lead.
Beale started the fightback when he crossed for a 50th minute try after Hunt again ran the ball to the line and Sloan then scored two minutes later after kicking ahead for Norman to regather and put the teenage fullback over for his first NRL try.
https://www.nrl.com/news/2021/06/19/gone-with-the-wind-dragons-harness-gale-to-outlast-raiders/
