Earl lording it after mid-season switch to 'unbeatable' Raiders
CANBERRA winger Sandor Earl must be the luckiest bloke in the NRL - leaving a basket case of a club mid-season to join one he declared has an unbeatable game plan.
He's been in Canberra for less than two weeks, but the former Penrith Panthers and Sydney Roosters winger has enjoyed a dream arrival since joining the Raiders only days before the June 30 deadline.
Earl made his Raiders debut in the heart-stopping 22-18 win against St George Illawarra and retained his place for last weekend's 40-12 thumping of the Melbourne Storm, crossing for a double in the AAMI Park upset. Now, he's aiming to make it a hat-trick when the resurgent Raiders host an injury-depleted Gold Coast Titans at Canberra Stadium on Sunday.
''If we can stick to our shape and starve teams of the ball, I don't know [how] we can lose to be honest,'' Earl said. ''Nothing against Penrith, but it's different here. The way the boys are putting in
if that's the way we're going to be playing for the rest of the season, I'm happy with that.''
While the Raiders are on the rise, the Panthers are on struggle street, with inspirational second-rower Luke Lewis yesterday granted a release from the final two years of his contract. That follows the demotion of NSW centre Michael Jennings and livewire fullback Lachlan Coote to reserve grade.
Earl's inclusion has coincided with a rapid transformation in the Raiders' fortunes. They had won only five of their first 14 games before he was signed, sparking intense speculation about the future of coach David Furner and leaving the Raiders in wooden spoon discussions.
But with back-to-back victories they are now only two points outside the top eight, but Earl believes talk of a late season surge to the finals is premature. ''We're trying not to get too carried away from two good wins,'' he said. ''In another fortnight or so, if we're at the same point, that's where I think the conversation will start.''
The Raiders have a favourable draw in the run to the finals. Five of their next seven games are at home before they finish off the regular season with a challenging trip to face the New Zealand Warriors in Auckland.
Earl had limited opportunities with the Panthers under new coach Ivan Cleary this year, playing just three games in the top grade. But he's taken little time to strike up a deadly partnership on the right side of the attack alongside in-form centre Blake Ferguson. The Country representative toyed with weary Queensland centre Dane Nielsen and combined beautifully with Earl in both attack and defence.
Earl is contracted to the Raiders only until the end of the season, but there is an option to extend to 2013. ''Being able to form a combination would be a big thing if I was to continue this with Blake,'' Earl said. ''The two games I've been involved with have been awesome. If it all falls into place, I think I might have to stay at the Raiders.''
After missing the win against the Storm with a back injury, forward Sam Mataora is considered a 50-50 chance to be fit in time to face the Titans. Mataora completed running drills yesterday and will be assessed later in the week.
Meanwhile, under-20s fullback Mitch Cronin will miss four to six weeks with ankle syndesmosis suffered in the 34-30 Toyota Cup loss to the Storm.
