Josh Papalii was sent off the field for a shoulder charge against the Bulldogs.
Canberra have defied a Josh Papalii send-off that could see him rubbed out of Queensland s State of Origin opener and a Jack Wighton sin-binning to run down Canterbury 20-18. The Raiders led 8-0 at halftime at Suncorp Stadium but, outnumbered and after a cumulative 93-8 scored against them in the second stanza of their last five games, looked set to be swallowed up again as the Bulldogs scored twice to hit the lead. Trent Barrett s men enjoyed a two-man advantage for three minutes after Wighton had been binned for a cannonball tackle on Adam Elliott and Papalii s shoulder rocked Tuipuloto Katoa with 19 minutes to play.
FShareTTweetQSMSWWhatsAppBEmailGJTumblrLLinkedIn7 days ago
The Raiders dug deep and overcame a shock send-off and sin bin to end their losing streak with a 20-18 Magic Round win over the Bulldogs.
Canberra wrecking ball Josh Papalii was sent off and Jack Wighton was sin-binned in a dramatic second half that threatened to extend their winless streak to six games.
The match followed the script early on for Canberra, with the Green Machine dominating possession and the Bulldogs unable to find their way over the try-line when it counted.
Ex-Bulldog Corey Harawira-Naera got the Raiders on the board first after finishing a super sequence of play down the right flank as George Williams found himself in acres of space following a Papalii offload. The Englishman then slotted a penalty goal from right in front after a high tackle.
Raiders coach Ricky Stuart said anybody with rugby league "common sense" would have awarded Jack Wighton a pair of tries denied for obstruction in his side's 34-20 loss to South Sydney.