Saturday first NRL Round 6 match is between Canberra Raiders and Newcastle Knights with the opening kick to commence at 3pm (AEDT) The game is to be played at GIO Stadium which see’s home team Canberra Raiders hold favouritism in the market. View our NRL live scores, odds and results for the game between Canberra Raiders and Newcastle Knights.

WHERE AND WHEN: GIO Stadium, Saturday 3pm (AEDT)

Odds Comparison:

Canberra Raiders	1.67	1.67	1.70	1.67	1.67	1.67
Newcastle Knights	2.25	2.25	2.20	2.25	2.25	2.25

All odds are subject to change. Odds listed are correct at the time of the latest update.

Preview:

After surprising everyone with a win over the Rabbitohs in the round 4, the up and down results of the Canberra Raiders continued last week with a 12 point to 6 loss against the Panthers in trying conditions at Sportingbet Stadium, the Raiders fourth away game in opening five rounds.

Despite that being their third loss and only scoring one try to the Panthers three, Coach Ricky Stewart had nothing but praise for his side post match, stating he gave his side an “enormous wrap” after the match and that he was a “very proud coach”.

The Raiders will also welcome back Josh Papalii from injury this week along with Shannon Boyd, Jarraed Kennedy and Bill Tupou.

They return to Canberra this weekend for a much needed game in front of a home crowd and take on the Newcastle Knights, who themselves are facing a tough few weeks on the road.

The Knights will be backing up from a Monday night game in Townsville where they were handed a 28 – 2 hiding from the Cowboys.

The same emotions and commitment that the Knights displayed last week when defeating the Sharks 30 – 0 in a win they dedicated to Alex McKinnon, was desperately lacking as the Cowboys ran in five tries.

Despite being the Knights fourth loss of the year, it was clearly their worse performance to date given that in recent defeats, they have at least been competitive.

The quick-back up and the trip from Townsville to Canberra will test the Knights here and they rightly start a large price in the head-to-head market.

The two sides have met twice in each of the past two seasons and each year, have won one game apiece with the most recent match going the way of Canberra 44 – 14 in Canberra.

A simlar results could be on the cards if Newcastle do not make a major a quick and major improvement on last week’s effort.

Teams:

Canberra Raiders:
Anthony Milford, Reece Robinson, Jarrod Croker, Matt Allwood, Bill Tupou, Jack Wighton, Terry Campese (C), David Shillington, Glen Buttriss, Brett White, Josh Papalii, Jarrad Kennedy, Shaun Fensom. Interchange: Josh McCrone, Paul Vaughan, Dane Tilse, Shannon Boyd

Newcastle Knights:
Darius Boyd, James McManus, Dane Gagai, Joseph Leilua, Akuila Uate, Michael Dobson, Tyrone Roberts, Kade Snowden, Kurt Gidley, Willie Mason, Beau Scott, Robbie Rochow, Jeremy Smith. Interchange: Adam Clydsdale, Korbin Sims, Adam Cuthbertson, David Fa’alogo

News:

Forget round two: Jarrod Mullen’s return is going to make Newcastle a whole different prospect to stop.

Canberra might have toppled the Knights in Newcastle less than a month ago, but coach Ricky Stuart knows it’s going to be a whole lot tougher at Canberra Stadium come Saturday.

The Knights have confirmed key playmaker Mullen will play in the clash after recovering from a hamstring injury he sustained in the Auckland Nines pre-season tournament.

As such, there’s not much Canberra can take from their previous encounter, says Stuart.

“They’ll be a different team again with Jarrod Mullen playing and (Darius) Boyd out the back,” Stuart said.

It won’t just change the way Newcastle attack, Stuart said, but lift the mentality of the second-last placed side.

“They’ll have a lot of confidence knowing Jarrod is back,” he said.

“He will make the players around him better.

“But we’ve prepared for that all week.”

Both sides enter the match on the back of losses, the Raiders 12-6 to Penrith, while the Knights were thumped 28-2 by North Queensland.

And while “desperate” has been Knights coach Wayne Bennett’s word of the week, Stuart, whose side is two and three, is refusing to buy into a similar mentality.

“No. You tell me why I should be desperate?” Stuart said.

“We’ve got a real positive vibe around the joint.”

Stuart said his side had just completed a tough five-match stint, four of which were on the road.

“Physically we are on the back end of a tough slog.

“But players in new positions are slowly gelling.”

The Raiders will be buoyed by the return of Australian and Maroons representative Josh Papalii, back from a three-week stint on the sidelines following an ankle injury he initially sustained against the Knights.