Saturday’s NRL 2018 Round 6 match is between Canberra Raiders and Parramatta Eels. The opening kick is set to commence at 19:35 local time with the game to be played at GIO Stadium, Canberra. The home team Canberra Raiders are the favourites for the match. View our preview and teams for the game between Canberra Raiders and Parramatta Eels.
When: 19:35 | Saturday 14/04/2018
Where: GIO Stadium, Canberra
Preview:
After finding a win for the home side last week, the possible inclusions of Jack Wighton and Blake Austin will help the Raiders, but I’m a fan of the fullback they had last week in Nick Cotric.
His running game is such a weapon for them particularly on play 1.
The Eels were another team going into the season a lot of people had at the pointy end of the table.
They need to scrap, bite, fight for everything in this game to get off the duck egg of no wins yet.
They have shown in patches they can put some plays together and really test other teams, however they need to stay at it for 80 mins.
KEY BATTLE: Nathan Brown v Raiders forwards
After his inspirational performance against Reagan Campbell-Gillard last week I hope Nathan Brown again picks someone out to battle.
His teammates need to follow suit and help him out.
He shouldn’t have much trouble as there are plenty of big bodies to choose from.
The Verdict
I’m going to go for Parra in this one based on the fact I saw enough against the Panthers last week to suggest they could roll the Raiders and get their first win.
The Eels have a 4-5 (44.4 percent) line record against the Raiders since 2012.
Unibet Odds:
Canberra Raiders at $1.58
Parramatta Eels at $2.43
Odds:
OFFER: Deposit $50 BET with $200 via this link – Ends Soon!
Tip: Canberra Raiders at $1.68
Value Tip: First Try Scorer: Nick Cotric at $11.00
More Info:
Teams:
Canberra Raiders:
1 Jack Wighton, 2 Nick Cotric, 3 Jarrod Croker (c), 4 Joseph Leilua, 5 Jordan Rapana, 6 Blake Austin, 7 Aidan Sezer, 8 Iosia Soliola, 9 Siliva Havili, 10 Junior Paulo, 11 Joseph Tapine, 12 Elliott Whitehead, 13 Luke Bateman. Interchange: 14 Ata Hingano, 15 Shannon Boyd, 16 Josh Papalii, 17 Dunamis Lui. Reserves: 18 Liam Knight, 19 Michael Oldfield, 20 Brad Abbey, 21 Jack Murchie.
Parramatta Eels:
1 Clint Gutherson, 2 George Jennings, 3 Michael Jennings, 4 Kirisome Auva’a, 5 Bevan French, 6 Corey Norman, 7 Mitchell Moses, 8 Peni Terepo, 9 Kaysa Pritchard, 10 Tim Mannah (c), 11 Manu Ma’u, 17 Tony Williams, 13 Tepai Moeroa. Interchange: 14 Beau Scott, 15 Kenny Edwards, 16 Daniel Alvaro, Kane Evans. Reserves: 18 Will Smith, 19 David Gower, 20 Suaia Matagi, 21 Josh Hoffman.
NRL News:
Accused of assaulting at least four people, Jack Wighton will continue playing in the NRL for Canberra in the lead-up to his next court appearance in July.
Wighton is expected to return to the fullback role for the Raiders against Parramatta on Saturday night after pleading not guilty to all nine charges against him when he briefly fronted the ACT Magistrates Court on Wednesday.
He was a late withdrawal when Canberra claimed a much-needed first win of the season in their last game against Canterbury after his partner gave birth to their second child on the morning of the match.
Wighton was supported in court on Wednesday by coach Ricky Stuart, along with the club’s football manager Matt Ford and media manager Ben Pollack.
A one-day hearing has been set down for July 10, where Wighton will contest the charges stemming from alleged incidents in Canberra’s CBD in the early hours of February 3.
The 25-year-old didn’t comment as he left court, but the Raiders issued a brief statement making it clear they planned to continue playing him while the case remained before the court.
“The club will allow Wighton to continue to train and play with the club during this period. As the matter is before the court the Raiders will not be making any further comment on the issue,” it said.
“The Raiders continue to work with the NRL Integrity unit and have informed them of the latest developments.”
The charges against Wighton are three counts of reckless or intentionally inflicting actual bodily harm, five of common assault, and one of urinating in a public place.
The maximum penalty for assault occasioning actual bodily harm is a five-year jail sentence.
The exact number of people Wighton is accused of assaulting is not clear and could be as many as six, with three of the charges read out in court referencing an unknown male.
The court didn’t clarify if those charges relate to three assaults on a single person, or separate assaults on three people.
No statement of facts or footage was tendered in court and the defence complained it had not yet received the prosecution’s brief.
Wighton is contracted to the Raiders until the end of the 2020 season and has played 121 NRL games since making his debut in 2012
