History of the Canberra Raiders
Along with the Illawarra Steelers, they became the first clubs from outside the Sydney area in over half a century to compete in the New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership.
In 1981, the New South Wales Rugby Football League (NSWRFL) decided to expand the number of teams in its Sydney-based premiership for the first time since the 1960s.
The Canberra franchise was accepted as the 14th team to compete in the NSWRFL premiership for the 1982 season, beating bids from Campbelltown, Newcastle and the Central Coast.
1985 saw Dean Lance named captain of the club which had a regression, with the team winning only 8 games (though the reserves did reach the Grand Final).
Though 1986 was similarly disappointing, the team had a core group of players, such as Mal Meninga, Gary Belcher, Steve Walters, and John Ferguson who would greatly influence the coming decade.
In one of the all-time great Grand Finals, the Raiders sent the game into extra time after a late John Ferguson try that was converted by Meninga.
On 3 April, NSWRL general manager John Quayle revealed that Canberra were in breach of their salary cap when they won the previous year's premiership.
The fallout from the salary cap imbroglio saw several players leave the club, most prominently Glenn Lazarus, Brent Todd, David Barnhill, Nigel Gaffey and Paul Martin.
1993 was a marked improvement, with the Raiders sitting in first place on the ladder with 2 rounds remaining when tragedy struck during their record breaking 68 - 0 victory over Parramatta at Bruce Stadium.
Ricky Stuart suffered a bad leg break and the team went on to lose its next three games against Brisbane, St George and Canterbury.
Since their final premiership in 1994, the Raiders have been unable to scale their previous heights, largely due to their inability to lure representative players to the capital.
In one of the closest games in recent history, the Raiders were eclipsed by one point in the preliminary final by the New Zealand Warriors and eliminated from the 2003 competition.
Wiki's loss, in particular, was a bitter pill to swallow for many Raiders fans, as it was found that the New Zealand Warriors had significantly breached the salary cap in signing him.
The 2005 side was written off by fans and critics alike, as the club's two major signings, Jason Smith and Matt Adamson, were ageing veterans considered well past their prime.
The round one finals series clash with the Bulldogs saw the Raiders defeated 30–12 in slippery and muddy conditions at Telstra Stadium, and eliminated from the 2006 premiership race.
[4] The 2008 season started with some promise for the Raiders - a good showing despite a loss in round 1 vs. Newcastle was followed up with two solid wins against Penrith and St. George-Illawarra.
Compounding this, talented back-rowers Neville Costigan and Tom Learoyd-Lahrs have spent minimal time on the field due to recurring minor injuries.
The club has also suffered badly in the recruiting race, with Zillman and strong front rower Michael Weyman opting to go elsewhere next season,[when?]
Finally, Coach Neil Henry exercised a get-out clause in his contract, and opted to move to the North Queensland Cowboys in 2009.
However, far from fading away, the Raiders bounced back with a comprehensive victory over the Brisbane Broncos and then proceeded to thrash the Canterbury Bulldogs, inflicting the worst loss on the Sydney-based club in over half a century.
The season had not been without controversy, however, with star halfback Todd Carney and fullback Bronx Goodwin being stood down by the club after an altercation at a Canberra nightclub following the round 19 win against the Roosters.
[6] On 6 September 2008, despite a heavy injury toll, the Raiders were guaranteed a place in the NRL 2008 Finals Series, a feat which was at the start of the season impossible according to Rugby League punditry[who?]
The Raiders' Toyota Cup team won 28–24 over the Broncos' team in golden point extra time to with the Toyota Cup (Under 20s) premiership in the lead-up game to the NRL Grand Final on 5 October 2008[7] The Canberra Raiders lost founding father Les McIntyre in the 2009 pre-season on 22 February leading to the disruption of a pre-season camp and his name being embroidered on the club jerseys for the rest of the season 2009 season.
[10] Despite wins against three of the top four (St George Illawarra Dragons, Gold Coast Titans and the Melbourne Storm) and coming within three points of the other (Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs) losses to bottom placed teams Cronulla Sharks and Sydney Roosters at home saw the raiders finish in 13th.
Wins over the ladder-leading Dragons and the Gold Coast Titans followed until a four-game losing streak ensued; with the club sitting third from last after a round 17 home loss to the Roosters in what was Todd Carney's return to the nation's capital.
The latter signing was an important one for the Raiders as vice-captain and star playmaker Terry Campese is out indefinitely due to a knee injury suffered in the semi-final loss to Wests at the end of the 2010 season.
[12] The Canberra Raiders 2013 campaign began with two demoralising defeats to Penrith Panthers and Gold Coast Titans, only managing to score 10 points in the two games while conceding 68.
Another early blow to the Raiders at the start of the 2013 season was the irresponsible behaviour of up and coming superstar Josh Dugan whom was sacked from the club for disciplinary reasons after he and teammate Blake Ferguson missed a team recovery session in favour of spending the day drinking on the rooftop of Blake Fergusons home.
[18] The Raiders qualified for the 2019 NRL Grand Final, defeating Minor Premiers Melbourne Storm and 3rd placed South Sydney Rabbitohs in the process.
By round 14, Canberra were 11th on the table and looked unlikely to reach the top 8 until the club went on to win eight of their last ten matches to leapfrog Brisbane into 8th place.
