Sea Eagles v Raiders: DCE free to play; Ricky rings changes

After being beaten up by the Sharks in a 40-point shutout last week, the Raiders face a daunting trip to 4 Pines Park to play an in-form Sea Eagles side.

The Green Machine had a tough introduction to life without the injured Jamal Fogarty, as they struggled to generate anything significant with ball in hand, while a stat sheet which included 64 missed tackles showed their problems ran much deeper in Round 8.

The Sea Eagles meanwhile are now unbeaten through the past month, after rallying late to overcome the Eels for a 32-18 win which puts them fourth on the ladder heading into Round 9.

This will be the Raiders’ first trip to Manly’s traditional home since 2021, which isn’t a bad thing for them given they have won just three of their past 10 there, while the Sea Eagles are undefeated at the venue this year.

Team News

Sea Eagles: Daly Cherry-Evans starts at halfback after he was successful in having his dangerous throw charge downgraded at the Judiciary on Tuesday. Toafofoa Sipley returns from a knee injury on the bench in a side which will take the field as named on Tuesday. 

Raiders: A late switch sees Emre Guler start at prop and Josh Papali'i move back to the bench. Elliott Whitehead returns in the back row, with Albert Hopoate taking over from Chevy Stewart at fullback and veteran Nick Cotric coming in on the wing. Simi Sasagi is the replacement player.