The Raiders will be out to make amends for a narrow loss in Round 1 while the Dolphins should have a big home crowd on hand at Redcliffe with supporters buoyed by their spectacular NRL debut.
The Green Machine showed plenty of positive signs against the premiership heavyweight Cowboys, coming back from an 18-0 lead at halftime to fall just one point short but a big challenge awaits at the boutique ground that is Kayo Stadium.
Spending the week training in sunny Queensland, Ricky Stuart will be hoping his side can use the time to tidy up some key areas after errors (11) and missed tackles (39) put the Canberra side on the back foot early in their opening clash.
Meanwhile, after the Dolphins orchestrated a 28-18 faitytale debut over the Roosters on Sunday, their challenge will be maintaining new standards against the Raiders.
With Wayne Bennett’s forward pack winning Sunday's clash in the middle, the likes of Joe Tapine, Josh Papali'i and Elliot Whitehead will need to be at their best on Saturday to match it with veteran props Jesse Bromwich, Mark Nicholls and Felise Kaufusi.
If the competition newcomers can claim their first back-to-back wins against two of last season's semi-finalists, the Dolphins will have every one of their opponents on notice for 2023.
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Team News
Dolphins: The Dolphins are 1-17 with no late changes. Youngster Mason Teague has been named to make his NRL debut off the bench, replacing Ray Stone (knee) in the only change to the side that stunned the Roosters. Experienced playmakers Anthony Milford and Kodi Nikorima were listed among the reserves on Tuesday but dropped out 24 hours before kick-off along with JJ Collins.
Raiders: The Raiders are 1-17 with no late changes on game day. The change to the side that lost narrowly to the Cowboys is Albert Hopoate coming in on the wing for Jordan Rapana, who will miss the next three games due to suspension. Veteran prop Josh Papali'i (calf) remains sidelined. Matt Frawley is 18th man.
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Stat Attack
- Dolphins winger Jamayne Isaako heads into Round 2 as the competition's leading pointscorer after bagging two tries and slotting four successful conversions.
- The Dolphins lead the competition in try assists after Round 1 (5).
- The Dolphins are aiming to become the first new club to win their first two games since the Storm in 1998.
- The Raiders ranked third in missed tackles in Round 1 with (39), only behind the Sharks (52) and Titans (47).
- Wayne Bennett has won 14 of his past 17 games against Ricky Stuart-coached teams.
- The Raiders have won only three of their last 10 games in Queensland.
Stats supplied by David Middleton, League Information Services, author of the official annual of the NRL.