Thursday Night Thriller: Raiders v Bulldogs

The Raiders and Bulldogs turned on one of the best games of 2025 at this ground last May and a repeat would have the big crowd at GIO Stadium on the edge of their seats.

After trailing 20-0 at half-time the Stephen Crichton-inspired Bulldogs stormed home with six second-half tries to win 32-20, taking their record to 8-1 after 10 rounds.

The Dogs had a Round 1 win in Vegas but have had to wait 18 days for their second match due to a Round 2 bye so it will be interesting to see how quickly they can get out of the blocks against the match-hardened Raiders.

Follow all the action from Round 3 of the NRL Telstra Premiership on NRL.com's live blog.

Raiders v Bulldogs at GIO Stadium

Halftime Summary: The rain is pelting down in Canberra but the footy has been high quality as the Bulldogs dominated possession and the Raiders' defence proved up to the task. Canterbury lead 8-6 after two penalty goals by captain Stephen Crichton, who also laid on his side's only try. The Raiders have done a lot of defending and were down to 12 men for 10 minutes while Josh Papalii was in the sinbin so it remains to be seen whether the workload take a toll in the second half.

20 min: Crichton kicks a second penalty goal to put the Bulldogs ahead. Bulldogs 8 Raiders 6

17 min: Josh Papalii has been sinbined for a high shot on Sam Hughes from the re-start.

15 min: Crichton kicks a penalty goal to level the scores after repeated infringements by the Raiders. Bulldogs 6 Raiders 6

14 min: Matt Burton has kicked a 40/20 to put the Bulldogs on the attack again.

11 min: The Bulldogs hit back through Connor Tracey after captain Stephen Crichton pushed through the tackle of Sanders and manages a flick pass away for his fullback to score. Raiders 6 Bulldogs 4 

4 min: The Raiders strike first when winger SavelioTamale finishing a backline movement. Ethan Sanders converts. Raiders 6-0.

Kick-off: Josh Papali'i has taken the first hit up after the Bulldogs kicked off.

Weather: The conditions are set to be wet and humid after a storm hit Canberra before kick-off, but it is clearing.

Late Mail

Raiders: Veteran prop Josh Papalii is on track to take his place in the starting side after progressing through the concussion protocols. The Samoan international missed last week's loss to the Warriors. Morgan Smithies is set to come off the interchange as a result. The match is Ricky Stuart's 300th game as Raiders coach as his side looks to defend an impressive home record against the Bulldogs. One minor change in Wednesday's 24-hour team update, with Jed Stuart replacing Matt Timoko as the sixth player on the Raiders bench. Owen Pattie dropped out when the squad was finalised before kick-off.

Bulldogs: Enari Tuala is set for his first game of the year and comes into the centres in place of Bronson Xerri. The Bulldogs are otherwise settled as they prepare to play their first game since a golden point win over the Dragons in Las Vegas. Canterbury have struggled in Canberra in recent years but skipper Stephen Crichton has scored 10 tries in eight games against the Raiders. No late changes for the Bulldogs.

Stat Attack

• The Raiders have won five of their past six games against the Bulldogs at GIO Stadium.
• Bulldogs second-rower Jacob Preston has scored five tries in his past five games.
• Raiders winger Xavier Savage has scored seven tries in his last seven games at GIO Stadium.
• Bulldogs centre Stephen Crichton has scored 10 tries in eight games against the Raiders.
• Ricky Stuart will achieve the milestone of 300 games as Raiders coach.