Friday night NRL action begins in Canberra this week with the Raiders hosting the Cowboys. Despite the NRL Power Rankings telling a different story, just 4 competition points separates these two sides. Each will sense an opportunity to grab victory and it sets the scene for an exciting night of NRL action. Before You Betis here to preview the match in detail, hoping to land you a winner or two to start your weekend off on the right note.
NRL Round 15 Preview & Betting Tips
Canberra Raiders vs North Queensland Cowboys
GIO Stadium – Friday 14th June – 6pm (AEST)
Match Preview
The Raiders enjoyed the Bye last week following their spirited Golden Point victory over the Dolphins on the road in Round 13. In what appeared as a tricky contest, the Raiders were determined in overcoming 15 errors, a 48% share of possession and a 75% completion rate, to prevail. The thrilling nature of the result somewhat overshadows their shortcomings, but they will take the results (and competition points) regardless.
The Cowboys can only dream of such outcomes, suffering their 7th loss for the season in their 42-12 defeat at home to the Warriors. Despite a few late omissions of Origin players, they were still favourites but were quickly identified as the inferior team on the back of fast-moving plays and a high level of execution. They were ambushed in the first half, trailing 22-6 at HT and it didn’t get any better from that point onwards. A 44% share of possession, 77% completion rate and 11 errors made building pressure and generating momentum a challenge. They were worse defensive too; they conceded 7 line breaks, allowed 9.8m per carry and 792 PCM’s. Time is running out for them to rescue their chances but thankfully, that can quickly change as they are only 2 competition points outside of the Top 8.
Match Prediction
Each team benefits from returning players; Young is back for the Raiders while Tuilagi and Robson are on deck for the Cowboys. These players will give their team a much-needed boost for this contest. History is not kind to the Raiders heading into this match; they have won just 1 of the past 6 matches between these two sides, with the Cowboys winning their last 4 of 5 in Canberra.
The time is right for the Raiders though and they head into this game as favourites ($1.77 vs $2.05). While they average fewer points in attack compared to the Cowboys (21ppg vs 24pgg), they have a better defensive record (24ppg vs 26ppg). The visitors have proven on numerous occasions this season that they can leak points to their opponents; they have conceded 20 points or more in 12 matches this season and have missed the second most tackles of any team in 2024. Such a standard is not good enough and a major reason why they are losing games. Their unpredictability makes it challenging to decide on a winner of this fixture.
Either team can come out and win this game with a commanding performance as they could perform poorly and concede many points. The Raiders are the preferred selection playing at home (58% vs 38% record) and proving to have found a ‘working balance’ within their spine (for now). There are better options this weekend to invest on with confidence so, if you need a bet, invest on this being a close fixture. Of the past 5 games, the average winning margin is 11.5 points, with 3 decided by 10 points or less.
Either Team by 10.5 Points or Less
$1.95 (2 Units)
Same Game Multi
The average total points in the past 5 meetings sits at 42.5 points but with each conceding what they have this year, this game is likely to be a high scoring affair. Young has scored 4 tries in the past 3 matches and, with a possible starting spot on the line for Origin, will want to produce a strong performance. He is also the Raiders’ leading try scorer (equal with Savage on 7). Nanai is the Cowboys’ leading try scorer with 10 tries from 13 games this season and is an attacking threat either in the air or on the ground.
Total Points Over 49.5
Young and Nanai to Score
SGM Odds: $9 at Dabble (0.5 Units)
