The Raiders get to head home after a tough two game road trip north, and coach Ricky Stuart will be ecstatic his team went 2-0 on the trip. This week, the Raiders get to host the most improved team over the past three weeks, the Dolphins, who are coming off consecutive demolitions of the Panthers and Storm. Form team of the comp? I guess we will find out on Sunday afternoon!
Also, don’t forget to head to our NRL tips page for more previews, analysis and betting tips for every NRL match of every round!
Canberra Raiders vs The Dolphins
Location: GIO Stadium – Canberra
Date: Sunday, 27th March
Time: 2:00pm AET
Odds: Raiders ($1.60) vs Dolphins ($2.35)
Line: Raiders -4.5
Points: 46.5
Odds and lines provided with thanks to Ladbrokes. Note that odds and lines can fluctuate throughout the week and are correct at the time of writing.
Match Preview
Two of the surprise packets of the first quarter of the season clash on Sunday afternoon, and this matchup should answer plenty of questions about both. The Raiders jetted to the Gold Coast last week after smashing the Eels in Darwin in round 6, and after a sluggish start saw them trailing the Titans 16-0, the Raiders finally clicked into gear 25 minutes into the contest. They reeled off four tries in just 16 minutes, to stun the Titans and take control of the game, eventually winning 30-20.
The Dolphins got to host the Storm at Suncorp Stadium last week, after spanking the Panthers at the same venue the week prior. Despite going down 16-4 inside the first 25 minutes, the Dolphins responded, punching the Storm in the mouth, before running away with the game in the second half, eventually winning 42-22 in a huge upset.
These teams have met three times in the brief Dolphins’ history, and all three have been one score games. The two most recent clashes have amazingly been decided in Golden Point, with the Raiders getting home on both occasions. The most recent of those clashes, in round 13 last season, played out at Kayo Stadium in Redcliffe, with the Dolphins closing 4.5-point home favourites, with a total of 46.5. In a fantastic back-and-forth game of rugby league, the Dolphins hit the front 25-24 with 8 minutes left, courtesy of a Jamayne Isaako field goal. Jordan Rapana responded in the 78th minute, sending the game to GP, where Rapana again slotted a field goal in the 87th minute, this time to win the game.
This week, the Raiders were locked in as 4.5-point favourites on the lookahead, opened at the same number, and at the time of writing are still 4.5-point favourites across the board. I’m surprised the market hasn’t had a bit more back and forth, with no-one seemingly confident in coming in and taking a side here. I make the Raiders a 5.5-point favourite, and it if it gets to 3.5, I will bet the Raiders. Otherwise, the spread looks about right.
The total opened 47.5 and has been bet up to 48.5. I have the total slightly lower at 45.5, so I see slight value to the under in this game. However, as we’ve seen on Sunday afternoons, unders aren’t the bet.
With both teams in good form, I don’t see a blowout here. I believe both teams to keep this within a 10-point margin in the safest way to attack this game, which will be a fun game to watch even without a bet in my opinion. But we will take this to be a tight game with our best bet here.
Either team to win by less than 10.5 points
$1.96 (1.5 Units)
Same Game Multi
Throughout the 2025 NRL season we’ll be putting together a fun same game multi for every match at BoomBet using their BetShare feature.
To follow our multi, just click on the BoomBet BetShare button below and our same game multi selections will be added straight into your bet slip on BoomBet. You can then enter how much you wish to wager, and with a single click, your bet has been placed!
Leg 1: Raiders ML – I think the Raiders still get the win here, despite me saying it will be close. At home, their forward pack should be too much in this one.
Leg 2: H Young (1+ try) – Can’t stop scoring tries on the edge, just put him in and cash the money at this point.
Leg 3: C Lemuelu (1+ try) – The strong Dolphins backrower has two tries in his last two games, and also had a double against the Raiders two years ago. Let’s go big this week!
SGM Odds: $24.50 at BoomBet
