NRL 2016 season: Canberra Raiders vs Gold Coast Titans Round 4 preview, live streaming info, play-by-play updates and team lineup
The Canberra Raiders will host the visiting Gold Coast Titans at GIO Stadium for an Easter Saturday clash in Round 4 of the 2016 National Rugby League season.
The Raiders are coming off a thrilling draw against the Newcastle Knights last week, putting them behind the top-ranked Melbourne Storm in the NRL standings. The Titans, on the other hand, managed a masterful 30-18 win over the Wests Tigers in Round 3 and will look to for their first win streak of the season against Canberra.
The Raiders will still be without injured halves Blake Austin and Aidan Sezer, although Sam Williams and Josh Hodgson have been able to fill the void left by the duo. Raiders coach Ricky Stuart said that Austin (knee) and Sezer (cheekbone) could be back in Round 6, insisting that the Raiders would not rush the return of the halves-tandem.
"It's more important for me to have them back at 100 per cent than coming back and playing at 90, 95 per cent,” Stuart said, reports the Sydney Morning Herald. "It's too early in the season. I'd rather wait another week or two to get them back if that's the case."
Second-rower Elliott Whitehead is expected to fill in at five-eight, with Williams playing on both sides of the field.
Meanwhile, the Titans will play the Raiders without skipper Nathan Friend, who suffered two head knocks in Gold Coast’s first three games of the season.
Friend has passed the league’s cognition testing after each knock, which allowed him to return to the filed in the games against the Newcastle Knights and the Tigers. However, the Titans have put the 35-year-old through a pre-training session on Thursday to assess his recovery.
“He’s had a couple of knocks and we just wanted to see how he went [after training], so he’s had a bit of a sweat up early and we’ll make a decision on him,’’ Titans coach Neil Henry said, reports the Gold Coast Bulletin. “He has had a couple [of head knocks], so we just want to make sure under the protocol that he’s right and he’s not under duress, that he’s not getting headaches.”
The Titans own the numbers over the Raiders, winning 10 of their 17 meetings. However, Canberra has been terrific in the start of the season prior to their draw against the Knights, making them the favourite to win the match.
Canberra Raiders lineup
Jack Wighton, Edrick Lee, Jarrod Croker, Brenko Lee, Jordan Rapana, Elliott Whitehead, Sam Williams, Shannon Boyd, Josh Hodgson, Frank Paul Nuuausala, Josh Papalii, Iosia Soliola, Shaun Fensom Interchange: Kurt Baptiste, Joseph Tapine, Paul Vaughan, Jeff Lima Coach: Ricky Stuart
Gold Coast Titans lineup
David Mead, Anthony Don, Josh Hoffman, John Olive, Nene MacDonald, Tyrone Roberts, Ashley Taylor, David Shillington, Nathan Friend, Agnatius Paasi, Zeb Taia, Chris McQueen, Greg Bird Interchange: Luke Douglas, Ryan James, Leivaha Pulu, Daniel Mortimer, Eddy Pettybourne Coach: Neil Henry
Live streaming info and play-by-play updates
Watch NRL 2016 season Round 4: Canberra Raiders vs Gold Coast Titans live via NRL Digital Pass. Play-by-play updates will be available during game time on Fox Sports AU.
