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Fri March 20 2009, 7:30PM AEDT GMT+11Fri: South Sydney Rabbitohs 8 l. Parramatta Eels 14 at
ANZ Stadium (Sydney), Homebush Bay, Sydney (NSW)Crowd: 20,871
Fri March 20 2009, 7:30PM AEST GMT+10Fri: Brisbane Broncos 16 d. Melbourne Storm 14 at
Suncorp Stadium, Castlemaine Street, Milton, Brisbane (QLD)Crowd: 36,647
Sat March 21 2009, 5:30PM AEDT GMT+11Sat: St George Illawarra Dragons 16 d. Gold Coast Titans 10 at
WIN Stadium, Wollongong (NSW)Crowd: 13,329
Sat March 21 2009, 7:30PM AEDT GMT+11Sat: Penrith Panthers 26 l. Bulldogs 28 at
Penrith Stadium, Mulgoa Road, Penrith, Sydney (NSW)Crowd: 16,846
Sat March 21 2009, 8:30PM AEST GMT+10Sat: North Queensland Cowboys 42 d. Wests Tigers 14 at
Dairy Farmers Stadium, Kirwan, Townsville (QLD)Crowd: 19,879
Sun March 22 2009, 2:00PM AEDT GMT+11Sun: Canberra Raiders 4 l. Sydney Roosters 28 at
Canberra Stadium, Bruce, Canberra (ACT)Crowd: 13,100
Sun March 22 2009, 3:00PM AEDT GMT+11Sun: Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles 24 l. New Zealand Warriors 26 at
Brookvale Oval, Brookvale, Sydney (NSW)Crowd: 16,307
Mon March 23 2009, 7:00PM AEDT GMT+11Mon: Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks 12 l. Newcastle Knights 24 at
Toyota Park, Woolooware, Sydney (NSW)Crowd: 11,148
Tue March 24, 2009
Source: www.sydneyroosters.com.auSydney Roosters fullback Anthony Minichiello will undergo advanced surgery on a serious ankle ligament injury that will sideline him for up to three months.
The 27-year-old suffered a syndesmosis ankle injury, or high ankle sprain, to the ligaments that connect the two bones of the lower leg.
Minichiello's injury happened around the 24 minute mark in the Roosters comprehensive 28-4 victory over the Canberra Raiders, their first in the nation's capital since 2004.
After completing his first full preseason in three years Minichiello's injury comes just as he was beginning to show glimpses of the form that saw him claim the world player of the year award in 2005.
Minichiello, who is off contract with the club at the end of the season, described his latest injury as "a little setback".
Minichiello could not hide the disappointment when upon arrival at Roosters HQ after consultation with a surgeon who will perform the tightrope fixation surgery on Thursday.
The innovative procedure will speed up his return to the field by up to two months.
Mon March 23, 2009
Source: NRL Stats: Raiders 4 v Roosters 28The Sydney Roosters glittered with eight Internationals and two State of Origin players destroyed the Raiders 28-4 at Canberra Stadium.
After the terrible performance last week it was always going to be hard for the Roosters to stay down too long with the amount of representative cattle in their ranks.
Both sides have 25/38 completions and Canberra won the penalty count 9-3. The Raiders despite Bronson Harrison's seven offloads and both Justin Carney and Marc Herbett making five tackle breaks they couldn't convert the half chances into any points until the final seconds of the match.
The Roosters had three players pass the 100m mark in metres gained with Nate Myles leading the way with 133m from 17 runs, Craig Fitzgibbon 113m from 15 runs and Sam Perrett 107m from 13 runs including 86m from 10 dummy half scoots.
Willie Mason made a successful return from injury getting through 54 minutes with his presence and leadership out doing his actual stats of eight hit ups and 16 tackles.
CANBERRA RAIDERSPositive: The good stats and form of Harrison and Carney.
Negative: Losing by 24 points on home soil doesn't go too well for the season ahead.
Verdict: Won't be anywhere near the top eight.
SYDNEY ROOSTERSPositive: Put the poor performance of last week behind them and to score 28 points including three tries in the final stages is a great sign. It shows that the fitness levels are there and they can play intense football with the ability to rise to another level.
Negative: The injury to fullback Anthony Minichiello, which will keep him out for 12 weeks.
Verdict: Too many stars to be down for too long. They will be there.
THE QUESTIONWill the Raiders after years of 'experts' predicting they will win the spoon finally collect the dreaded prize in 2009?
TOP STATSAll Runs Metres: Nate Myles 133
All Runs: David Milne 17
Offloads: Bronson Harrison 7
Tackles: Alan Tongue 40
1-on-1 Tackles: David Shillington 5, Iosia Soliola 5
Tackle Breaks: Justin Carney 5, Marc Herbert 5
Line Breaks: Bronson Harrison 1, Mitchell Pearce 1, Shaun Kenny-Dowall 1, Anthony Minichiello 1
Penalties Conceded: Mitchell Pearce 3
Missed Tackles: Glen Buttriss 5, Nate Myles 5
Kicks: Mitchell Pearce 13
Errors: Iosia Soliola 3, Mitchell Pearce 3
Gets: James Aubusson 88
NRL Stats: Raiders 4 v Roosters 28
NYC Stats: Raiders 26 v Roosters 16
Raiders v Roosters Match Thread
Round 2
Canberra Raiders 4 l. Sydney Roosters 28
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