Drought over after dramatic 16-10 win at GIO StadiumJosh Papalii scores winner with Raiders down to 14 menCanberra are into their first NRL grand final in 25 years after beating South
Sydney 16-10, despite being a man down for the final 10 minutes. Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad was sin-binned for a professional foul in the 70th minute, but the Raiders rallied before Josh Papalii burst through to score the match-winning try in front of a record crowd at GIO Stadium.
The victory means coach Ricky Stuart has taken Canberra to their first grand final since helping the Green Machine to their last premiership as a player in 1994. The Raiders’ season has been defined by defence and, for their biggest home crowd in club history, they again stood strong. Three times in the first half, the Rabbitohs looked certain to score and were denied as the Canberra wall could not be penetrated.