The Raiders fell 12-32 to the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks at GIO Stadium Canberra on Saturday 20 September during week two of the finals<\/a>, ending the minor premiers<\/a>\u2019 season.<\/p>\n There was still blood running out of Tapine\u2019s nose \u2013 and splatters on his jersey and shorts \u2013 during his post-match chat with the media, which was the result of a high shot.<\/p>\n While the team was disappointed, the captain\u2019s focus has turned to rebuilding for the next season.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ll stay as a group. I told the boys we know this means we\u2019re back to work,\u201d he told the media.<\/p>\n \u201cOur dreams are still there. Our goals are still the same, it\u2019s just that we\u2019ve got to work harder.\u201d<\/p>\n The Raiders ended up in the do-or-die clash after a gut-wrenching 29-28 golden-point loss<\/a> to the Brisbane Broncos at home the previous Sunday.<\/p>\n Tapine\u2019s message to fans that felt crushed following the loss to the Sharks is: \u201cWe\u2019re still building. We\u2019re still young and the best is still to come\u201d.<\/p>\n Tapine said that with two home finals and a number of regular season games selling out, the team had felt strongly supported.<\/p>\n \u201cWe don\u2019t take that for granted and obviously not the results we wanted the last two weeks, but keep turning up for us, and we\u2019ll turn up for you,\u201d he told CD.<\/p>\n When CD asked him to comment on the effort the team had made to get to this stage, he said it had been outstanding.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s a good character-building thing for us,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve got to learn from it. You can\u2019t just brush it aside moving forward. We\u2019ve got to learn and adapt.\u201d<\/p>\n He told the media the absence of Ethan Strange<\/a>, who he considered one of their x-factor players, was a \u201chuge\u201d blow.<\/p>\n In the post-match press conference, Ricky said the Raiders were \u201cjust outplayed by a better team tonight\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cWe were good for the first 38 minutes of the first half,\u201d he told the media.<\/p>\n \u201cThen we started well in the second half, but then there was a bit of a momentum change and Cronulla, they were very good on the back end of that second half.\u201d<\/p>\n When asked if it was a matter of running out of gas, Ricky responded with: \u201cI don\u2019t know\u201d.<\/p>\n When one of the journalists asked what positives the team has had, he said the season.<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019ve come a long way. As I just said to them, the better you get, the more you get hunted. And we did tonight. We got beaten by a better footy team,\u201d Stuart said.<\/p>\n The match:<\/p>\n Fans were so eager to be at the final that many had arrived at the stadium when the gates opened two hours prior to kick-off.<\/p>\n The crowd cheered for the boys as they ran out for the warm-up 40 minutes before kick-off, with some fans waving flags. The Sharks fans did the same when their players ran out onto the field.<\/p>\n Two minutes to showtime and the crowd was almost full.<\/p>\n All the stops were pulled out for the match with flames around the ground, while some fireworks and green flames added excitement to the night. Even the Raiders\u2019 flags that came out to the ground had \u201csparklers\u201d coming off them.<\/p>\n The crowd appeared louder and prouder than I\u2019ve seen in other home matches this season, which created more atmosphere.<\/p>\n The defence was so strong from both sides that it took more than 22 minutes for anyone to score \u2014 it was a try by Corey Horsburgh followed by a conversion by Jamal Fogarty to put the Raiders on the board. A couple of tries by the Sharks late in the first half gave them a 12-6 lead at the break.<\/p>\n A couple of minutes into the second half and Sasagi scored a try \u2014 which saw some fans in the stadium break out into a rendition of the \u201coooohh, Simi Sasagi\u201d song \u2014 but unfortunately the bunker denied the try.<\/p>\n The Raiders were quick to rectify it with a try from Savelio Tamale \u2014 who recently returned from injury \u2014 and a successful conversion by Fogarty from the sideline in his final match for the Raiders levelled the scores.<\/p>\n At this stage, little did the side know it would be their last try of the match and the Sharks would storm ahead.<\/p>\n The fans\u2019 energy seemed to be depleted during the second half as it seemed like victory was out of the team\u2019s hands.<\/p>\n There was also something about the team that didn\u2019t have the energy of the previous week or the season as a whole. Perhaps the toll of last week\u2019s 94-minute epic against Brisbane proved too much.<\/p>\n With seven minutes left to go, the Raiders fans left in droves as their dreams of a Grand Final after a standout run throughout the year were over.<\/p>\n Despite the loss, as the boys walked out from the stadium to the team bus, the players were kind enough to speak to and take photographs with the fans who had waited post-match.<\/p>\n Canberra Daily would love to hear from you about a story idea in Canberra and the surrounding region.\u00a0Click here to submit a news tip.<\/a><\/p>\n Feeling social? Follow Canberra Daily:\u00a0Facebook<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Instagram<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0X (Twitter)<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Tik Tok<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0YouTube<\/a><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Joe-Tapine-nose-bleed-Getty-Images-Darrian-Traynor.jpg\"\/)
Tapine recovers from a high hit during the NRL Semi Final match between Canberra and Cronulla. Photo: Getty Images\/Darrian Traynor<\/p>\n