Gai Brodtmann (Canberra, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

A few months ago the mighty green machine, otherwise known as the Canberra Raiders, was written off by armchair critics and some sporting commentators. Yet this Saturday night the Canberra Raiders will play the South Sydney Rabbitohs in the NRL elimination semifinal in Sydney. The Raiders are just two wins away from a fairytale grand final spot. This is a remarkable achievement for a remarkable team.

The Canberra Raiders have risen from near the bottom of the table halfway through the season to win five tough games in a row and end the regular NRL season in sixth place. This incredible winning streak is reward for the great organisation of the Raiders team and a tribute to coaching staff, led by David Furner. David Furner was under plenty of pressure this year when he made some tough decisions and some unpopular ones. But I see a good sign in seeing a leader under pressure, criticised in the media because he made the tough calls, the hard decisions, and seeing how that pays off, with unbelievable success!

One Sydney league expert wrote this about the Raiders:

… they are irresistible, a real delight to watch. They add something to the finals series, and more power to them for doing that.

The Canberra Raiders are setting this year's NRL final series alight and I wish them the very best in the match against Souths. Go Raiders! Go green machine! I want to acknowledge the incredible work of the Raiders coaching and admin staff and all the players in the squad. Go Raiders!