Canberra Raiders Cup Preliminary Final Preview: Queanbeyan Roos V Tuggeranong

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Queanbeyan Kangaroos v Tuggeranong Bushrangers on Saturday at 3:00pm at Seiffert Oval

The Queanbeyan Kangaroos and the Tuggeranong Bushrangers will battle it out for a spot in the TTM Canberra Raiders Cup when they oppose each other at Seiffert Oval on Saturday afternoon.

The winner of the match will go onto face the Queanbeyan Blues in the decider next weekend.

Last year’s runners up, the Kangaroos, are coming off a loss to the Blues whilst the Bushrangers are continuing their Cinderella story after defeating 2012 premiers the Belconnen United Scholars to keep their season alive.

After finishing last year second last on the ladder, the Bushrangers have enjoyed a marvellous turn-around this year and now face the prospect of contesting for the title if they are to defeat the Kangaroos this Saturday.

Given the Kangaroos roster’s big-match experience and talent, the Bushrangers will go into the match as underdogs however it is a tag Tuggeranong Captain-Coach Jarrad Teka is happy to wear.

“We wear the underdog tag very happily,” Teka said. “Not many people gave us a crack this year and we haven’t put any pressure on ourselves this year we’re just playing what’s in front of us.

“It was a good win last week over the Scholars, last year’s premiers, so it’s a good step in the right direction for us in the semis.

“It doesn’t get any easier for us this weekend against last year’s Grand Finalists the Roos. They’re aiming for their fourth consecutive Grand Final so we’ll have to be on our game to stop that from happening.

“They’ve been the form team for the last three or four years and they’ve proven that with their premierships but we beat them the last time we met so we’re confident that we can get the job done again.”

Whilst Queanbeyan were dismayed to have lost last week’s encounter, centre Daniel Watt believes that it was the wake-up call they needed as they approach their fourth Grand Final in a row.

“We’ve got another chance this weekend after having a wake-up call us last weekend,” Watt said. “We have to have the confidence and the belief in ourselves to turn it around this weekend.

“It’s always good to have that added pressure being a do-or-die game. Added pressure does bring out the best in players so hopefully that’s the case for us this weekend.”

Tuggeranong fullback Michael Brophy has ignited his side this year since after returning from the Queensland Cup and will be a heavily marked man by the Kangaroos on Saturday.

“Michael’s the representative fullback and we need to have a good chase on him,” Watt said. “He does a good kick return and he’s got good feet so if you’re not aware and don’t have your eyes on him he can make you look silly.”

With both club’s reserve grade and first grade outfit playing each other at the same venue, there is sure to be an electric atmosphere at Seiffert Oval as both clubs strive to continue their quest for Grand Final glory.

“Having both grades in both preliminary finals is a big thing for both clubs and we’ll have a lot of our supporters travelling up there to help get us one step closer to a Grand Final win,” Teka said.

Whilst Watt added: “Hopefully we can drag a few fans across from Freebody Oval to cheer us on.

Having a lot of supporters there is always good for the confidence. We do know that Tuggeranong has a good following also so it should be a good atmosphere particularly with both grades there.”

Source: http://www.raiders.com.au/news-display/raiders/82612