The 2021 Canberra Raiders season was the 41st in the club's history. Coached by Ricky Stuart and captained jointly by Jarrod Croker, Josh Hodgson and Elliott Whitehead, they competed in the 2021 NRL season, placing 10th out of 16 teams and thus failing to make the finals.
Season summary Canberra looked to capitalise on their successful 2020 campaign, however they fell apart mid-season from heavy losses to other teams such as the Penrith Panthers and South Sydney Rabbitohs, losing five games in a row and being demolished by underdogs the Gold Coast Titans. Rumours of a player-coach riff between Stuart and a certain number of players led to the stand-down of Josh Hodgson as captain and the departure of English import George Williams. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the NRL relocated to Queensland to play the rest of the season. This was further setback with the lockdown in Brisbane and 11 other LGAs in June. Multiple injuries to players such as youngster Xavier Savage and hooker Tom Starling threatened to derail their season, but they were successful in gaining wins in the second half of the year, with defeats of Manly, Cronulla and Parramatta successively. They came close to reaching the top eight, however a loss to the Roosters in Round 25 sealed their fate.
Results RoundHomeScoreAwayMatch InformationDate and TimeVenueCrowd1 Canberra Raiders30 - 12 Wests TigersSun 14 Mar, 4:05pm AEDTCanberra Stadium15,6802 Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks10 - 12 Canberra RaidersSun 21 Mar, 6:15pm AEDTNetstrata Jubilee Stadium3,1453 Canberra Raiders31 - 34 New Zealand WarriorsSat 27 Mar, 3:00pm AEDTCanberra Stadium13,4564 Canberra Raiders20 - 4 Gold Coast TitansSat 3 Mar, 7:45pm AEDTNetstrata Jubilee Stadium5,1175 Penrith Panthers30 - 10 Canberra RaidersFri 9 Apr, 7:55pm AEDTNetstrata Jubilee Stadium20,8906 Canberra Raiders10 - 35 Parramatta EelsSat 17 Apr, 7:35pm AEDTCanberra Stadium20,0897 North Queensland Cowboys26 - 24 Canberra RaidersSat 24 Apr, 7:35pm AEDTQueensland Country Bank Stadium13,7918 Canberra Raiders10 - 35 South Sydney RabbitohsThu 29 Apr, 7:50pm AEDTCanberra Stadium14,2609 Newcastle Knights24 - 16 Canberra RaidersSat 8 May, 3:00pm AEDTMcDonald Jones Stadium6,64210 Canberra Raiders20 - 18 Canterbury-Bankstown BulldogsSat 15 May, 3:00pm AEDTSuncorp Stadium45,11511 Canberra Raiders10 - 34 Melbourne StormSat 22 May, 7:35pm AEDTCanberra Stadium14,12012 Sydney Roosters44 - 16 Canberra RaidersSat 29 May, 7:35pm AEDTCentral Coast Stadium10,11313BYE14 Canberra Raiders38 - 16 Brisbane BroncosSat 12 Jun, 7:35pm AEDTCanberra Stadium9,60815 St. George Illawarra Dragons22 - 20 Canberra RaidersSat 19 Jun, 5:30pm AEDTWIN Stadium9,23916 Canberra Raiders6 - 44 Gold Coast TitansSat 3 Jul, 5:30pm AEDTCanberra Stadium7,64617 Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles16 - 30 Canberra RaidersThu 8 Jul, 7:50pm AEDTBrookvale Oval018 Canberra Raiders34 - 18 Cronulla-Sutherland SharksSat 17 Jul, 5:30pm AEDTCBUS Super Stadium3,87419 Canberra Raiders12 - 10 Parramatta EelsThu 22 Jul, 7:50pm AEDTCBUS Super Stadium2,56620 Canberra Raiders24 - 34 Newcastle KnightsSun 1 Aug, 1:50pm AEDTSuncorp Stadium021 Canberra Raiders20 - 12 St. George-Illawarra DragonsFri 6 Aug, 6:00pm AEDTCBUS Super Stadium022 Canberra Raiders16 - 26 Melbourne StormThu 12 Aug, 7:50pm AEDTSunshine Coast Stadium2,52323 Canberra Raiders18 - 19 Manly-Warringah Sea EaglesFri 20 Aug, 6:00pm AEDTSuncorp Stadium6,18124 Canberra Raiders28 - 16 New Zealand WarriorsFri 27 Aug, 6:00pm AEDTBB Print Stadium4,07925 Canberra Raiders16 - 40 Sydney RoostersThu 2 Sept, 7:50pm AEDTBB Print Stadium3,473
Ladder
2021 Squad
Transfers Losses: PlayerSigned fromSigned ToNotesJohn Bateman Canberra Raiders Wigan WarriorsNick Cotric Canberra Raiders Canterbury-Bankstown BulldogsMichael Oldfield Canberra Raiders Parramatta EelsCorey Horsburgh Canberra Raiders Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs (mid-season loan)Ryan James Canberra Raiders Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs (mid-season loan) Gains: PlayerSigned fromNotesRyan James Gold Coast TitansHarry Rushton Wigan WarriorsCaleb Aekins Penrith Panthers
2021 Meninga Medal Award Winners NSW Cup Player of the Year – Kai O’Donnell
NSW Cup Coaches Award – Matt Frawley
Geoff Caldwell Welfare & Education Award – Elliott Whitehead
Gordon McLucas Memorial Junior Representative Player of the Year - Trey Mooney
Fred Daly Memorial Club Person of the Year – Grant Hogan
NRL Rookie of the Year – Harley Smith-Shields & Matt Timoko
NRL Coaches Award – Tom Starling
Meninga Medal – Jordan Rapana
References