NRL $2,000+ Raiders v Roosters Line-Up

The Roosters and the Raiders face off in Canberra on Sunday to close out the shortened round. The Roosters are severely understrength and are missing five of their key players, including in-form halfback Mitchell Pearce and inspirational back-rower Boyd Cordner. The Raiders on the other hand, will be looking to produce a big victory with only Josh Papalii missing out due to representative commitments.

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Here is a team you may consider for the NRL $2,000+ Raiders v Roosters competition

Front Row Forward

Junior Paulo ($13,300)

Paulo has been a one-man wrecking ball so far this season, with his physicality and brute force inflicting many a bruise on opponents. For his size – he’s listed at 118kg – Paulo has been handling a fairly big minute load extremely well, averaging 59 minutes per game. Not only is he a brute of a runner, but he also has enough ball skills to be able to stand up and get away an offload. Against a very weak Roosters pack, Paulo will be looking to assert his dominance and should end up with some massive numbers.

Kane Evans ($8,450)

Evans has put in some seriously low scores this season, but it has largely been because of a lack of playing time. After regularly playing 30-40 minutes off the bench last year, the towering forward hasn’t yet cracked 30 minutes this season. He’s currently averaging one Draftstars point per minute and with the lack of quality forwards in the Roosters line up this week, he should see at least half a game, which should see him score over 40.

Hooker

Jake Friend ($15,650)

The choice between Hodgson and Friend is a tough one considering the form both guys have been in recently, but Friend gets the slight nod thanks to the representative player crisis at the Roosters. With Mitchell Pearce out, the Roosters will be looking to Friend to provide more kicking metres and a bit more attacking run out of dummy-half. Although his scores have been inflated by tries in recent weeks, his tackling and kicking should be enough to see him outscore Hodgson in this contest.

Second Row Forward

Iosia Soliola ($12,650)

The journeyman second-rower has been excellent for the Raiders in the last couple of years and this season has been no different. When playing in a bench role, Soliola has provided excellent defence and solid metres in limited minutes, but when given the opportunity to start, he has really excelled. In the three games he’s started, he has a lowest score of 41.20 and a highest score of 59.90 which is excellent news for Draftstars owners considering he will be replacing Josh Papalii in the starting line-up this week. Don’t be surprised if he ends up with the highest score of the second-rowers.

Ryan Matterson ($9,500)

After playing predominantly in the halves last season, Matterson has been forced to relocate to the forward pack this season due to the introduction of Luke Keary. Despite mostly being used as a back-rower, he’s been used in a variety of roles from the bench as he’s been asked to fill in at centre, in the halves and at lock. With Boyd Cordner out, Matterson settles into the back-row this week which will mean more minutes and more touches for the skilled big man. Matterson rarely misses tackles and still has the skills of a five-eighth, which will be relied upon with chief playmaker Mitchell Pearce not in the side.

Centre

Joseph Leilua ($9,750)

Coming up against an understrength edge defence and being overlooked for Origin is the perfect combination for Leilua to have a massive game. Last week he was back to somewhere near his attacking best and ended up with six tackle breaks, a line break and a try. He comes in at under $10k thanks to two shocking games in rounds nine and ten, but a player of his quality will be ready to take full advantage of any potential miscommunications defensively from a Roosters team that hasn’t played many minutes together.

Half

Connor Watson ($5,000)

Watson proved himself to be one of the brightest young stars in the game last season, showing massive potential as he clinched the starting five-eighth role at the tender age of 20. The arrival of Luke Keary, however, has left him reeling on the bench this season and has resulted in plenty of other teams expressing interest in the playmaker. He gets his chance to start in the halves this week, so expect his damaging best with the potential for tries, line breaks and big metres from his slippery running game.

Wing/Fullback

Latrell Mitchell ($12,900)

Mitchell has been simply scintillating when he has played this season and this has resulted in four scores of over 49 in his eight games this year. Largely this has come from his lightning speed and agility which leads to plenty of unstoppable runs and breaking of the defensive line. Once he gets going he’s basically unstoppable and although he’s pricey, his ability to fill up literally every attacking stat gives him an upside that can cost you the contest if you don’t have him.

Jordan Rapana ($12,800)

Speaking of lightning, there is perhaps no one more dangerous than the Canberra flyer in full flight. Rapana is currently second to only James Tedesco in tackle breaks this season – averaging 7.45 per game – and he is consistently racking up huge metres thanks to his electric runs. Similar to Mitchell, he’s a guy that can win you a contest and against a weakened Roosters defence, there is every chance Rapana has a massive game.

The Line Up

FR-F: Junior Paulo ($13,300)

FR-F: Kane Evans ($8,450)

HOOK: Jake Friend ($15,650)

2R-F: Iosia Soliola ($12,650)

2R-F: Ryan Matterson ($9,500)

C: Joseph Leilua ($9,750)

HALF: Connor Watson ($5,000)

W/FB: Latrell Mitchell ($12,900)

W/FB: Jordan Rapana ($12,800)

Salary Remaining: $650