The Raiders hold a narrow 8-6 lead over the Warriors GIO Stadium at half time.
There was plenty of feeling in the opening minutes of the game after an emotional Jarrod Croker led his side out for his 300th NRL game.
MATCH CENTRE: Raiders vs Warriors live score, stats, video
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After 21 minutes of enthralling football, the Raiders finally broke through the Warriors’ defensive wall as Jack Wighton scored the first try of the night.
Things took a turn off the kick-off when Jordan Rapana’s head collided with the shoulder of Mitch Barnett.
Barnett was sin-binned, while Rapana left the field for a HIA.
Despite being one man down the Warriors managed to score in spectacular fashion when Shaun Johnson put a cross-field kick up for a flying Watene-Zelezniak, who planted the ball down just centremetres inside the sideline.
But just minutes after locking the scores up, a penalty handed the Raiders a chance to take a two-point lead.
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One of rugby league’s all-round good guys Jarrod Croker will celebrate his 300th NRL game when the Raiders host the Warriors at GIO Stadium.
Croker was rested last week to ensure he could celebrate the milestone on home soil.
It will be an emotional game for the 32-year-old, who has had to overcome several serious injuries to get to 300 games.
The Raiders are in red-hot form having won seven of their past eight games. They welcome back fullback Seb Kris from a knee injury and co-captain Elliott Whitehead from a two-game suspension too.
The Warriors bounced back from a loss last week when star halfback Shaun Johnson steered them to a 30-8 win over the Dolphins.
Coach Andrew Webster has been forced into making a change to his backline though with Rocco Berry out due to a concussion. That’s opened the door for Ali Leiataua to make his NRL debut in the centres.
TEAMS
Raiders: 1. Sebastian Kris 2. Albert Hopoate 3. Jarrod Croker 4. Matthew Timoko 5. Jordan Rapana 6. Jack Wighton 7. Jamal Fogarty 8. Josh Papali’i 9. Zac Woolford 10. Joseph Tapine 11. Hudson Young 12. Elliott Whitehead 13. Corey Horsburgh 14. Tom Starling 15. Emre Guler 16. Nick Cotric 17. Pasami Saulo 18. Matt Frawley
Warriors: 1. Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad 2. Dallin Watene-Zelezniak 3. Ali Leiataua 4. Adam Pompey 5. Marcelo Montoya 6. Luke Metcalf 7. Shaun Johnson 8. Addin Fonua-Blake 9. Wayde Egan 10. Bunty Afoa 11. Jackson Ford 12. Marata Niukore 13. Tohu Harris 14. Bayley Sironen 15. Josh Curran 16. Mitchell Barnett 17. Tom Ale 20. Taine Tuaupiki
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