Broncos in top four; Raiders crowned minor premiers; Manly stay alive

75 min: It's game on after Burns scored in the corner following lead up play by secondrower John Bateman to create space for the former Rabbitohs and Bulldogs winger. Drinkwater converted. Broncos 38 Cowboys 30.

70 min: Haas has all but sealed Brisbane's win and a top four spot after scoring a brilliant individual try. Broncos 38 Cowboys 24.

68 min: Nanai has been denied a try after winning a contest with Staggs for a grubber from Clifford only for the Bunker to rule that he had knocked the ball into the Broncos star before diving over to score.

65 min: Jordan McLean is back on for what is likely to be the last 15 minutes of his career after announcing his retirement during the week.

60 min: More Walsh magic has put the Broncos further ahead after he again sent Shibasaki racing away before Walters finished a 70m movement to score, although there was a question mark over the final pass. Walsh converted. Broncos 32 Cowboys 24.

51 min: The Broncos have hit back immediately after Nanai lost the ball in his own end and Hunt pirouted out of a tackle before throwing a long pass to Walsh who put Shibasaki over for his second try. Walsh's conversion hit the posts. Broncos 26 Cowboys 24.

48 min: Valemei grabbed his second try to put the Cowboys back in front after intercepting a Walsh pass and sprinting 50m to score. Drinkwater converted. Cowboys 24 Broncos 22. 

Halftime summary

The Queensland derby between the Broncos and Cowboys rarely fails to deliver and this latest instalment is no different. The Broncos are playing for a top four spot and the Cowboys are playing for pride in their last match of the season but try telling that to the capacity crowd in Townsville willing the home team to an upset win. And until the final two minutes of the first half the Cowboys fans had plenty to cheer but enterprising play by Billy Walters and Reece Walsh created back-to-back Broncos tries to give the visitors a 22-18 lead. 

40 min: Walsh has flipped the game on its head by starting and finishing a 70 metre movement on the last play of the first half. Walsh threw a long pass to unleash winger Deine Mariner and then backed up to score. Walsh missed the conversion. Broncos 22 Cowboys 18.

38 min: The Broncos have hit straight back after Billy Walters hit winger Josiah Karapani with a 20-metre bullet pass for a try just before halftime. Walsh converted and we are all locked up. Cowboys 18 Broncos 18.

35 min: The Cowboys have hit the front for the first time after Dearden put strike secondrower Jeremiah Nanai through a gap and he offloaded for Jake Clifford to pick up a loose ball and score. Drinkwater converted. Cowboys 18 Broncos 12.

20 min: NSW Origin hooker Reece Robson has levelled the scores for the Cowboys after racing over from dummy half following a powerful run by Jason Taumalolo. Cowboys 12 Broncos 12. 

15 min: The Cowboys have hit back after halfback Tom Dearden, fullback Scott Drinkwater and centre Zac Laybutt combined to create an overlap for winger Semi Valemei, despite the Broncos having an extra player. Drinkwater converted from out wide. Broncos 12 Cowboys 6.

11 min: The Broncos have taken advantage of the one-man advantage, with halfback Ben Hunt putting centre Kotoni Staggs over for their second try. Walsh converted. Broncos 12 Cowboys 0. 

7 min: The Cowboys are down to 12 men after Braidon Burns was sinbinned for dangerous contact after connecting with the kicking leg of Walsh.

3 min: Star fullback Reece Walsh has put Queensland Origin centre Gehamat Shibasaki over for the opening try. Walsh converted. Broncos 6 Cowboys 0.

Late Mail

Cowboys: Centre Viliami Vailea is a late withdrawal with a hamstring strain so Zac Laybutt joins the starting side and Kai O'Donnell joins the bench. Jordan McLean will line up at prop for the final game of his NRL career after announcing his retirement on Wednesday. Jaxson Paulo is the 18th man.

Broncos: Adam Reynolds will no longer travel to Townsville after an setback in his recovery from a hamstring injury. He was pushing to return from the injury suffered in Round 23 and was initially named on an extended bench. Brendan Piakura however is on track to return from a concussion and has been named on the bench. Payne Haas had 'a bit of a sniffle this week' according to coach Michael Maguire but he is good to go against the Cowboys. No changes.

Dragons v Sea Eagles at Jubilee Stadium

Mathematical chance

Manly won 40-24 but the 16 point margin is unlikely to be enough to secure them eighth spot, even if the Roosters lose to the Rabbitohs and the Sea Eagles beat the Warriors next weekend. The Sea Eagles scored seven tries but the conceded four and trail the Roosters by 82 points on for-and-against, meaning they will need to win by a big margin and hope the Roosters lose by a big margin. 

80 min: Fijian international Caleb Navale scored his first NRL try after being awarded a penalty try after being held back by Dragons secondrower Jacob Halangahu as he chased a kick by Brooks. Sea Eagles 40 Dragons 24.

78 min: Emre Guler scored a consolation try for the Dragons to make Manly's task of qualifying for the finals even harder. Sea Eagles 34 Dragons 24.

66 min: Tommy Talau has scored Manly's sixth try after Cherry-Evans put him over from close range. Cherry-Evans converted. Sea Eagles 34 Dragons 18.

58 min: The Sea Eagles hit back after Cherry-Evans put Waddell into a gap with a short pass and the secondrower crossed for his second try. Cherry-Evans converted. Sea Eagles 28 Dragons 18. 

53 min: Another Dragons kick, this time by Buchanan, has resulted in another try after Luke Brooks fumbled the ball on the ground with Sloan charging on him. Liddle and King-Togia spread the ball before Gutherson threw an overhead pass for winger Christian Tuipulotuto to score. Flanagan converted. Sea Eagles 22 Dragons 18. 

50 min: Dragons winger Tyrell Sloan showed his class after sprinting down the sideline and kicking in-field for hooker Jacob Liddle to pick up the ball and dive over to score. Flanagan converted. Sea Eagles 22 Dragons 12.

43 min: A blow for the Sea Eagles with prop Toafofoa Sipley sent to the sinbin for a cannonball tackle on David Klemmer.

Halftime summary

The Sea Eagles need to win big to keep their finals hopes alive and their big name stars Tom Trbojevic and Daly Cherry-Evans have stepped up to give their team every chance in a dominant first half. Manly have scored four tries but it could have been six and the mood that Trbojevic is in suggests they will go on with the job. Not only do the Sea Eagles have to win, they need to win by as big a margin as possible and then repeat the effort against the Warriors next week, while hoping the Roosters lose to South Sydney. A lot needs to go Manly's way but they are giving themselves every chance.

40 min: Schoupp has scored on the stroke of halftime after Trbojevic broke into the clear and passed to Cherry-Evans, who found the former Bulldog and Titan in support. Cherry-Evans missed the conversion. Sea Eagles 22 Dragons 6.

33 min: The Dragons had another reprieve after the Bunker ruled that Saab did not have sufficient downward pressure when he attempted to ground a loose ball in the in-goal.

29 min: Dragons junior Aaron Schoupp has come on to replace Koula after the star centre came from the field with a knee injury.

26 min: Only a desperate tackle by Buchanan has prevented the Sea Eagles from scoring another try after Tom Trbojevic was ruled to have been stopped just short of the line. 

23 min: Sea Eagles winger Jason Saab would be one of the few players who could give Koula a run for his money in a sprint race and Cherry-Evans unleased him with a flick pass before backing up to score. Sea Eagles 18 Dragons 6.

21 min: Tongan speedster Tolutau Koula, who is arguably the fastest player in the NRL, put Manly ahead with a 70 metre try after beating Hayden Buchanan and swerving around Clint Gutherson. Sea Eagles 12 Dragons 6.

11 min: The Dragons have hit back through rookie five-eighth Lyhkan King-Togia, who handled three times in a 60-metre movement before scoring himself. Kyle Flanagan converted. Dragons 6 Sea Eagles 6.

5 min: The Sea Eagles need a big win to keep their slim finals hopes alive and Corey Waddell started the bid for points when he sliced through the defence off an inside ball from Daly Cherry-Evans to open the scoring. Cherry-Evans converted. Sea Eagles 6 Dragons 0. 

Late Mail

Dragons: Jaydn Su'A (knee), Jack de Belin (concussion) and Hame Sele (concussion) are all on track to return for the Dragons in a major boost for Shane Flanagan's side. Tyrell Sloan is also set to come back into the starting team, with Corey Allan dropping to 18th man.

Sea Eagles: Young gun Joey Walsh has been named 18th man for the second-straight week with coach Anthony Seibold suggesting he is unlikely to get a crack this season. "He is close to making his debut but we have to consider we are still in contention for the top eight so we wanted to have continuity this week but he's not far away," Seibold said. No changes for Manly when the teams were finalised 60 minutes before kick off.

Raiders v Wests Tigers at GIO Stadium

Raiders win minor premiership

The Canberra Raiders are officially the 2025 minor premiers after securing first place with a 24-10 defeat of Wests Tigers before a capacity GIO Stadium crowd. The Raiders won their first minor premiership since 1990 after winning 19 of their 23 matches so far, starting with a stunning win over the Warriors in Las Vegas. Ricky Stuart's men are now guaranteed two home semi-finals in their quest to bring the premiership trophy to the nation's capital for the first time in 31 years.

76 min: Ethan Strange has sealed the win and minor premiership after Young offloaded to Tapine and the boom playmaker backed up to score his fifth try in three weeks. Fogarty converted. Raiders 24 Tigers 10.

68 min: The game was stopped after a heavy shot by Skelton on Strange left the Tigers winger on the ground and he was taken from the field for a HIA. Strange bounced to his feet and is fine to continue. 

58 min: Great goal line defence by the Raiders, with Jed Stuart stopping Taylan May on the line and Hudson Young tackling Fonua Pole just short before Samuela Finau lost the ball trying to score. 

56 min: The Tigers have their best chance of the second half after Raiders fullback Kaeo Weekes fumbled a Luai bomb near his own line.

51 min: The Tigers are just hanging on as the Raiders have had three near chances in as many minutes but the visitors have managed to repel them, while conceding back-to-back goal line drop outs.

48 min: Sisagi has put the Raiders further ahead after Fogarty and Strange combined to create enough space for the versatile youngster to charge over to score. Fogarty converted from the sideline. Raiders 18 Tigers 10.

Halftime Summary

If the Raiders expect to wrap up the minor presentation and be presented the JJ Giltinan Shield in front of a capacity home crowd at GIO Stadium, Wests Tigers have other ideas. The match is evenly poised at halftime, with the Tigers troubling the Raiders with an adventurous attacking style and they will have the strong wind at their backs in the second term. The battle of the halves is likely to have a huge impact on the result, with Jamal Fogarty pegging the Tigers on the back foot with his kicking game and Jarome Luai at his scheming and creative best for the visitors.

38 min: The Tigers have scored a stunning try after the ball went through nine sets of hands, including twice by Luai, whose jinking run across the face of the defence created space for winger Jaral Skelton. Raiders 12 Tigers 10. 

32 min: Corey Horsburgh has hit back for the Raiders after crashing over for his first try of the season. Fogarty converted. Raiders 12 Tigers 6.

28 min: Jahream Bula has levelled for Wests Tigers after star playmaker Jarome Luai put secondrower Samuela Fainu into space and the Fijian fullback backed up to score. Api Koroisau converted. Raiders 6 Tigers 6. 

24 min: Fogarty was disallowed a try after Josh Papalii was penalised for obstruction. 

20 min: Stuart redeemed himself for his early error and penalty after a booming Jamal Fogarty bomb swung away from Turuva and bounced up for the Raiders rookie to score his fifth try in nine matches. Fogarty converted. Raiders 6 Tigers 0.

17 min: The Raiders used to the masters of the one-on-one steal but the Tigers have turned the tables on them after Latu Fainu stripped the ball from Simi Sasagi.

15 min: The Tigers have won a captain's challenge after Sunia Turuva was tacked in-goal, forcing a goal line dropout, but the decision was overturned and the visitors awarded a penalty due to a mid-air tackle by Stuart. 

11 min: Jed Stuart has lost the ball on the first tackle running the ball of his own line.

9min: The Tigers have been on the back foot in the early exchanges, with the Raiders have possession for seven of the first 10 sets, but a one-on-one strip by Starford Toa on Ethan Strange has shifted momentum. 

1 min: Kick off has been delayed as fans pour into GIO Stadium but the teams are on the field now and we are underway.

The final word

NRL CEO Andrew Abdo is reportedly at GIO Stadium to present the JJ Giltinan Shield to the Raiders if they win. Canberra haven't finished a season as minor premiers since 1990 - also the year of their last grand final triumph.

The match is officially a sell-out in Canberra as Raiders fans hope to see the Green Machine seal the minor premiership following the Storm's loss to the Roosters last night.

The Raiders suffered a blow last weekend when Xavier Savage was ruled out for the season but it saved Ricky Stuart a massive selection headache as Savelio Tamale is back and he was in sensational form before being injured.

With the NRLW match at GIO Stadium just finishing after the Raiders snatched a 17-16 golden point win against Wests Tigers, the teams are now on the field for their warm-up.   

Late Mail

Raiders: Simi Sasagi has come into the centres an hour before kick-off with Seb Kris dropping out. Noah Martin is the new man on the bench. Savelio Tamale returns from a dislocated kneecap and will replace Xavier Savage on the wing. Savage's season is over after he fractured his shoulder in last week's dramatic win over Penrith. Matty Nicholson will have to wait another week for his NRL return after coming back from injury in NSW Cup last week. Danny Levi is 18th man.

Wests Tigers: The Tigers are 1-17 with no late changes. Starford To'a returns to the field after he was a late withdrawal last week with a shoulder injury. Adam Doueihi has been ruled out with a facial fracture, which will see Latu Fainu start at halfback and Heath Mason join the bench. Tristan Hope is 18th man.

Numbers Game

• The Raiders have won nine of their past 10 games against Wests Tigers.
• Wests Tigers have not won at GIO Stadium since 2018.
• The Raiders have won nine from 10 at GIO Stadium this season.
• Wests Tigers centre Taylan May has scored four tries in his last four games.
• Raiders prop Josh Papalii will play his 150th game at GIO Stadium.