Te Tai Tokerau Rugby League: Dragons fall to Raiders in close contest, finals hopes still alive

The Dragons led 14-8 at halftime but couldn't hold off the Raiders' comeback.

The Orowhana Dragons went down in a tightly contested round 12 Te Tai Tokerau Rugby League game against the West Coast Raiders.

At the top of the table, the Raiders remain undefeated after their toughest battle yet, against fellow west coasters the Orowhana Dragons on Saturday in Panguru.

In a much-anticipated game, the Raiders put the Dragons under early pressure. After three sets of solid defence to hold them out, the Orowhana boys turned the tables and were first to score through winger Ash Cook.

The Raiders replied with a try in the 22nd minute, thanks to centre Juan Yates. The score was locked up at 4-4.

Dragons halfback Tumoana Halkyard crossed the line and a successful conversion by Rob Harris took the score to 10-4.

Two more unconverted tries were scored by each team before halftime, by Raiders centre Sekii Atutolu and by Dragons fullback D’Angelo Tahitahi.

The boys went to the break with the scoreboard reading 14-8 to the Dragons.

The second half started with a bang with Yates crossing again for the Raiders, taking the score to 14-12.

Supporters on the sideline were pacing and heart rates were racing.

The Dragons extended their lead through impact player Josiah Tii in the 58th minute.

The Raiders were not giving up and their relentless pressure saw Ricky Toby score just 10 minutes later. A successful conversion levelled it all up at 18-18.

The final try of the game came in the 73rd minute with Yates completing his hat-trick for the final score of 22-18.

With three games left to play, the Dragons must win all three and will be watching the results of other games closely to see if they can take a spot in the finals.

For now, it’s onwards and upwards to their next game at home this weekend against the Whangaroa Marlins, while the Raiders head south to take on the Tautoro Titans.