Wests Tigers beat Canberra Raiders Adam Doueihi LAchlan Galvin who won 48-24. upset

The Wests Tigers beat the Canberra Raiders 48-24 at Campbelltown Stadium to end round 16 of the NRL season with a bang.

Wests Tigers representative Stefano Utoikamanu told Fox League before the game that he “wants to be known in my career as a winner”.

If he and the Tigers perform as consistently as they did in the first 60 minutes of Round 16, then Utoikamanu will get to be a reality. The young prop was huge in his side’s victory, capping the performance with a try in the 52nd minute.

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Much was made in the pre-game about the difference in experience between the two teams, with Canberra’s starting front row boasting almost 500 games of experience.

And for much of this game it felt like boys against men, although boys played like men and men played like boys.

A young Tigers side blew Canberra away early in the game, scoring the first try in the third minute. 18-year-old debutant Luke Laulilii grabbed his first NRL try in the 10th minute as the Tigers dominated proceedings until Sione Fainu crossed in the 34th minute.

Summing up how young this Tigers outfit is, Fainu, Galvin and Laulilii each scored the first try of their young 11-match careers, Galvin the most experienced player of the trio.

This game could have been put to bed until Fainu went down, with the Tigers having three tries disallowed in the first 26 minutes of the game.

Benji Marshall’s side played with an energy and spirit that has been missing for much of the season, as if they all had a chip on their shoulders and a point to prove. For most of the game, they made their point loud and clear.

In a sea of ​​inexperience, it was Api Koroisau, Aiden Sezer and Stefano Utoikamanu who really stepped up when the Tigers needed them.

At the Fox League break, Koroisau and Sezer received plenty of praise from Premiership winner Michael Ennis.

“The Tigers offense was great. I think Api back at hooker and Sezer back at attack made the difference,” Ennis said.

Tries from Galvin Jahream Bula, Utoikamanu and Koroisau in the opening 17 minutes of the second half looked to have buried the Raiders, the Tigers free-flowing attack resulted in some what some would describe as miraculous tries in the second 40.

Galvin’s second was especially pleasing for Tigers fans, with the young team switching from inside their own half to third tackle, stripping the Raiders for numbers on the edge and running 70 yards to score.