sport, raiders, canberra raiders, raiders, nrl, melbourne storm, storm, jordan rapana, one-on-one strip

They don't like it because they can't do it. And the numbers back Jordan Rapana up. The Canberra Raiders winger wants the suddenly under-fire stripping rule to stay. As The Canberra Times revealed more than two weeks ago, the Raiders are by far the best team in the NRL at it - with co-captain Josh Hodgson the ringleader. The Raiders have had 23 strips so far this season and they'll face the next best team on Saturday - the Melbourne Storm, who have 11. While everyone in Canberra has known about the rule and the Raiders' perfection of it for weeks, it seems Sydney's only just caught on. Sydney Roosters coach Trent Robinson brought the rule into the spotlight on Sunday following their 22-18 victory over the Raiders. He wants it gone and it's not hard to see why - the Roosters have had just two in 2019. But Rapana loves it. And he loves its momentum changing characteristics. He also loves the Poms for being good at - Hodgson (11), John Bateman (3) and Elliott Whitehead (3) are all in the top three in the NRL. Rapana took a subtle dig at the naysayers like Robinson. "I love it. I always think people that don't agree with it just don't know how to do it," he said. "We're good at it and I think it's exciting. Keep it mate, the little Poms are good at it. "It gives you a boost of confidence ... as soon as you get the ball back the energy levels just go to another level. "It's a massive momentum changer. I like the rule and it can definitely change the game." Raiders prop Corey Horsburgh felt if teams wanted to stop it then they should train for it. He also loved the fact Hodgson was getting a strip "every second tackle". Horsburgh was relishing the chance to play against his idol - Storm captain Cameron Smith. "I think it should stay. You should train to defend against it. Obviously hold the ball tighter," Horsburgh said. "Whatever they do [with the rule] they do. We'll just train differently." Rapana said talk was the key to their success - with all the Raiders' knowing when to drop off the tackle. He also felt their opponents "clock off". "It's all about communication ... once you hear the call from one of the other boys once he's got the ball everyone knows to let go," Rapana said. "It's more a surprise element. Some of the players go in there thinking the tackle's almost complete so they probably clock off for that split second." NRL ROUND 22 Saturday: Canberra Raiders v Melbourne Storm at Melbourne, 5.30pm. Raiders squad: 1. Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, 2. Nick Cotric, 3. Jarrod Croker (c), 4. Joey Leilua, 5. Jordan Rapana, 6. Jack Wighton, 7. Aidan Sezer, 8. Josh Papalii, 9. Josh Hodgson (c), 10. Sia Soliola, 11. John Bateman, 12. Elliott Whitehead, 13. Joe Tapine. Interchange: 14. Bailey Simonsson, 15. Dunamis Lui, 16. Corey Horsburgh, 17. Ryan Sutton. Reserves: 18. Sam Williams, 19. Hudson Young, 20. Siliva Havili, 21. Emre Guler. Storm squad: 1. Jahrome Hughes, 2. Suliasi Vunivalu, 3. Will Chambers, 4. Justin Olam, 5. Josh Addo-Carr, 6. Cameron Munster, 7. Brodie Croft, 8. Jesse Bromwich, 9. Cameron Smith (c), 10. Nelson Asofa-Solomona, 11. Felise Kaufusi, 12. Kenneath Bromwich, 13. Dale Finucane. Interchange: 14. Tui Kamikamica, 15. Tino Faasuamaleaui, 16. Joe Stimson, 17. Ryan Papenhuyzen. Reserves: 18. Max King, 19. Tom Eisenhuth, 20. Sandor Earl, 21. Billy Walters.

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