Canberra Raiders 34–16 Cronulla-Sutherland — Elimination Final, 2012 NRL Finals Series
9 Sep 2012 · Canberra Stadium, Canberra, ACT · Attendance: 24,450
Data last verified: 11 August 2026.
Elimination Final, 2012 NRL finals series: Canberra Raiders 34–16 Cronulla-Sutherland, at Canberra Stadium, Canberra, ACT on 9 Sep 2012.
Sourcing caveat: No source provided try-scoring minutes; these are omitted rather than estimated. Touch judges/video referees are single-sourced and omitted here for that reason. Rugby League Project's own results table labels this match a 'Qualifying Final' while the structural/media convention used on this site treats it as an Elimination Final (5th vs 6th seed) — treated as inconsistent labelling, not a factual discrepancy.
Scorers
| Canberra Raiders | Tries: Sandor Earl; Sandor Earl; Blake Ferguson; Blake Ferguson; Glen Buttriss; Josh Papalii; Sam Williams Goals: Jarrod Croker (3/4 conversions) |
| Cronulla-Sutherland | Tries: Wade Graham; Ricky Leutele; Nathan Stapleton Goals: Todd Carney (1/1 conversions); Nathan Stapleton (1/2 conversions) |
Team sheets
| Canberra Raiders | Cronulla-Sutherland | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Josh Dugan | Fullback | Isaac Gordon | 1 |
| 2 | Sandor Earl | Wing | Matthew Wright | 2 |
| 3 | Jarrod Croker | Centre | Ricky Leutele | 3 |
| 4 | Blake Ferguson | Centre | Colin Best | 4 |
| 5 | Reece Robinson | Wing | Nathan Stapleton | 5 |
| 6 | Josh McCrone | Five-Eighth | Todd Carney | 6 |
| 7 | Sam Williams | Halfback | Jeff Robson | 7 |
| 8 | David Shillington (c) | Prop | Bryce Gibbs | 8 |
| 9 | Glen Buttriss | Hooker | Isaac De Gois | 9 |
| 10 | Dane Tilse | Prop | Mark Taufua | 10 |
| 11 | Josh Papalii | Second-Row | Jeremy Smith | 11 |
| 12 | Joel Thompson | Second-Row | Anthony Tupou | 12 |
| 13 | Shaun Fensom | Lock | Paul Gallen (c) | 13 |
| Substitutes | ||||
| 14 | Shaun Berrigan | Andrew Fifita | 14 | |
| 15 | Joe Picker | John Morris | 16 | |
| 16 | Mark Nicholls | Jayson Bukuya | 17 | |
| 17 | Tom Learoyd-Lahrs | Wade Graham | 20 | |
| David Furner | Coach | Shane Flanagan | ||
Match officials
| Referee | Tony Archer and Chris James (two-referee system) |
Match report
Canberra's 2012 finals appearance was itself a story: a mid-season turnaround under coach David Furner lifted the Raiders to sixth on the ladder after years out of contention, and this elimination final against fifth-placed Cronulla was their first home final in years, drawing a strong Canberra Stadium crowd of 24,450. The Raiders were dominant, leading 16-6 at halftime and pulling away in the second half for a comprehensive 34-16 win. Winger Sandor Earl and Blake Ferguson each crossed twice, with Ferguson's second try sealing the result. Forward Josh Papalii drew attention for his physicality, including hits on Sharks captain Paul Gallen that had commentators discussing his representative prospects. Jarrod Croker, who led the competition in points that season, kicked 3 from 4. For Cronulla, tries to Wade Graham, Ricky Leutele and Nathan Stapleton were not enough, and the loss ended their season at the first hurdle. Canberra advanced to the second week of finals, where they were beaten by South Sydney the following week.