St George Illawarra pair Blake Lawrie and Ben Hunt will celebrate milestone games when they travel to Canberra on Sunday for a must-win showdown against the Raiders.
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Former Dapto Canaries junior Lawrie, who debuted for the Dragons in 2017, will play his 100th NRL game, all of which have been for the Red V.
His Dragons skipper Hunt has played over 280 club games for Brisbane and St George Illawarra. He will bring up his 100th for the Dragons on Sunday.
"I'm pretty excited for it," Hunt said. "I didn't actually know until a couple of days ago. It's pretty exciting to play 100 games for such a great club. It is something I'm very proud of and the important thing is getting a win over Canberra, so we are totally motivated for that."
Lawrie reiterated his captain's sentiments and said Sunday was all about keeping the Dragons' slim finals hopes alive.
"Being a local junior and coming up to play 100 games for my local NRL team means a lot to me and my family. It is a big achievement for myself and my family...but it is not about me, it is not about my day, it is about our team and getting two points and hopefully keeping our finals chances alive," he said.
Lawrie added the Dragons also couldn't afford to get caught up in outside issues effecting their opponents.
Canberra coach Ricky Stuart will miss the match due to being suspended for calling Panthers' player Jaeman Salmon "a weak-gutted dog".
"The spotlight has been on Canberra this week but our main focus is on trying to beat them. It is a fortress down there but we can only control what we can and do all we can to try and pick up the two points," Lawrie said.
A loss to the ninth-placed Canberra (22 points) will spell the end of the Dragons' (20 points) chances of making the finals.
"We obviously need to win this one. Our chances are very slim of playing finals footy, but it's another two points we need and that is our full focus at the moment."
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Agron Latifi
Wollongong born and bred. I love reporting about the Illawarra region and have been doing it for more than 20 years. I've moved into sport recently after covering the education round for the last five plus years for the Illawarra Mercury. It's been a great pleasure.
Wollongong born and bred. I love reporting about the Illawarra region and have been doing it for more than 20 years. I've moved into sport recently after covering the education round for the last five plus years for the Illawarra Mercury. It's been a great pleasure.
