What a trip! I can honestly say that I’ve been on Raiders away trips since 1994 and can’t recall a Raiders Army away trip of that magnitude. Everything seemed to work out perfectly in the end. The celebrations during the second half and at full time were some of the best I’ve been involved in. The character and resolve shown by the players to almost certainly book their place in the finals for 2008 was outstanding. The celebrations that followed were joyous.

The day started bright and early with a 8am departure from Civic. There looked to be a few rough and weary travellers, however that was to be expected as more than half the RA never even knew that there was an 8am on Sunday. No sooner were we down the road and the entertainment begun. KW pulled out the family nest egg, a game transferred from Beta cassette to some fancy DVD format featuring the mighty Raiders beating Souths at Seiffert Oval in 1989. The only other possibility is that it actually came with the bus. We discussed the ex players, in between loving and debating the rules and calling out ‘Go to the video’ after the tries. By half time I had recycled that Dad’s joke no less than 4 times. These discussions about the game were only cut short for the odd rendition of ‘Nothin’s sweet about Marko’. Meninga might have been the cult figure on the screen, but look no further than Marko in 2008. He’d get plenty more songs later on too.

Next was the mandatory breakfast stop at Macca’s. Eric Wu, our resident photographer extraordinaire, led the charge in terms of picking off their healthy choices menu by devouring a large chocolate sundae before 10am. Back on the bus and it was a replay of last week’s match against the Knights to keep us all happy and in high spirits.

We arrived at the stadium in no time and set off for the pre game meet up at the pub with the local Raiders fans. Upon arrival it seemed like a Raiders home game with mainly Raiders fans paying for beers that had rent built into the price. There was also a BBQ outside selling sausage sandwiches for $5 a pop! I heard a few comments that they cost an arm and a leg. After seeing a photo on KW’s phone, some poor bugger lost more than that unfortunately. Someone said it was a discarded snag but I’ll never be convinced. Many of us glumly watched the under 20’s on the tele as they went down to Souths in a rare defeat. Soulsy (who clearly should have been on the complementary water’s at the introductory price of $3 a glass) was trying to raise money for a shout by selling his band’s new CD, there weren’t enough Marko songs for my liking. An RA song or two later led by the Ultra, and it was off to the ground for kick off. I was later informed that there was much debate at the pub whether Toby was going to get a long sharp object into the ground. Had it not been attached to his toe, some say he would have been denied.

I arrived at the bay to find a sea of green. There were numerous Raiders supporters behind also. There was a sense of carnival atmosphere as we waited for Tonguey to lead the boys out. As soon as they came out the Raiders fans came to life and you could hear the noise for the Raiders echoing around ANZ Stadium. Once again you’d have thought it was a Raiders home game.

Early in the first half we kicked deep to the corner and Souths tried to play out from the back. Purts took an intercept and went over to a roar from the Raiders end, only beaten in decibels by the sight on the big screen of the Gladiator himself, Rusty Crowe, burying his head in his hands….‘Stick that in your comic book of feuds big boy!’ I yelled. Then Souths came back into it. The Raiders fans rallied behind the boys but they just seemed flat. The noise and songs kept flowing though, right till halftime when Sandow appeared to break our backs with a field goal. 19-6 at half time, I had a feeling it wasn’t to be the Raiders day. Little did I know….

Second half. ‘The Nose’ runs a top line, regathers a Campo kick to start the scoring within minutes of kick off. Great start. Next Besty streaks down the left using that right hand fend like a weapon and goes over. Souths fans must have been unsure whether to be happy or sad after seeing it. I’d advise them to be very pleased. The Raiders Army were getting right behind the boys now and Souths fans were deathly silent. Raiders songs are echoing around the ground. Purts then gets a second right in front of the Raiders fans to put us in front….Here we go, here we go! Now Kelly joins in on the act and takes another intercept to score. The Raiders are flying. 28-19 and the fans can pretty much see the finals in their sights as they try get louder. Next captain courageous Tonguey busts straight though and passes to Milney who sprints away untouched and scores under the sticks. The scenes in Bay 112 are wild. It looks more like a mosh pit in there than a football match. Next up it is time for Mona’s to join in, Raiders 40-19 with 11 to play. We’re home now and the Raiders fans are going mental. The final stages of the match are more of a celebration for the Raiders Army and the fans, as we realise that against all the hurdles this season, finals are all but guaranteed. A few of us gave the Gladiator a wave and changed a few words of Green Day to ‘We’ll wake you up when September ends’. I wonder if that will make the book…..

The atmosphere in those final 10 minutes and after the match until we left the stadium was amazing, even then there were songs all the way to the bus. I’ve been part of some great Raiders moments in the Army but I can’t think of anything to rival that so far. It was brilliant. The celebrations and unity between Raiders fans was magic. At full time the players came over to a wonderful reception, it was almost like a party. I’ve since heard that on the radio commentary they were amazed at the sight of a 50 metre line of Raiders fans 5 deep up against the fence to praise their heroes. Full credit to everyone involved. That would have been a special moment for the players as well as the fans, it won’t be forgotten by either in a very long time I imagine.

The Canberra contingent then gathered at the bus and a group photo was taken. The fun police then made a brief speech about having a few celebration beers on the bus responsibly, some people are just too straight I say! No sooner was the bus heading along the M4 and there were songs being belted out in jubilation. The QBN crew have really taken to ‘We’re gonna win the league’. I reckon they’d only like it more with a reference to Marko! The queue for the toilet began. As the trip went on, the celebration songs were coming thick and fast. They were only interrupted for the left side and the right side to have a battle of songs. For only the 2nd time in RA history, Raiders Alouette came out for a run. What an interesting tune that is….might need some work before its next rendition. The toilet queue got longer. I met a fan called ‘That boy’ Reinaldo who I’d never seen on the bus previously and we had a chat about supporter groups and how they run in his native Chile. Marko and I then proceeded to sing a song about Reinaldo lifted straight from Manchester United, but instead of playing on the left and right, he sings for the left and right. I feel this song could really take off in the future….

We stopped off for dinner at the trusty Macca’s again and gave the driver time to empty a certain tank towards the back of the bus which was close to overflowing. Mr Boags had a lot to answer for. Inside Maccas, I saw a familiar walk as a man in a hood approached the counter trying to conceal his face. It was none other than our flying fullback in marvellous form, Milney. He looked over and I gave him the mandatory fist pump to signify the win, and got one back. I doubt he was ordering off the Eric Wu menu. Then it was the final leg home in what was a great day. Wendy provided some Aussie music classics and everyone sang along as loud as they could, all the while making sure they snuck the word ‘Marko’ in at every given chance. A personal favourite was ‘I kissed Marko and I liked it, hope my girlfriend don’t mind it’. This information further confirms that there is nothin sweet about the man in question. The songs continued all the way back to the bus station to round off probably the best Raiders Army trip I’ve ever been on. Its days like Sunday which make all the hard effort and organising worth it. Simon and I celebrated that fact a little more at the now infamous All Bar Nun. We reflected on how in 2004 we sometimes had less than 10 people in the Raiders Army, singing songs and getting looked at like madmen. Why bother? Now we knew why. It has come a long way and a lot of people should be congratulated. You all make it what it is and now we are right up there with Cronulla as the best supporters group in the league.

So now we have 2 weeks of the regular season left and then finals. It is time to keep going and getting behind the team, and ensuring they have the kind of support they got on Sunday. If they do, we’ll know we’ve done everything we could of to get them over the line. It’s been such a good year and it hasn’t ended yet.

This Saturday the plan for people in Canberra is to meet up at the Lighty to watch the NQ game. The more people that attend, the better. They’ve been a really good sponsor this season, please try to support them.

Finally to the Bulldogs game the following Sunday. I have a feeling this will be the biggest and best Bay 72 Raiders Army turn out ever. The mighty Craig and ever reliable Jed have organised a coach from Sydney so we have plenty of numbers to join the cause. It will be a celebration. Bring your voice and as many Raiders fans as you can to Bay 72 and lets send the boys to the finals in style. If you can make the Lighty before the game, even better.

Its been awesome but it’s not over yet.

Believe.