Pressure is continuing to mount on under-fire St George Illawarra coach Anthony Griffin after the Dragons suffered a 20-14 NRL loss to Canberra.
Days before a crucial board meeting that will shape Griffin's future at the club, the Dragons took a 4-0 lead to halftime but were unable to stop the Raiders in the second half.
It was far from pretty from the Raiders but a crucial victory nonetheless, winning consecutive games for the first time this season and moving to 3-4 to keep touch with the pack in the race for the top eight.
The Dragons' fourth loss in five outings couldn't have come at a worse time for Griffin, immediate results looking crucial with his future likely to be decided in the next month.
A tackle-busting effort from Canberra centre Matt Timoko gave the Raiders the lead on 64 minutes, before Hudson Young sealed the deal with a remarkable length-of-the-field try after a one-on-one strip five minutes from fulltime.
Tautau Moga cut the margin back for 20-14 two minutes from time after picking off a poor Jack Wighton pass and returning it 70m but the Dragons couldn't break through for an equalising try despite attacking deep in Raiders' territory.
The Dragons absorbed early pressure and then camped themselves on the Raiders line, dominating territory through the first half yet failing to find any creativity to crack their way through for a try.
But their effort couldn't be questioned, digging deep defensively to not concede despite the Raiders forcing three consecutive line dropouts before winger Moga finally crossed soon after halftime.
After a dour first half, the Raiders came to life early in the second with Seb Kris crossing via a slick pass from halfback Jamal Fogarty, although they were forced to play 10 minutes without winger Nick Cotric after he was sin-binned for a cynical tackle.
The Dragons immediately exploited that gaping hole, Mat Feagai scoring on his wing to level the score at 8-8, before they went ahead via penalty goal.
It was a forgettable return to action for Cotric, re-aggravating a hamstring injury he suffered in the lead-up to round three and had sidelined him since.
Fogarty continued some of his best form in green, pin-point kicking including two forced dropouts adding to his slick assist, while makeshift fullback Kris ran for a team-high 165m.
Dragons forward Jack De Belin was put on report for a tipping tackle that flipped Raider hooker Tom Starling onto his neck.
