Parramatta Eels vs Canberra Raiders NRL finals fulltime score: One-way traffic as Eels thump Raiders to advance

The Parramatta Eels have broken their semi-final curse, defeating the Canberra Raiders in a blitz on Friday evening in their semi-final.

The Eels had been eliminated in the second week of the finals three years in a row, however, a 40 points to 4 win over the Green Machine means they go through to the preliminary finals to face the North Queensland Cowboys in Townsville next weekend.

Clint Gutherson, Dylan Brown and Mitchell Moses were all superb after a horror second half against the Penrith Panthers last week, while the Raiders simply never got themselves into the game.

Parramatta had the first real opportunity of the game after a Jordan Rapana error coming out of trouble and they wasted no time in putting the Raiders under the pump.

A quick shift to the right-hand side saw Will Penisini steamroll through a gap between Rapana and Sebastian Kris, before reaching out to score the opening try of the contest.

Things would quickly go from bad to worse for the Raiders in the opening exchanges, with Elliott Whitehead taken from the field for a concussion test.

The Raiders had their first real opportunity of the game just a few minutes later, however, couldn't capitalise with Jordan Rapana falling short of the tryline.

Ashley Klein didn't send the incident to the bunker however, with replays appearing to indicate Clint Gutherson had knocked the ball out of the Canberra winger's hands, with Marata Niukore then joining Whitehead on the sidelines for a concussion test.

The Eels then went from end to end, with an ugly bounce off a kick stumping Xavier Savage, allowing Tom Opacic to score on the left-hand side, with Parramatta taking a 10-0 lead after just 16 minutes.

Corey Harawira-Naera would become the third player to be taken for a head injury assessment straight after the kick-off, getting his head in an awkward position for a tackle on Reagan Campbell-Gillard.

He wouldn't return, however, both Niukore and Whitehead were able to get back on the park.

The Eels would continue to add the scoreboard, with Waqa Blake and Junior Paulo crossing for tries within five minutes of each other, taking the lead to 22 points to nil, before a long-range effort from Xavier Savage finally got the green machine on the board.

The Eels appeared to add yet more to their halftime lead in the minutes leading up to halftime, however, bunker interference would confirm Maika Sivo had lost the ball short of the tryline, leaving the halftime score at 22 points to 4.

The second stanza got underway the same way as the first one ended, with the Eels back on the front foot.

They quickly added to their point-scoring ways, with Mitchell Moses being the next to cross for a try in the right corner after a long-range effort.

Moses would be taken from the park just minutes later though, appearing to be the victim of a head slam from Jack Wighton, with the independent doctor making sure he would depart for a concussion test. The incident went without any penalty against Wighton or the Raiders.

The star half would ultimately pass his HIA in a welcome relief for the Eels

Despite Moses being off, the Eels would continue pouring on the pressure, with the equation reaching a point per minute for the Raiders, who were down by 24 with 24 minutes to play.

The Eels would put the icing on the cake inside the final ten minutes to go as Dylan Brown and Clint Gutherson linked up on the left to send Marata Niukore away for a try.

Wighton was back in the firing line of Parramatta fans five minutes from fulltime when he appeared to shoulder charge Mitchell Moses. The penalty was ultimately awarded for a second follow up flop, with the two teams coming together as a result.

Niukore would cap the game with a second try in the final 60 seconds off a Mitchell Moses flick pass in the corner.