Ricky Stuart 'never been so confused' in emotional one-minute rant after loss to Dolphins

Canberra coach Ricky Stuart claims he has "never been so confused" after a number of contentious calls during a tight eight-point loss to the Dolphins on Thursday night.

The Raiders looked like mounting a late comeback in the nation's capital, but frustrations boiled over after referee Todd Smith and Bunker official Ashley Klein made several decisions which went against the home side in the second half.

At one point, disgruntled Raiders fans booed for about five minutes straight following a call going against them.

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While Stuart didn't mention any specific decisions, he lamented the state of refereeing in a bizarre one-minute rant in which he didn't field a single question from journalists.

"The game has interpretations and rules, and we're in a position at the moment where we're picking and choosing when we apply them," he said.

"It's a very frustrating situation for all those involved, as players and coaches.

"In all the years I've been involved in the game as a player and coach I've never been more confused. It's disappointing to say the least.

"I'm so confused at the moment in regards to, you can't have a rule and apply it one week and not the next week.

"I've never been so confused and it's disappointing because I love the game."

Prior to his one-minute rant and walkout, Stuart paid tribute to Rabbitohs forward Jai Arrow amid his battle with MND, and thanked Raiders fans for braving the cold to support their team.

Raiders forward Morgan Smithies will be awaiting his fate with the match review committee over an act that league great Andrew Johns could not believe was penalised.

Smithies was left in disbelief in the second half of Canberra's 30-22 loss to the Dolphins, after he was pinged for pushing his forearm into the face of Ray Stone when attempting to hold him down in a tackle.

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Stone lost the ball and the Raiders celebrated, only for the Dolphins to be awarded a penalty and Smithies placed on report.

At first, Johns felt the tackle had been misread and that Joe Tapine had been placed on report for a high shot. Phil Gould confirmed that was not the case.

The crowd was heard chanting "bullshit" as a replay of the incident was shown on the big screens at GIO Stadium.

"I totally agree with the crowd," Johns said in commentary on Nine.

"The referee was right there and didn't see any trouble with it, no drama. But then someone 300 kilometres away (has interjected).

"The referee is right there. There is nothing in it. He (Todd Smith) can see it and he can see there is nothing in it."

The chants from the crowd only got louder as the penalty goal was kicked by Jamayne Isaako. Johns made clear that he "totally agreed" with the crowd's view.

But while the two points pushed the visitors further in front, the Raiders were the first to get on the scoreboard in the second half via Zac Hosking.

The Dolphins hit back via a Brad Schneider try in the 69th minute.

Earlier, Canberra were forced to make a late change to their starting line-up after Sebastian Kris was ruled out of the game with a quad injury suffered during the warm-up.

Jed Stuart was not fazed by his late inclusion in the centres and fired over the try line with ease in just the second minute of the match.

"That was just way too easy," Johns said on Nine.

The Dolphins wasted no time cleaning up their attack and later capitalised on an error by Savelio Tamale, who dropped a high ball cold 10 metres out from the try line. Jack Bostock was in close proximity of Tamale when the ball came loose, with the Dolphins gun scooping up the ball and setting up a chance for Tevita Naufahu to strike.

Bostock attempted to add another four points minutes later but was denied due to his foot scraping the paint seconds before he ground the ball in the corner.

As the clock neared the 15-minute mark, a bizarre mishap paved the way for the next try.

An Ethan Sanders bomb went up from just outside the 40-metre line and headed in the path of Trai Fuller, who mistimed his leap and lost sight of the incoming ball.

Fuller ended up laying on his backside as the ball continued bouncing towards the in-goal, twice hitting the crossbar before landing in front of Horsburgh.

Horsburgh, in perfect position, collected the loose ball, twisted his body around and grounded the ball to score the second try for the hosts.

"That's like hitting the jackpot," Nine caller Mathew Thompson said.

The Dolphins stamped 16 points on the scoreboard after Horsburgh's try, finding the try line via Morgan Knowles, Isaako and Stone.

The Raiders only found one more opportunity to strike via Tamale in the 38th minute, narrowing the result at half-time to be leading 22-16.