RAIDERS WILL HEAVILY LEAN ON JACK THE RIPPER
THEY are well coached and will make the finals in my eyes. Can Ricky Stuart’s men take that next step and go to the next level with the side they have got? Their forwards give the Raiders a chance – you just know they are going to be there around finals because of their powerful pack.
BACK
The Raiders have some exciting backs but they don’t have a hell of a lot of depth there. Nick Cotric has been good without being great. I am a big fan of Matthew Timoko. He has the best ahead of him. Harley SmithShields is similar. The Green Machine has some young and freakish talents who over the next few years are going to be exciting. But I would say the Raiders are a little bit short in the outside backs.
FORWARD
Their pack is what gives them a big chance. It is the cornerstone of their success and lays the platform for where they need to be when the whips are cracking. Josh Papalii, Emre Guler, Elliott Whitehead, Joey Tapine – one of, if not the best forward in the game – you have a forward pack that really has depth.
SPINE
Jack Wighton, I love him. He is their best player, he is tough, he is a game breaker. He comes up with big plays and is arguably the best defensive five-eighth in the comp. Jamal Fogarty seemed to find his feet at the back end of last year and their combination got better. It is a good halves pairing. The problem is that fullback-hooker. They have Tom Starling, who does a good job, but he has to get to that next level. He is quick and gives good service, great runner. But you have to be elite at hooker to get your team to that premiership. The fullback position is a problem. Although Xavier Savage is a prodigy with speed to burn, he hasn’t quite nailed it. He is only young, I think he will. But he needs to because fullback is so important these days. We have seen glimpses of the spectacular but also errors in big moments..He needs to eradicate them.