Canberra Raiders

Not many people had high hopes for the Canberra Raiders, especially as leading into the season they missed their major recruitment targets. With that in mind, finishing in 10th place is a pretty good result for the Raiders and it came on the back of a few breakout performances from new recruits leading the way.

Both Blake Austin and Josh Hodgson had a big impact in Canberra this season as the offered an attacking threat that hasn't really been seen since Josh Dugan left. This coincided with the return of Sam Williams who took control of the Raiders as the halfback which allowed Austin to flourish running the footy. Throw Jack Wighton into the picture as the fullback and the Raiders' spine had a solid look to it for much of 2015, but looking back on their season and it would have been hard to expect these four players to lead the Raiders into the Finals. They are all talented footy players, but they aren't complete players just yet and all of them are closer to the start of their NRL careers than they are to being considered quality NRL performers week in week out.

Wighton led a group of outside backs who were always tough to keep shackled as they are all big, athletic players. Sisa Waqa proved to be a valuable pick up during the off-season and he did a great job at centre for most of the season and I loved watching him fill in at fullback through the year as well. Jordan Rapana and Edrick Lee were also impressive as they grew in confidence with every NRL game they played, they are both quick while also possessing the power needed to compete in the NRL. Jarrod Croker continues to be one of the most impressive young players in the NRL given how much experience and points he has gained and scored in a relatively short NRL career. He's still got some work to do defensively but his offensive upside overshadows that.

During the season the Raiders welcomed Joey Leilua in their squad from the Knights and while we didn't quite see as much of Leilua as I wanted/the Raiders needed to make the Finals, it was a smart piece of business. Leilua has the ability to be a strike-weapon out wide and when put into a Canberra backline that already looks pretty strong, makes the Raiders a team who can pile on points.

Raiders fans should be pretty pleased with this group of outside backs as they are neither really young or too old; there's a nice mix of youth and experience. That means that there won't be a wait as they develop and that they could enjoy some success sooner rather than later as most of them are in their prime.

One of the big improvers this season was Queensland forward Josh Papalii who looked at home on the Raiders right edge. Obviously Papalii is a fairly big dude but his footwork and agility makes him a weapon on the edge where he runs nice lines or targets a small half. While David Shillington enjoyed one of the best seasons that I can remember him playing, you could say that he up'd the ante in search of a new contract and the Gold Coast Titans obliged. Not to worry though because 2015 has shown us that there are guys like Paul Vaughan and Shannon Boyd who will easily pick up that slack. Both Vaughan and Boyd are typical props and you can see them teaming up in the lime green for many years to come.

Two other off-season buys also bolstered Canberra's forward pack with Sia Soliola a stand out while Frank-Paul Nuuausala enjoyed a solid season. I thought it was a strange season for Nuuausala as he didn't really live up to his billing, but I guess he's not the sort of player who really stands out and at least he's a physical presence through the middle for the Raiders. Soliola was similar in that he would play 80 minutes, not make too many mistakes or miss many tackles and would run hard. There are enough weapons in this Raiders team that these two simply need to add toughness and maintain parity with bigger forward packs to lay that platform. 

Jarrad Kennedy also caught the eye this season as he's a young forward, usually playing out on the edge who rips in with aggression.

There was a stage this season where the Raiders looked like a fair dark horse, especially with Austin as their wildcard. That their season fizzled, is probably fair as this is a team that is still very much growing together as a group which includes Ricky Stuart who is clearly in Canberra for the long haul. In the big scheme of things, 2015 has seen the Raiders establish themselves as a solid NRL side that still lacks a bit on both sides of the ball. If you add a player who oozes x-factor and a tougher defensive edge, then it's easy to envision the Raiders being a consistent top 8 team. Hey, Aiden Sezer goes pretty well.

Player Of The Year - Blake Austin

Youngin' Of The Year - Shannon Boyd

2015 In A Tweet - Chair-kickingly inconsistent but promising.