BY DAN

The Canberra Raiders took the not unusual step of releasing their current top thirty for the upcoming season. The action itself was normal. But like any good ‘drop’ it contained some interesting nuggets. Here’s some things we noticed.

Wait. It’s only 28.

We’ve been flagging for a while that we thought the list was light a couple of players. We’d settled at one and two halves, but it turns out that number was ambitious. We’ll get to the reasons below.

Taking this at face value 28 means our magic number is two. So our previous thought that Canberra were holding out a roster spot for a run at some critical skills solutions (a hooker, we need a hooker) has been proven false. The Raiders can get a rake and still get into the market for other options like an outside back. And that still leaves additional space that might be caused by Emre Guler and Danny Levi departures should the push and pull factors respectively come to fruition.

So how did Canberra get this space?

Adam Cook – supplemental?

When the Adam Cook info emerged on the weekend the suggestion was a deal would move him into the top 30. That hasn’t eventuated, in this list at least. Instead he sits on the supplemental list. To be frank that makes more sense to us. He can still play first grade from round one, but it means the game is tee spot is kept for a player on a bigger wage with more certainty of playing first grade. It’s also places him in a clear hierarchy behind Ethan Sanders in the halfback depth chart.

Of course this may be a mirage. While Cook’s deal is reported, it may not be final. There’s ‘Ts’ to cross and lower case ‘js’ to dot. Registration processes with the NRL could also be part of it. In a week’s time well might be recognising the puddle of water for the desert it is. But for now we have increased flexibility.

No CHN?

Another spot seems to have come from Corey Harawira-Naera not being included in the top 30. At last we’d heard he still had a contract for 2025 and would therefore be part of this list. Noting the risk of speculation about an area we can’t offer any useful insight on, we’d be keen to know if this means that there has been some resolution or change to Harawira-Naera’s status with the club.

Regardless of the situation or progress of this discussion I just hope Corey is well.

Jordan Martin

A less depressing outcome is a surprise top 30 elevation for Jordan Martin.

It’s a fitting promotion for the player whose elevation to the first grade debut last season similarly took us by surprise. He didn’t get a real shot at the big time in that game after copping a nasty head knock.

We’re pretty excited for this promotion. Those who had heard Joe Tapine glow about the fact he’s made of cement on the Bloke in the Bar podcast. As Taps said

He’s probably one of the solidest guys I’ve ever had to tackle. He’s dense. He got that solidness that’s thick when you hit him…I reckon he’ll be a good player going forward.

At 24 Martin is entering a real “make it or not” moment. He’s about to hit his prime, and elevation is vindication that Tapine’s view isn’t a standalone. It’ll be fun to see how he goes.

We’ll keep an eye on this as it inevitably changes over the coming weeks and months. But for now these are your 2025 Canberra Raiders.

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