BY DAN

What has been forecast for a while is now almost a truth. The Canberra Times is reporting Xavier Savage will finalise a deal in the coming day to extend his time in Canberra through to the end of 2027. We’re glad it’s nearly done. We’ve all been on tenterhooks about this deal. These pages were confident he’d stay in town, but until a deal is finalised none of us will be satisfied.

The purported deal puts him in Canberra colours for at least three more years. He’s broadly on the same timetable as most of the Raiders other stars, with only Ethan Strange on a longer guaranteed deal, and Joe Tapine and Matt Timoko with 2028 options. That speaks to how highly the club values him. He’s a critical part of the team’s future, even at his current level.

Savage has covered a bumpy pathway to get to this deal. It’s a long time since he has hailed a potential saviour, dragged pillar to post as a proxy in Coach Stuart’s battle with the expectations for both the player and the team in recent years. He hasn’t become the messiah, but instead a bloody good footballer who even at his current level is worth every penny.

We’ve noted this before but he was first in tries across the club, second in try involvements, third in line-breaks, fourth in tackle busts. Given the absence of anything suggesting good ball for the most part, his achievements here cannot be understated. And he’s not stopped there. He’s made all the improvements requested. His yardage game has improved markedly, reflected in his career high in running metres in 2024. He’s adjusted to his physique for sure, but also added a raw-boned strength to the package.

This combination of increased power and more intelligent, refined running has led to a consistency that if continued will see him in rep jumpers. He even improved his defence (tackle efficiency up to a career high 74.6 per cent). He has done all this while keeping his top-line speed, a weapon that the Raiders occasionally use to great effect, and would do well to use more.

He’s not just a proven performer for the club. He’s also a symbol. A symbol that they can turn the young clay of the youth movement into proven stars. People like Hudson Young and Corey Horsburgh were what they relied on for that tale in the past. But neither of them came with the expectation that Savage brought with him. That feeling will be familiar to players like Strange and Sanders. Xavier represents proof that Canberra can take that expectation and turn it into reality.

He is both here and now and the future. That’s why he’s important to this club. Not just because he can turn nothing into an eighty metre try. Not just because he can make size defying tackles to stop them. But because he Is hope that Canberra isn’t just guessing their way to success. He is the blueprint.

That may not be true. Savage may have succeeded despite Canberra’s best efforts rather than because of them. So it is useful for the Milk to maintain some semblance of balance in assuming the way they’ve managed X will work for everyone else. But the key aspect is that what we know now is that it’s doable.

That’s enough for now. A deal is still to be finalised. But at least we can all stop wondering and worrying about Savage’s time with the Raiders. It’s now clear he’s sticking around. We just have to wait for the ink to dry.

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