BY DAN

It’s all coming together. Owen Pattie signed the ‘Ethan Strange’ extension. Savelio Tamale has impressed in his first outings in the top line. Ethan Strange is starting to test the boundaries of his game at six. Ethan Sanders is pushing Jamal Fogarty for playing time. Noah Martin has been told he’ll play first grade at some point this year. Jake Clydesdale, Matt Nicholson, Joe Roddy, Shaun Packer. Wrap it in a bow, it’s almost perfect.

Almost.

Chevy Stewart remains the outstanding piece of work. At the moment he feels further from first grade than he did this time last year. That’s not a reflection of his efforts or his actual progression, but rather enough material on tape that we actually have some view of his strengths and weaknessess. Instead of just representing our hopes and dreams he is an footballer with things to work on.

It is also because of the play of more experienced brethren. Kaeo Weekes has become the excitement of the day. His speed, his ball work, his physical maturity, and what he brings to the Raiders has put him ahead of Stewart in the depth chart. He’s been lauded by team-mates (and these pages) for what he adds. Stewart has obvious talents in almost all facets of the game, but these are all in development, and the difference between him and Weekes is literal years.

It’s too early to get carried away but the potential to put the club in is a difficult position is real. Stewart is part of a cadre of players (alongside Strange and Sanders) who came to the club to build something together. Stewart is a sort after talent, desired by Sydney clubs, and if he has no pathway to first grade he may well leave. Ethan Strange has been clear about wanting to stay in Canberra, and Ethan Sanders has a deal out to 2027, but the risk becomes does the temptation exist to move the project elsewhere. You can’t turn personnel decisions over to the players (though Stuart occasionally seems to) but this is a risk that need to be managed.

That’s a long term problem that can be mitigated by making sure Stewart continues his development at a suitable pace. From what we’ve seen this year that is happening. In the pre-season trial games he looked noticeably faster, at least comparable to the talent around him. He was also more penetrative in his attempts to break the line. That’s mostly phyiscal development, but also heavily influenced by a growing understanding of his abilities relative to the opposition. That always seems a big lesson young stars need to learn. When you’re a superior athlete to everyone in junior footy you don’t have to think too much. When everyone is a superior athlete then you have to have something else to offer.

For Stewart that’s in darting running style and his ball playing ability. We saw a more direct Chevy in the trials, scything around the ruck with pace and penetration. We also saw him in shifts, a critical secondary ball player outside the halves. He’s got a great eye and ability to read the two-in defender (usually the centre), and it means he is already ‘NRL ready’ with that key decision that fullbacks often have to make in attack.

In Cup in round one we didn’t necessarily get a repeat. Most often the ball play was held tight in the hands of the duelling banjos of Ethan Sanders and Adam Cook. Danny Levi also played much of the game as a ball-playing 13. Particularly as the Raiders gave up the ball incessantly in the second half, Stewart became an afterthought on attacking movements, not really getting a chance to showcase these skills. He also may have been out of position on the kick that became a opposition try (I say ‘may’ because he was on the other side of the field filling in for someone on the other edge – it’s impossible to tell from the TV who’s responsibility it was to fill back).

If there’s a place he still needs to clean up it’s his kick diffusal. It’s not (usually) an issue of positioning, or desire. But under pressure he’s still prone to an error. There’s many things that can cause that, but most likely is that the game operates at a pace and intensity that he’s still coming to terms with. Experience matters there, both in NRL but also Cup footy. It’s important to remember that he’s barely had 18 months of playing footy against adults. He’s still only Redgum aged (the song, not the stringybark).

At the risk of telling you a) what you already know and b) what we’ve said in these pages a literal million times, development is not linear. Everyone travels at different paces in fits and starts. Chev is making progress. It’s not enough to push his way into first grade like Strange or Tamale. But it’s also not close to panic stations, or any idea of giving up on the project. The talent is still obvious. The progress is continuous. It’s just a matter of time.

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