By Dan

The Canberra Raiders came into this season with a small roster problem. The injury to Albert Hopoate had robbed them of critical depth across the outside backs.

At the time our focus had been on how ‘Bert would be affected by this (the club has since said they would ensure Hoppa has a job for 2026 which is nice). We were also worried about what it might mean for Canberra’s depth. It left them without a clear successor in the outside backs. Hopoate has a lot of charms, but key amongst them was his willingness and ability to passably cover all the positions across the back five.

In the context of their edges being ripped to shreds in recent times, this has taken on another shade. There are no alternative options beyond the current grouping that have NRL experience. In the NSW Cup side Michael Asomua, Jed Stuart, and Manaia Waitere all have their charms, and claims, but picking either of them would be laden with risk.

Asomua is exclusively a winger, so his inclusion would only be at that position, or require further reshuffles. Stuart is certainly has some versatility to his game but would be a step down athletically from the current first graders. Waitere is electric with the ball, but I’ve not been convinced that his defence is ready for first grade. He’s been selected as 18th man in recent weeks, which would suggest the club is ready for him to be ready. But then again, so has Jed Stuart.

It doesn’t help that the Cup team has been in such curious and inconsistent form that it’s hard to suggest any are outperforming the grade. All three backup options have had inconsistent seasons as part of a frustrating team. They haven’t really been afforded the opportunities to show their wares (at least consistently), and in those limited opportunities have looked more solid than spectacular. Zero doors are being knocked down (insert Josh Hodgson joke).

Absent of injury there’s no need to do anything right now but Canberra do need to prepare for possibilities. That makes sense for a first grade team that has been very good this season – don’t fix what isn’t broken. I don’t think they need to make any adjustments on their edges, at least not in personnel. But the fact of the matter is that there isn’t a perfect option that could be used otherwise.

There are precautions available, or being prepared. Simi Sasagi has been a jack of all trades across the first grade squad, playing wherever the club needs him. Before he came to Canberra his position was as an outside back and primarily centre. While he’s been preparing his body to play more robust positions, in a pinch he could certainly cover the position.

Chevy Stewart also played centre in NSW Cup last week, and has been named there again this week. He didn’t look like a natural fit, and still projects as a fullback going forward. But it’s hard not to think the club is putting an insurance plan in place for the short term. This meets two goals: ensuring Canberra has depth at the position while also getting Chev some additional first grade time in the event of injury or other necessity. I’d probably prefer to see him plying his trade at fullback – there’s always lessons to learn – but I can understand the club trying to round out his skill set.

There’s also been some rumours bouncing around the world of the Raiders entering the market again. We won’t repeat them because they’re unverifiable and unreported (at this stage). There are plenty of players with NRL experience in the relevant positions on the edges of rosters that Canberra could potentially get in the door. In fact Canberra had Izaac Thompson on theirs during the off-season. I wonder what happened there?

It’s not a problem yet, and not likely in the immediate future. But I would not be surprised if Canberra kept coming up with new and ingenuous ways to build a portfolio of options here. The shallow pool behind the starters will need to be addressed at some point.

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