The Canberra Raiders have started their urgent task of addressing their middle rotation with the signing of Josiah Pahulu, per the Canberra Times. The deal is for one year and though there’s no reported range of payments, it’s likely a relatively cheap deal.
This is good business by the Raiders. Their middle has gone from strength, to weakness, to non-existent. Rebuilding the foundations for 2027, and beyond, is a fundamental need, and a herculean task given the paucity of options. This is no silver bullet, but it’s a smart upside bet with a good chance of paying off.
As we’ve noted previously, Pahulu has been on the Raiders for some time. They lost out to the Storm the last time Pahulu was on the market. That they were trying to sign him when the position was stacked speaks how highly they value him. He’s had a couple of rough years at Melbourne, but there are good reasons to think the Milk can extract success out of this deal.
Don Furner last week described him as a “Josh Papali’i style front rower with leg speed and power” to the Canberra Times last week. Canberra have a lot of things right now, but that’s a need they have aimed to meet this offseason. We’ve noted they have a host of young middles ready to play more ‘mobile’ defensive roles, but a spare person to punch a hole in the defence with a bit of brutality is something that left with Trey Mooney and Josh Papali’i.
In the past I called it a ‘single-track’ focus, but it really is just a traditional prop role. Kick the door down, earn a quick ruck, let someone else be fancy off the back of it. Taps and Ata Mariota are really the only first-graders the Raiders have capable of filling that role. One might hope Vena Patuki-Case gets more chances to prove he can do that too next year. Pahulu represents another, slightly more developed, roll of the dice.
Some will note he had a rough period at the Storm, unable to crack a middle rotation bereft of talent. Don Furner put this at the feet of injuries:
He’s had a few injuries, but we played against him two years ago and he was only a young guy, so we’ve just got to see where that pans out.
There’s obviously not a lot of reports on injuries to NSW Cup players (as we noted when we reported the Lipoi Hopoi injury). Pahulu played three games of Cup and three of first grade in 2025. Then 16 games of Cup and one of first grade in 2026. That pattern suggests a significant injury in 2025, and some multi-week brackets in 2026. So it’s fair to think that injuries did play a role in keeping him out of first grade.
He’s also not a fully-formed product. At just 22, he is still years away from his prime, and the fact that he’s been pushing for first grade over the last three seasons is a good sign. Given the relative cost and age profile it’s a solid upside bet. Given the need for his specific skill set, it could be a square peg and hole situation. Pahulu could be ready, having just been held back by circumstance over the last two years. 2027 will be the opportunity he craves.
Canberra need someone first-grade ready in the middle. Pahulu has been pushing that for three years. Maybe all he needs is a bit of health and the opportunity the Raiders afford.
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