It's the first piece to the Canberra Raiders puzzle that senior players believe could lead to a domino effect of re-signings and stability for the Green Machine.
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Raiders coach Ricky Stuart and his players have developed a close bond since he returned to his old club in 2014 and the board decided on Friday they will look to extend his contract until at least 2020.
Both Sia Soliola and Josh Hodgson said the move would provide stability, which will allow Canberra to avoid the dramas that has engulfed the Wests Tigers this season.
Most of the Raiders' top 25 come off contract at the end of next season and the club wants to start locking as many of them in longer term before the 2018 campaign begins.
The Tigers have been thrown into turmoil in the opening rounds this season with the group known as the "big four" - James Tedesco, Aaron Woods, Luke Brooks and Mitchell Moses - all coming off contract at the end of 2017.
It now looks like only Brooks will be with the joint venture beyond this season, with Tedesco, Woods and Moses all set to join other clubs.
But the move to re-sign Stuart could set in motion a chain of events that will help the Raiders avoid a similar saga.
Soliola said it would help convince the playing group to also extend their commitment to the club.
"For sure. We know what the club wants and where it's headed. It adds stability. It gives confidence to us as players as well," he said.
"It's good to know Stick's going to be here ... that's good for the club, that's good for the town and good for us as players.
"We know how he works, there's a good understanding between the board, the club and the players as well. That's good signs."
Hodgson echoed those sentiments as well, saying if a coach "wants to stick by the team ... then obviously the boys are going to do the same".
He was confident Stuart would be with Canberra "for a long time", given his close connection to the club having been a premiership player before returning to now coach the club.
The England international said the Green Machine was still building towards their goal - "to achieve great things".
"It creates stability. We've got a great club here, great bunch of boys and we're all really good mates which certainly helps," Hodgson said.
"When you've got a coach that's brought a squad together and got a squad that's buying into what he's trying to do, then that certainly helps us obviously if the coach is staying on.
"I don't know too much the ins and outs of what's happening, but I'm sure 'Stick' will be here for a long time to come.
"He's a Raider himself, he's always been one and he's doing a great job in getting us all to buy in to what he does.
"The boys have been really good over the past couple of years and obviously we're still building and we want to achieve great things, but it's one week at a time I suppose."
Soliola said Stuart had started the current Raiders "movement" - which saw the club make last year's preliminary final.
While the 30-year-old was vastly experienced - having played in the NRL and English Super League, as well as on the international stage - he said Stuart had grown his understanding of the game as well as of the club's "brand" on a wider scale beyond football.
"He's great because he's the one that started this whole movement," Soliola said.
"He's been awesome the way he's attracted a lot of attention outside football, as well as the players as well, and he's really influenced a lot of us and mentored us in that as well, especially myself and a couple of the older players."
NRL ROUND NINE
Saturday: Canberra Raiders v Canterbury Bulldogs at ANZ Stadium, 5.30pm. Live on Fox League.
