Plenty has changed since the Raiders' last trip to North Queensland, and Canberra veteran Sia Soliola hopes that trend continues until at least Sunday morning.
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Last time the Raiders played in Townsville, Soliola was forced to hire a car and make the 2200-kilometre trek home with a fractured cheekbone.
Air expands while flying at altitude, and air within a fractured cheekbone can expand and cause further damage.
So Soliola was forced to jump in a car with Raiders football manager John Bonasera and strength and conditioning coach Nigel Ashley-Jones for a 24-hour drive home back in August 2015.
The trio got to know each other pretty well, and did a lot of sightseeing down the eastern seaboard.
For the record, Canberra lost that game 32-22 to eventual premiers North Queensland, the latest instalment in an eight-game, 11-year drought in Townsville.
And the sights weren't enough to have Soliola interested in a return trip - he's more than happy to squeeze in between Zac Santo and Scott Sorensen on the flight home this time.
"I hope both things change - the result and the flight home," Soliola said.
Soliola will put his body on the line when he leads Canberra's forwards into battle with the sixth-heaviest forward pack in the NRL.
The Cowboys' best starting pack weighs in at 632 kilograms, a list the Raiders lead comfortably when their best players are on the paddock.
They'll be without two of their biggest players in Junior Paulo and Dave Taylor for the opening round, opening the door for Dunamis Lui to make his club debut and Clay Priest to start.
"What we lose with Junior in experience, we gained a lot in energy and excitement with those guys," Soliola said.
"They'll be pretty pumped to play against an experienced forward pack. With the likes of [Jason] Taumalolo and Matty Scott, they've got a lot of experience there.
"It's a huge challenge for them, as well as myself and all of the other forward pack to take on this big pack."
Soliola is confident Lui and Priest will be able to do hold their own in the absence of some of Canberra's most intimidating faces.
"That's the whole point of having depth in the squad," Soliola said.
"The whole point of pre-season is to train guys to that level, so then when your experienced players fall through injury or suspension, the level of football doesn't lose. I think we've got that here at Canberra."
NRL ROUND ONE
Saturday: Canberra Raiders v North Queensland Cowboys at Townsville, 7pm. Live on Fox Sports 2.
Raiders squad: 1. Jack Wighton, 2. Nick Cotric, 3. Elliott Whitehead, 4. Joey Leilua, 5. Jordan Rapana, 6. Blake Austin, 7. Aidan Sezer, 8. Clay Priest, 9. Josh Hodgson (C), 10. Shannon Boyd, 11. Josh Papalii, 12. Sia Solila, 13. Luke Bateman. Interchange: 14. Adam Clydsdale, 15. Dunamis Lui, 16. Jeff Lima, 17. Joe Tapine, 18. Scott Sorensen, 19. Zac Santo, 20. Makahesi Makatoa, 21. Lachlan Croker
Cowboys squad: 1. Lachlan Coote, 2. Kyle Feldt, 3. Justin O'Neill, 4. Kane Linnett, 5. Antonio Winterstein, 6. Michael Morgan, 7. Johnathan Thurston, 8. Matt Scott, 9. Jake Granville, 10. Scott Bolton, 11. Gavin Cooper, 12. Ethan Lowe, 13. Jason Taumalolo. Interchange: 14. Ben Hampton, 15. John Asiata, 16. Coen Hess, 17. Patrick Kaufusi, 18. Sam Hoare, 19. Gideon Gela-Mosby, 20. Javid Bowen, 21. Kalyn Ponga
