Canberra coach Ricky Stuart says recruit Blake Austin has not been guaranteed a start at five-eighth, challenging his potential halves to fight for their positions in 2015.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
While Canberra fans celebrated the signing of 23-year-old Austin on a three-year deal from Wests Tigers, Stuart cautioned "there's still a long way to go" in rebuilding the Raiders' roster.
Having rejected Austin's previous requests for a release, the Tigers and new coach Jason Taylor finally relented and allowed his immediate exit.
Austin wants to establish himself at five-eighth and he provides a natural replacement for star Anthony Milford, who has defected to the Brisbane Broncos, and out-of-favour skipper Terry Campese.
Asked if Austin could compensate for Milford's x-factor in attack, Stuart said: "It's never been a line of thought about replacing one player, it's about creating depth in positions.
"Blake wants to play five-eighth and I'm all about creating competition for our positions ... That's a big part of improvement, creating a competitive environment."
Austin joins a host of potential halves including Mitch Cornish, Josh McCrone, Sam Williams and Jack Wighton.
The recruitment of Austin and Williams heaps more pressure on Campese, who was dropped to NSW Cup at the end of last season and has been linked with British Super League club Hull FC.
"I'm planning for 2015 and Terry's got a contract with us ... nothing's changed," Stuart countered.
Austin has played almost every back-line position in his 35 NRL games, the Penrith junior igniting his career with 19 NRL matches for the Tigers this season.
The Raiders intensified their pursuit of Austin after he starred for the Tigers at five-eighth in a 27-12 loss to Canberra in round 25. Austin made 13 tackle breaks, 2 line-breaks, ran for 130m and scored a try.
"We were interested in Blake before we played them in round 25, but after the way he played our commitment was even stronger because we saw a younger player with so much upside," Stuart said. "He was the one player in their team creating a real headache for us, he just kept their team in that game."
Austin's manager, Tyran Smith of Sportsplayer Management, played at the Raiders from 2002-05. Smith was confident Austin was ready to accept the playmaking responsibility in Canberra's attack.
"He's exceptional at playing what he sees, which is rare these days in such structured systems," Smith said. "He's explosive and skilful.
"This is a positive move for him. He's got a young family, he's looking forward to a big opportunity at the Raiders to take his game to the next level.
"His goal is to establish himself as a five-eighth. There's no guarantees, but he will work hard to do what it takes."
The Raiders remain in the market for more recruits, monitoring the salary cap struggles at NRL rivals.
Despite missing out on high-profile targets such as Melbourne's Kevin Proctor, Penrith's Josh Mansour and Wests Tigers fullback James Tedesco, Stuart said he was content with recruitment.
The Raiders have added Williams, hooker Josh Hodgson and back-rower Iosia Soliola from the Super League, and Melbourne Storm winger Sisa Waqa.
"It's a tough job creating and building a roster, it takes time and patience and at the moment this is one of the good days," Stuart said. "There's still a long way to go but the club's got a plan and we're sticking to it."
