Canberra Raiders under-20s coach Ash Barnes is confident his rising stars can make the leap to the NRL in the coming years to continue a Green Machine production line.
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But before they get to the top, the junior Raiders are determined to make the most of their own preliminary final opportunity when they play the Sydney Roosters on Saturday.
Canberra's Jersey Flegg side has mirrored the success of Ricky Stuart's men this season, finishing fourth on the ladder and being one win away from the grand final.
The multi-layered success has given Raiders insiders the belief the club is setting itself up for long-term success and Barnes says he has a talented group of youngsters coming through the ranks.
They will be hoping to follow in the footsteps of Jarrod Croker, Nick Cotric, Jack Wighton and Josh Papalii, who all started their careers in the Raiders' junior system.
"I said at the Meninga Medal the other day that one of the things I'm looking forward to over the years is seeing a number of these guys come through and realise their dreams of being an NRL player," Barnes said.
"The players are really proud of pulling on the Raiders jersey every single week and there's a good feeling about the club."
The Raiders finished three points behind the Sharks on the under-20s ladder, but beat them in the first week of the finals thanks to a Tobias Westcott field goal in a 19-18 extra-time win.
The winner of the Raiders-Roosters match at Kogarah will advance to the grand final for a shot at premiership glory.
Darby Medlyn has been tipped for a big future after starring for NSW in the under-20s State of Origin series and Matthew Timoko has been selected in the Junior Kiwis squad.
"They're a great group of players and I can definitely see some players progressing through and pull on that NRL Raiders jersey one day," Barnes said.
The Raiders won the right to have a week off when they beat the Sharks and they have used their extra time to rest battered and bruised bodies.
"It was very important, especially at this time of year with sore bodies, some niggling injuries," Barnes said. "It's also a bit of a mental refresher as it would of been the longest stint of successive games in the competition."