Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad is ready to start. But Canberra Raiders coach Ricky Stuart wants to remain loyal to the players who have got the job done in his absence.
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Stuart said ideally Nicoll-Klokstad would play 20-25 minutes off the bench against the Manly Sea Eagles at Lang Park on Friday night - although he wasn't going in with a plan of how to use the New Zealand international.
The 26-year-old's returning from neck surgery that's seen him miss the past four months.
Initially, he was ruled out for the season, but he's returned in time to help the Green Machine make one last push towards the finals.
He's been named on the bench, although Stuart said his star fullback was ready to start.
Stuart's used four other fullbacks in Nicoll-Klokstad's absence, with Jordan Rapana the incumbent.
Another one of those custodians used, Bailey Simonsson, was named on the wing.
"[Nicoll-Klokstad's] been jumping out of his skin. He was ready to start and that's the sign of his professionalism and his commitment to the team," Stuart said.
"But I wanted to show loyalty to the team that have been doing the job before him.
"He's been out for a number of weeks, so it's a really good opportunity to start to slowly progress him back into the game.
"How long he'll be on the bench for? Who knows. It's a matter of how the boys in front of him are performing, but it's great to have Charnze back."
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Stuart felt it was unrealistic to go in with a plan of how to use Nicoll-Klokstad, given it might have to change if there was an injury.
But ideally he'd play about one quarter of the match in his first game since round five.
Nicoll-Klokstad could return at either fullback or on the edge if needed, with Rapana also able to return to his usual spot on the wing.
"I can't go in with a real plan because I can tell him he's going to get a certain amount of minutes and then I've got to pull an outside back off," Stuart said.
"Then that might be a situation that doesn't come to fruition because we might've had a guy go down in the middle.
"It's very hard to have a plan and to stick to it. I'd love to be able to get him 20-25 minutes."
NRL ROUND 23
Friday: Canberra Raiders v Manly Sea Eagles at Lang Park, 6pm.
Raiders squad: 1. Jordan Rapana, 2. Bailey Simonsson, 3. Sebastian Kris, 4. Matt Timoko, 5. Harley Smith-Shields, 6. Jack Wighton, 7. Sam Williams, 8. Josh Papalii, 9. Josh Hodgson, 10. Joe Tapine, 11. Hudson Young, 12. Elliott Whitehead (c), 13. Ryan Sutton. Interchange: 14. Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, 15. Emre Guler, 16. Sia Soliola, 17. Matt Frawley. Reserves: 18. Dunamis Lui, 20. Elijah Anderson.
Sea Eagles squad: 19. Tevita Funa, 2. Jason Saab, 3. Morgan Harper, 4. Moses Suli, 5. Reuben Garrick, 6. Kieran Foran, 7. Daly Cherry-Evans, 8. Josh Aloiai, 9. Lachlan Croker, 10. Martin Taupau, 11. Haumole Olakau'atu, 12. Josh Schuster, 13. Jake Trbojevic. Interchange: 14. Dylan Walker, 15. Karl Lawton, 16. Curtis Sironen, 17. Toafofoa Sipley. Reserves: 18. Jack Gosiewski, 20. Kurt De Luis.
David Polkinghorne
Covering the Raiders, Cavalry, cycling and racing, plus everything else that involves sport in the ACT, for The Canberra Times. Basically I love sport and watching it is a full-time job. Email: david.polkinghorne@canberratimes.com.au
Covering the Raiders, Cavalry, cycling and racing, plus everything else that involves sport in the ACT, for The Canberra Times. Basically I love sport and watching it is a full-time job. Email: david.polkinghorne@canberratimes.com.au
