New Canberra Raiders hooker Danny Levi hungry for NRL comeback

But only one hooker is on an NRL field at any given time, and Levi's presence in pre-season might shake things up and offer added competition at Raiders HQ.

Over the weekend Levi was finally officially announced as the latest addition to Canberra's squad on a two-year deal.

At just 26, Levi brings with him seven years and 112 games of NRL experience, having played for the Newcastle Knights, Manly Sea Eagles and Brisbane Broncos.

He also has a season in the Super League with Huddersfield under his belt, and international caps for New Zealand and Samoa, and he's fresh off an electric World Cup campaign with the latter.

While in England, Levi said he always had the desire to play in Australia again, and he was ecstatic when the Raiders got in touch.

"My goal was always to get back in the NRL," he told The Canberra Times.

"I was supposed to be over there [in England] for two years and I was lucky enough to get the opportunity to come back. I really wanted to get back in the NRL and compete at the best level again.

"I knew the Raiders were a very prestigious club, with a lot of really great history."

Levi arrived in the capital last week with his wife and three-year-old daughter, and the appeal of being closer to family in Brisbane and New Zealand was another reason he wanted the move.

Raiders coach Ricky Stuart might have a slight selection headache on his hands though, after the duo of Zac Woolford and Levi's former Knights teammate Tom Starling delivered for the Green Machine last year in the aftermath of Josh Hodgson's season-ending ACL injury.

Should Woolford and Starling continue their NRL combination in 2023, Levi will be forced to wait for first-grade minutes, however he's a handy back-up up their sleeve with Adrian Trevilyan out of action until mid-year, following ACL and shoulder surgeries this off-season.

And the Raiders know all too well the ups and downs an NRL season can produce.

Levi has been welcomed with open arms by the hookers and the rest of the Raiders squad, and now he's eager to hit the ground running at training as he gets familiar with his new home.

The Wellington-born product said his main task is "trying to impress" in pre-season, and go from there.

"Ricky's main focus is for me to get settled in and find my lungs pretty much," he said. "We'll talk about [season plans] a bit later, but at the moment I'm just getting amongst the boys."

Levi described himself as a dummy-half that likes to run the ball and believes he returns to Australia a better player.

"I'm more mature. When I was over there I got to play 80 minutes week in, week out," he said.

"So that'll definitely help me out in the long run. The game has slowed down a lot for me."

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