Starling was a standout in Canberra's 19-18 loss to the Cowboys and will need to play a key role again in round two against the surprising firepower of the Dolphins this weekend.

Playing his tough brand of rugby league in Townsville, Starling averaged 11 metres per run, had one line-break, a team-high five tackle breaks, 29 tackles, one try assist to Emre Guler, as well as a four-pointer himself in 43 minutes on the field.

Stuart said having his recent court cases concluded has lifted a weight off Starling's shoulders, allowing him to play his best footy again.

"It's good now that he doesn't have to have that in the back of his mind and have a clear head towards his football," Stuart told The Canberra Times.

"It takes its toll that type of situation. And when it was about his mother, it's just an extra burden that you don't need when you're involved in high-performance sport.

"He's done a good job over the last couple of years in dealing with it."

Starling came on in place of rake recruit Danny Levi, a change from last season which largely featured Starling on the bench with Zac Woolford starting.

After an exhausting first half where they trailed 18-6 against North Queensland, Starling provided an immense boost to the Raiders' attack, and helped them mount a thrilling comeback.

"He had a big impact in giving a lot of energy to a football team that was running out of juice from the first half's lop-sided statistics, with his kick-chase and pressure on the kicker," Stuart said.

"His speed out of dummy-half, he really gave players energy through his contributions."

The physical nature of their season-opener tested Levi in his return to the NRL after a stint in England, as it did Starling, who is often targeted for his smaller stature.

But the 24-year-old doesn't budge easily, no matter his height.

"He's got great technique in defence, and he shows all these younger footballers developing today that size doesn't matter," Stuart said.

"Tommy has certainly got wonderful technique, makes good shoulder contact and is very powerful through the hips."

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Starling said after the game that he considers his injection of energy "crucial" to the Raiders' success, and intends to bring that approach every week, especially with fellow experienced interchange players Emre Guler and Corey Horsburgh.

"It's a crucial role," he said. "That's our job as the bench. We're just as important as the starters. If they get off to a quick start, we need to back that up, or if they're a bit slow, we've got to bring that energy.

"Me, Emre and Corey have been together for a while coming off that bench and built a bit of a combination through the middle there, and it's a real asset to our team.

"Big Emre and Big Red [Horsburgh], they really brought the energy for the boys after we'd done a lot of defensive work and took the load off and got us going forward. And big Ats [Ata Mariota] too, he had good stints there; carried the ball well for a young fella and he's only going to get better from this experience.

"We've just got to back it up next week."

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