Listen to some of the talk in rugby league land lately and it seems the Canberra Raiders will be lucky to finish any higher than dead last on the NRL ladder next season.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
It's the kind of "it's us against the world" bulletin board material that coach Ricky Stuart will surely lean into as the 2024 campaign nears to fire up his troops.
But to paraphrase Taylor Swift, the players are going to play, the haters are going to hate, and ultimately, they simply shake it off.
"We try not to listen to that stuff. All we can control is how we train and play and that's what's been happening here," Raiders centre Matt Timoko told The Canberra Times.
"Everyone is going hard and giving 100 percent.
"To me it's all outside noise. A lot of the boys know what we're capable of here."
Much of the doubt and criticism about Canberra's chances next season stem from the loss of some central figures in the Raiders outfit - Jack Wighton (now with South Sydney) and Jarrod Croker (now retired) - and the recruitment of young, inexperienced players expected to take on key roles.
There's certainly a high ceiling in the likes of potential new No.6 playmakers Kaeo Weekes and NSW Blues Under-19 representative Ethan Strange, and even possible fullback contender Chevy Stewart. But they're young - very young.
Weekes, 21, has only played 12 NRL games since last year, and Strange was thrust into the centres for one game for the Raiders last season - his first grade debut. And Stewart, he's yet to star at NRL level, despite a rapid rise through the grades in the past 12 months.
Halfback Jamal Fogarty and the hooking duo of Tom Starling and Zac Woolford are the only returning spine players from last season - though rumours of a Super League move have followed the latter.
Throw in that the Raiders are deep in the hooker and forward positions, and it's set up this pre-season to be one of the most competitive in recent times.
Timoko isn't daunted by the injection of youth in pivotal positions at the Raiders though, and believes there's enough class in the squad to make them a force to be reckoned with next year.
"We're all training the house down," he said.
"It's a bunch of young guys, not as much experience as we had in the past, but it's a good thing. We're able to instil new training habits and stuff that we want to take forward.
"It's good to help out these young boys learn the values about what it is to be a Raider."
It's not yet clear who is leading the race to play alongside Fogarty in the halves, with Weekes and Strange going blow for blow in training, but Timoko is confident the cream will rise to the top.
"It's quite a close battle," the centre explained.
"I've known what Strangey can do over the course of the year, because I've seen him play NSW Cup and definitely he's done a lot of great stuff.
"I've only just gotten to know Kaeo over the past week and a half and he's a really talented young kid, very fast, with great ball skills.
"Jamal's our half back and he'll help us around the paddock. So I know he will do a good job of helping out the young halves.
"Whoever's going to be in the halves in round one they will have been picked for a reason. We have to help them grow their confidence and the rest will fall off the back of that."