The road ahead for the Canberra Raiders | Canberra Press Conference | Fox League

oh Ricky where does that uh Victory rate in terms of the most courageous efforts from your side that we've seen yeah I I don't know if I've coached many uh many more courageous efforts than that but I must say I have coached a number of them none none more courageous but a number of them with a lot of the current players and the squads that I've had here over the last number of years you know we our culture our culture at this club um the way we perform our hard work and the the care and the camaraderie amongst our players is real you know I don't go and read a textbook and then say okay well we've got a B and C it is real what you saw there today the um you know realistically we had so much go against us today that um it made the wind so much more sweeter and um it was a win that uh any other any x- Raider player that was watching that match would have been so proud of that person in his number what did do you think that was the biggest thing that went against you what what do you well you saw the game they had 60% of the footy um field position I don't I can't I can't remember sorry I can't remember a a good ball set we had in the second half if we had a couple maybe or I can't remember them um with the infringements and penalties it were 16 six um it's a defending with 12 men for so many so many minutes and that's not to say Elliot's sin binning weren't sin bins um it was just so much went against us today that um you have to you have to be a a committed football team that want to play for each other um I I said at the start of the Year we're building something here and we are did you feel like this week leading into that off the back of last week um you know you've had the confidence you've always mentioned that you know you believe in this squad do you feel like there was any moment within the week where I don't know something happened within this squad that they had that belief because they you know coming into this coming up against daunting task there in the in the top four did you I spoke I spoke to you before the game and I said last week's win wasn't a big as surprise to me as it was to a lot of other people um I said it to Freddy out on the Sid in his interview um you know it's all it's all nice talking in hindsight we we knew it was going to be a very tough game I didn't realize the interpretations of the game was going to be so um overloaded towards us um but to answer your question this week with our preparation and the way the players are bought into what I wanted them to do today um because I know how we can beat football teams certain teams they bought in and for 20 20 minutes of that was with 12 men the defensive display and effort was it was as good as our coach and um I was very confident that we could win last week and off the back of that I was very confident that we could win today so it's not such a bigest shock to me winning those last two games as it is to lot of other player people what the big shock to me is how they put 40 on us in the last game we played against them how the Cowboys beat us two weeks ago 30 or what points that's the they're the games that shocked me I don't know where it comes from does it set you up pretty nicely for next year cl to get two wins like this you say they weren't surprises but for the boys to see we can compete it with the best teams in the competition probably off probably better off asking them because for me to answer that question I'm losing a lot of experience game so I'm going to be filling two more positions such as Elliots and and Jordans with players with less minutes so again it's going to be another a tough 12 months I've got to be very good at what I'm not good at and that's being patient and unfortunately I'm not the best at it but we've had a vision here as a a club that we have to build a football teun to be competitive going into the future we find it hard to get Mar players so we're building from the floor from the from the ground up and I hope that a lot of people see that we're doing that out there sorry how satisfying was it to see that two weeks in a row because it hasn't always happened two weeks in a row you've knocked off pen and roosters two Premiership contenders and he won it with nothing but toughness yeah it was no it wasn't a talent thing if if it was down to Talent they should have bat Us by 30 but it was down to it was down to who wanted to work the hardest same thing the week before pretty much I fa to say it is we we haven't got the class of other teams uh we've got a we got to we got to grow the class and the Maru player and I think we got players there that one day be those those players playing state of origin International Football um and that's where I say I've got to be patient but it's hard because when you're when you're competitive you want to win each week but I'll coach that every day of the week and answer your question a moment ago it's better to ask the players because they got to come to preseason they got to buy in again's uh SP the Dock's got a uh a fracture the ice socket I think it is or cheekbone um and the no broke his nose so potentially the last time was in a Riders Jersey do you think absolutely it is how disappointing is that obviously don't be able to send him out um yeah oh look it's it's disappointing you know we we we sent both the boys out last week in regards to our home game with Elliot and Jordan we didn't really know Jordan was going um we sent Elliot out in a nice way Jordan didn't get the opportunity the way that Elliott did um going off with injury but I can tell you that he can be very proud to say that he's involved in that game today for some small minutes um and again you know we we'll hear about how many injuries The Roosters copped you know you won't we won't hear through the cityne media um that we lost our halfback the session before our our game we lost our fullback going into that and what the first 15 minutes um our players don't get the credit of the the Sydney media um but they get it from me and that's probably more important Ricky about the roosters it looks like Walker might have gone down with an ACL and straight away I thought about yourself you know I don't want to bring back a bad memory but 93 can be Wasing towards the title and you went down they did win another game do that still apply in the modern era like with halfbacks coming out and how do you how do you see the mount they've got to climb with if that's the case well it comes down to your recruiting um you know if they got a player to fall in there that can actually uh f a position they got they got that much class mate they'll find a halfback they can work in with Manu Tesco and that for pack they they'll find a halfback there that young sandon Smith I watched him play today he play well for second grade he's a very good young half um with the talent around him made he he he'll he'll jump at the opportunity or he should be Jordan done so much for this club I mean how is that I guess to to lose him before it was sort of his time to shot yeah definitely mate it's like scky said um you know be proud of the effort that the boys put in tonight and you know Jordan told us that he would leaving this week and moving over to Super league and you know we we kind of put um that win down down for him and we got the win and you know like I said he'll be proud but he'll be disappointed that he couldn't finish the game and you know the season the way he wanted to but you know he's been a big part of this club since I've come and he's always give his all every time he crosses over that line and you know he's been a a great teammate and he's a great mate of mine so yeah you have a favorite Jordan Rob memory oh there's too many um yeah there's too many ell when you hear Ricky talk about the fact that like you know everyone's got a buy in and theyve got this their building from the from the ground up obviously you're leaving at the end of the season but um what sort of feels does that give to you I mean how how you're part of that buy you're in that inner sanct what what is the future of the Raiders and how lucky are they to be alongside look I think throughout the year they've show glimpses of what they are cap are doing obviously more experience the you know especially the young spy they'll learn how to control the games better and you know turn ball over where they need to um but you know they've showed at times how good they can be and you know it's just getting the more consistency out of them and you know Sticky's got a great coaching team with him and you know he's got some great players um young players coming through and you know the future is bright for the Raiders and they've done a great job on recruiting just to touch on those SS um what were your both your thoughts oh look I I'll speak about that look obviously I I didn't mean to do Brandon I know he's come up with a bad injury and stuff and you know I'm sorry to him for for that obviously um I just want Happy the way I went over to ask about Brandon and Trent Robinson's had a got me like like I went to apologize and he's he's turned on me so you know the way he' done that I thought that were out of order um you know I don't know what he said in his media if he's done it be before yet um but yeah look I'm I'm sorry to Brandon and you know the other one I'm not sure if you know the rules or I don't know the rules I just tried stopping an offload I didn't strike and any malice way and um but yeah whatever I don't care thanks very much