Fresh off the back of a disappointing 25-6 defeat to the Sea Eagles last weekend, new recruit Adam Elliott is keen to repay the faith shown to him by coach Ricky Stuart and the club.
After signing at the conclusion of the 2021 NRL season the second rower has thrived in Canberra, enjoying everything about his new home including a new role in the side.
The forward has been coming off the bench over his first month with the team, adding a spark whenever he comes on.
“It’s been great to be playing first grade and playing for the Raiders. I'm really loving my teammates and team down here,” Elliott said.
“It's a new role for me as well, it's something that I haven't been doing for a few years now.”
Elliott is ready to make this new role his own, aiming to help his team in any way possible whenever he is called upon each match.
Whether this be in the second row or in the middle, it ultimately doesn’t make a difference for the new recruit as he looks to cement his spot in the side.
“I’ll do whatever I need to do for the team, I don't see much of a difference between second row and lock,” he said.
“Either way I'll play the position the way that I play footy so it's just about making sure I'm playing good football whenever I’m on the field,”
Whilst solid over the first few rounds, the recruit is prepared to step up even more in the coming weeks, ready to give his all for the team and fans.
That starts this weekend against a dangerous Melbourne Storm side, with a pack that includes representative footballers Nelson Asofa-Solomona, Felise Kaufusi and the Bromwich brothers.
“I feel like I've been trying to find my feet the first month or so but for me personally, I think it's been long enough,” Elliott said.
“It's time to start playing some good footy and I'm really looking forward to hopefully opening that account this weekend.”
After the disappointing result in Mudgee last Saturday evening, the boys are ready to turn things around in the second leg of their country tour when they play Melbourne in Wagga Wagga.
Being a country boy himself, Elliott is ready to put on a show for the Raiders fans, with promising signs at training pointing towards a bounce back performance from the team this weekend.
“The boys have been full of energy and have rocked up to training with a good mindset, hopefully trying to right our wrongs from the weekend against Manly,” Elliott said.
“It’s also another really exciting one heading down to Wagga as well. Me particularly being a country boy, I can't wait to get out there. There's been a good energy around training this week.”
Elliott, along with the rest of the team, is aware of the challenges that lay ahead this weekend, coming up against an in-form Melbourne Storm side.
Whilst knowing the quality of the previously mentioned Melbourne pack, Elliott and the rest of the forwards are prepared to face them head on.
“They have a good forward pack, but there is a good forward pack in every team. It is up to us to make sure we play together and play our style of football,” he said.
“It is the oldest cliché in rugby league, but forwards win games. We have to make sure that we rock up and roll the sleeves up this weekend.”
Canberra come up against Melbourne this Saturday at 3pm looking to bounce back from last weekend’s result, with a win in Mudgee likely to be enough to get the team back into the top eight.
