Comparisons with Canberra champions Laurie Daley and Jack Wighton are hardly quietening the buzz around new Raider Ethan Strange, with coach Ricky Stuart admitting to some encouraging similarities with the club legends.
Stuart insisted Strange is more than ready for his NRL debut against Melbourne this weekend, with the 18-year-old picked at centre after injuries to Sebastian Kris and Jarrod Croker.
Viewed as a long-term half after impressing in that role at NSW Cup level, the teen star has shown enough for Stuart to back him in the crunch encounter against the Storm.
Strange was electric in the centres in the under-19 State of Origin, scoring three tries and assisting another two to lead NSW to a comfortable win with a best-on-ground display.
Stuart, who played alongside Daley in the 1990s and as coach moved current five-eighth Wighton into the halves, sees a similar path for Strange.
“You’ve got players like Laurie Daley, Jack Wighton who came into first grade through fullback and centre,” he said.
“I’m not going to put that tag on Ethan but he’s a very similar athlete to those two.
“(Strange) has got a running game similar to the same strengths Laurie and Jack have had in the way they run the football.
“It won’t hurt him to learn how to be an NRL player; find out a little bit about the intensity of NRL in another position.”
Strange started the season playing Jersey Flegg but has excelled in NSW Cup since his elevation, shifting between centre and five-eighth.
He was named as the NRL side’s 18th man last weekend.
He could yet insert himself into the conversation for a starting halves role for next season, with the Raiders still searching for a replacement for the South Sydney-bound Wighton.
“He’s a very talented young man who gets a wonderful opportunity this weekend,” Stuart said.
“It’s a big game to make his debut in and if I didn’t think he had the mental toughness or the capacity to handle the build up to a game against Melbourne in Melbourne, I wouldn’t pick him.
“A good thing about him is he talks well on the field, he’s not a shy boy.
“He’s a half and he has to be able to talk on the field and run a game.”
By Alex Mitchell in Canberra
