Ricky's Raiders arrived and ready to tackle Vegas opener

The Canberra Raiders’ 2025 campaign is off to a flying start with a squad of 25 led by coach Ricky Stuart, jet-setting out of the nation’s capital on Thursday morning.

Led by captain Joseph Tapine, the Raiders are Vegas bound and ready to showcase the game of rugby league to US fans.

This is only the second time the NRL brings the game to Vegas and the first time the team in green make an appearance.

Young faces Noah Martin, Matty Nicholson, Jed Stuart, Owen Pattie, Ethan Sanders and Savelio Tamale are named among the travelling squad. This tops off an exciting week for Owen Pattie who has just signed with the Raiders up until 2028.

When asked about naming the squad, Ricky expressed that it is the hardest part of his job.

“It’s a once of a lifetime trip, I’m disappointed I can’t take everybody, but unfortunately you can’t have the whole squad.”

“I take into consideration a lot of what my senior players are talking about, especially my assistant coaches and you know you always try and come up with that best 17 every week.”

The 25 head to Vegas coming off a loss in their final pre-season game against the Sharks. While the result didn’t go the Raiders’ way, Ricky made the decision to rest many after the first half to prioritise their health before the season opener.

“My goal was to get on the plane as fresh and as healthy as we possibly could and we’re there now. We had a good session for today and we are finishing for the week in regards to our training here.”

“They are all very excited. You can tell by today’s session it was a very fast session, very upbeat and I think they were pretty keen to get it over and done with so they could start preparing.”

“We’re going there for work. It’s a little bit different then going there for a holiday. We’ll embrace the bright lights for the first couple of days and enjoy the experience of Vegas but then we’ll knuckle down and get into a work pattern in regard to our preparation to play.”