Coached by Ricky Stuart and captained jointly by Jarrod Croker, Josh Hodgson[a] and Elliott Whitehead, they competed in the 2021 NRL season, placing 10th out of 16 teams and thus failing to make the finals.
Canberra looked to capitalise on their successful 2020 campaign, however they fell apart mid-season from heavy losses to other teams such as the Penrith Panthers and South Sydney Rabbitohs, losing five games in a row and being demolished by underdogs the Gold Coast Titans.
Rumours of a player-coach riff[1] between Stuart and a certain number of players led to the stand-down of Josh Hodgson as captain[2] and the departure of English import George Williams.
Multiple injuries to players such as youngster Xavier Savage[4] and hooker Tom Starling[5] threatened to derail their season, but they were successful in gaining wins in the second half of the year, with defeats of Manly, Cronulla and Parramatta successively.
Extended squad Head coach Assistant coaches Updated: 23 August 2021Source(s): Raiders Team Profiles Losses: Gains: NSW Cup Player of the Year – Kai O’Donnell NSW Cup Coaches Award – Matt Frawley Geoff Caldwell Welfare & Education Award – Elliott Whitehead Gordon McLucas Memorial Junior Representative Player of the Year - Trey Mooney Fred Daly Memorial Club Person of the Year – Grant Hogan NRL Rookie of the Year – Harley Smith-Shields & Matt Timoko NRL Coaches Award – Tom Starling Meninga Medal – Jordan Rapana