By Sebastian Tan

Ricky Stuart has praised the “courageous” call Ethan Sanders made, which the coach says will set him up for a long and successful career.

Sanders will play his first game in Canberra’s starting halfback role when the Raiders take on Manly on Saturday night in Brookvale.

The 22-year-old has been hot on the tongue of pundits in the offseason after he was parachuted into the No.7 jersey, having played just four NRL games.

How he will fill the shoes of the departed Jamal Fogarty, whose booming kicks and playmaking skills powered the Raiders to a first minor premiership since 1990 last year, will be one to watch.

Eyes will also be fixed on his combination with five-eighth Ethan Strange, one of the Raiders’ standout players last campaign.

Although Stuart expects the combination to take time, he believes Sanders is up to the task after he left Parramatta in 2025 and spent 12 months learning off Fogarty.

“I’ve got to give him credit. He came to the club knowing he was going to be behind Jamal and do his apprenticeship,” Stuart said.

“He’s quite courageous in regard to taking that apprenticeship last year to build longevity in his career.

“There’s a lot of young players who rush to play first grade. So I take my hat off to Sando, who sat back, waited, developed his game, and even got better for it.”

Sanders will face a compelling test against the Sea Eagles as he’ll take on ex-Raider Fogarty after he signed as Manly’s new halfback to replace former captain Daly Cherry Evans.

To add to the occasion, Canberra will be without centre Matt Timoko and backrower Matty Nicholson after both picked up injuries in the offseason, although they will play in the NSW Cup squad to get their minutes up.

One player in the Raiders Cup squad who also played in the NRL side last year is Owen Pattie, after Stuart opted to put recruit Jayden Brailey ahead of him in the lineup.

Having played 26 games mostly as a super-sub last year, the 22-year-old was poised for a tough battle with Tom Starling and Brailey for the hooker spot.

“If I had to go into a situation tomorrow that I had to start Owen, he’s probably not ready to play long minutes in the NRL,” Stuart said.

“I want to get Owen’s minutes up to wherever the situation arises that he has to start.”

With Cherry Evans now a Rooster, Manly will look a bit different from the team that finished 10th last year, although their forward pack will be boosted by Taniela Paseka and Haumole Olakau’atu, who return from injury.

Premiership winner Kobe Hetherington will also make his club debut.