Canberra enforcer Josh Papalii says the club is better positioned to end their premiership drought than their last NRL finals run in 2016.
Ask any of the Raiders senior players and they’ll emphasise the team has matured into a title-contending side over the past three years.
Canberra finished second on the ladder in 2016 and made a preliminary final but then came the hangover as a leaky defence produced consecutive poor seasons.
But the Green Machine transformed their defence in 2019 and made their tackles to earn the club’s second top-four finish in 16 years.
They face the Melbourne Storm in a qualifying final on Saturday.
Papalii has been one of the Raiders’ best this season and believes the club is on the cusp of delivering Canberra’s first premiership since 1994.
“I definitely think so,” Papalii told AAP.
“I’ve been here for a while now and we’ve gone through some tough times and good times as well, but winning a comp here with these boys would mean the world.
“Our team has definitely matured from that 2016 season. We just have the core group a bit longer now and we’re a bit more mature and I think we’re finals ready now.
“We’re four games away from the grand final and winning it is our goal.”
Raiders centre BJ Leilua echoed Papalii’s sentiment.
“We finished second in 2016 but we’re a lot better mentally and physically now and we’ve got a lot better squad to be honest,” Leilua said.
“We’ve matured a lot more from 2016, we were still kids trying to play around teams but now know when it comes to playoffs you’ve got to play through them.”
Canberra import John Bateman has been one of the NRL’s best signings this season after joining from Super League giants Wigan.
Bateman won two of the past three Super League titles and said his current side also has premiership potential.
“You probably take stuff for granted getting to finals and grand finals (in England) but coming out here this is what I set my sights on, I wanted to play in the big games,” Bateman said.
“I always watched NRL finals when I was back home and just feeling the hype and the build-up. It’s just another game but it’s exciting times for the town and myself.
“There’s a few more games to go and we’ll be sure to sing those praises at the end of the year when we win it.”