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Raiders continue re-signing rampage with yet another back

Matthew Timoko is the latest Raider to sign on the dotted line.

Published by
Scott Pryde

Matthew Timoko is the latest Raider to sign on the dotted line, becoming the fourth to do so in the last fortnight.

The Raiders war to lock up their young backline has been just about won, with the highly-rated 21-year-old Timoko joining recent re-signings in Semi Valemei, Sebastian Kris and Xavier Savage.

Timoko, who is a centre, made his NRL debut for the Raiders in Round 16 last year against the Bulldogs and has since played four games for Ricky Stuart's side.

His two games this year came in back-to-back weeks against the Brisbane Broncos and St George Illawarra Dragons, while he has also been the listed 18th man on four occasions. He came up with a try assist, a line break and five tackle busts in a strong performance against Brisbane.

MATTHEW TIMOKO
Centre
Raiders
NUMBER STATS

The New Zealand-born centre has been part of the Raiders set-up for some time and will now look to push his case for a more permanent role in the starting 13.

“It's great to be able to stay in Canberra, I love it here and I believe it’s the best place for my career,” Timoko said.

“For me, at the moment I’m happy to do whatever I need to do to help the team and I’ll be working hard for the rest of this year and the next three to try and cement a place in the NRL side.

Timoko is part of the Raiders squad for this week's game against the Sea Eagles, but is currently listed as 18th man.

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Timoko has made 12 reserve grade appearances for the Raiders so far this year, scoring two tries and averaging nearly 100 metres per game.

Raiders' CEO Don Furner said the signing was great news for the club.

“Matt is a great young player who has shown already that he can perform at the top level,” Furner said.

“He’s a player with plenty of potential and has a really good attitude and work ethic, so we’re thrilled to extend his contract with the club.”

Published by
Scott Pryde