Although the men from the Capital have been one of the most dangerous attacking teams in the NRL for the past few seasons, coach Ricky Stuart and his troops are taking a defensive mentality heading into 2019.
Off the back of missing the finals for the past two seasons, Ricky Stuart is aware that he could lose his job if he extends that record to three seasons in a row. When pressed on the matter of his job security in an interview with NRL.com, Stuart agreed with the notion, "Why wouldn't I be?... I haven't made the eight in the last two years."
With the knowledge that it could be do or die for his coaching career in 2019, Stuart and his staff know they are going to have to change something in order to avoid another early Mad Monday.
That something won't be their attack, as the Raiders scored the second most tries in the competition last season and more points than seven of the top eight teams.
The Raiders have never struggled offensively, as they scored an impressive average of 23.5 points per game last year. However, at the other end of the field, they conceded an equally unimpressive 22.5 points per game. Coach Stuart is now acutely aware of their defensive struggles, telling NRL.com that "I've got to have a defence mentality [in 2019]. Being one of the top attacking teams in the NRL doesn't mean a damn thing if you can't defend it,"
Off the back of their defensive woes and the departure of regular five-eighth Blake Austin, Stuart detailed to NRL.com that he now plans on selecting his first choice halves pairing off the back of their defensive capabilities.
"I've got to make a decision on No.7 and No.6 and my whole focus will be around my strongest defensive line".
Senior player and halfback Aidan Sezer has noticed this shift in focus in the Raiders' pre-season, telling Raiders.com that "our focus is on defence this year".
While the increased focus on the problem should assist the Raiders in their quest to improve their defence, a few off-season departures could equally aid them. Namely those of Blake Austin, Junior Paulo, and Shannon Boyd to Warrington, Parramatta and the Gold Coast respectively.
Although Boyd and Paulo were key to the Raiders power game and often won the physical battle in the middle, it is no secret that they are not the most mobile men in the world. As a result of this lacking mobility, they weren't of great assistance when they had to work from the inside and let their outside defender shift out.
In regards to Austin, he did have a brilliant attacking influence on the team, but according to NRL.com Stats, he was responsible for 16 try causes at an average of 0.67 per game (the second most of any Raider) in 2018.
If the Raiders can tighten up their leaky edges and maintain their attacking output, It will go a long way to getting them back to the team that was within one game of the 2016 grand final.
The Raiders will kick off their 2019 season at Cbus Super Stadium against the Gold Coast Titans, who finished season 2018 with sixteen losses and eight wins.