Canberra Raiders rookie Hudson Young determined to shine in NRL finals bid

Young has kept his spot on the bench for the Raiders' crucial road trip to face the Cronulla Sharks in Sydney on Sunday.

Ryan Sutton is set to start at lock as the Raiders plug the gap left by injured forward Joe Tapine, with Siliva Havili earning a recall on the bench after Joey Leilua's ban saw Bailey Simonsson drafted into the starting side.

Young is determined to make the most of his finals shot after the promising 21-year-old ended an 11-week stint out of first grade over the weekend.

A five-game suspension for an eye gouge coupled with a NSW Cup stint kept Young out of the top grade in a period he struggled to come to grips with.

Now he is desperate to make amends and repay Raiders coach Ricky Stuart for handing him an NRL recall.

"I'm very keen. I don't want to give up my jumper again, I'm very proud to be in this team," Young said.

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"To give it up like last time, I don't want that to happen again. It felt really good to be back in first grade.

"Obviously it's a dream to play first grade, and to be suspended for five weeks, it really hurt.

"It was good to come back into this team, and it's not an easy team to crack, so I'm really fortunate that Stick and the coaching staff, and the boys had faith in me to come out and get the job done."

Young has rejoined a Raiders side locked in a three-way battle to secure a top four position with Manly Warringah and South Sydney level with Canberra on 30 competition points.

The Raiders have the more favourable run home and a better points differential in comparison to their fellow top four contenders but they will run into a Cronulla outfit looking to secure a spot in the top eight.

The Sharks will have extra motivation as they look to send Paul Gallen out a winner in his final home game in front of what could be a sell-out crowd.

Less than 500 general admission tickets remain for the clash but the Green Machine is rolling into town determined to spoil the party.

The Raiders are desperate to secure a second chance for the finals - but playing at the business end of the season was only one of Young's motivating factors during his suspension.

"It was that and the fact there is a special feeling amongst the boys this year," Young said.

"Obviously I've never been a part of an NRL team before, but it's just the vibe the older boys and the coaches are throwing off, it's something you want to be a part of in these big games.

"I'm just lucky to be back in the team. In a way I wanted to take myself out of doing anything too wrong [against Manly].

"I just wanted to get through my time out there and do my best for the boys, and do the best job I could for the team."

NRL ROUND 24

Sunday: Cronulla Sharks v Canberra Raiders at Shark Park, 2pm.

Raiders squad: 1. Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, 2. Bailey Simonsson, 3. Jarrod Croker (C), 4. Nick Cotric, 5. Jordan Rapana, 6. Jack Wighton, 7. Aidan Sezer, 8. Josh Papalii, 9. Josh Hodgson (C), 10. Sia Soliola, 11. John Bateman, 12. Elliott Whitehead, 13. Ryan Sutton. Interchange: 14. Siliva Havili, 15. Dunamis Lui, 16. Corey Horsburgh, 17. Hudson Young, 18. Sam Williams, 19. Emre Guler, 20. Michael Oldfield, 21. Tom Starling.

Sharks squad: 1. Josh Dugan, 2. Sione Katoa, 3. Bronson Xerri, 4. Josh Morris, 5. Ronaldo Mulitalo, 6. Shaun Johnson, 7. Chad Townsend, 8. Aaron Woods, 9. Jayden Brailey, 10. Matt Prior, 11. Briton Nikora, 12. Wade Graham, 13. Paul Gallen. Interchange: 14. Kurt Capewell, 15. Braden Hamlin-Uele, 16. Andrew Fifita, 17. Jayson Bukuya, 18. Billy Magoulias, 19. Blayke Brailey, 20. Kyle Flanagan, 21. Matt Moylan.