Selling David Fifita the Canberra dream, Andrew Barr's Singapore venue visit and a new SEN sports radio show

Waiting, waiting, waiting. The Canberra Raiders still hope David Fifita will make a decision about his future before the NRL begins next weekend and they believe they're still in the mix to snare his signature.

Raiders coach Ricky Stuart gave a fresh update this week, saying he'd given the talented back-rower time and space even as round one edges closer.

Rumour has it Fifita's family, in particular his mum, may play a key role in his next career move and the Raiders are hoping their reputation as a family club can get the Fifitas over the line.

Stuart - one of Canberra's greatest halfbacks - is perhaps the most passionate heart-on-sleeve coach in the competition and he spent time in the off-season selling the dream to Fifita.

The signing race is down to the Raiders and the Titans, but the Raiders are happy to wait even if the negotiations drag on.

"After talking to David, I've just given him some space in regards to making the decision," Stuart told us.

"He'll make it in his own time, I think he is pretty keen to make the decision before the season starts. That's where that's at."

The Raiders' play for Fifita could help the club's bid to secure Jillaroos forward Shaylee Bent as a marquee signing ahead of Canberra's first NRLW campaign.

Eddie Jones has Australian rugby's top gun in his arsenal - and a Pistol could be next.

Pete Samu - better known as "Pistol" - and Tom Wright headline a list of off-contract stars the ACT Brumbies are trying to lock into new contracts as Jones' reign as Wallabies coach begins.

Rob Valetini became one of the the highest-paid players in Australian rugby when he signed a new deal on Thursday, keeping the Brumbies' loose forward in Jones' sights until 2027.

The 24-year-old's long-term deal includes scope for an overseas sabbatical in 2026 as Rugby Australia bosses fight to keep one of the world's best players in Wallaby gold.

An overseas sabbatical wedged between the 2025 British and Irish Lions series and the 2027 World Cup in Australia will allow Valetini to bolster his back pocket and capitalise on his earning power as one of the code's most exciting talents.

Rugby Australia is locking players away, but being a Wallabies assistant coach is fast becoming a poisoned chalice. First it was Stephen Larkham who left the Brumbies to be a Test assistant, only to be sacked and then having to move to Ireland to reset.

Now it's Dan McKellar, who followed Larkham's path from Canberra to the Wallabies. Now he's moving to Leicester for his reset after Dave Rennie was axed and Jones came in.

There are also few people around the capital scratching their heads about Laurie Fisher's departure from the Wallabies as well. Maybe Eddie will see reason for Fisher's resurrection now that McKellar's gone.

They are destined to claim the wooden spoon but Canberra Capitals bosses are backing Kristen Veal to lift the club back into championship contention after a forgettable first season in charge.

The numbers show the Capitals have a 2-17 record with two games to play, but the numbers only tell so much of the story.

Veal is contracted until the end of the 2023-24 season and has steered the team through a season derailed by a torrid injury toll that left the Capitals with eight fit players, the loss of a starter before the opening tip, and a star import's shock departure.

"She's working hard on our roster build for next season. She knows exactly what it takes and that's why she was employed as a head coach on a multi-year contract," Capitals general manager Lucille Bailie said.

"Her X-factor is, after those years at the centre of excellence, she knows where the Caps and Opals of the future are coming from. She talks their language. If you ask any of the centre of excellence basketballers, I think they would speak incredibly highly of Vealy. Vealy is absolutely locked in."

You can bet Don Furner and Phil Thomson would like to be standing by when Chief Minister Andrew Barr welcomes the GWS Giants back to Canberra this week.

The Giants will hold a season launch in the capital on Friday night and play an intraclub match at Ainslie on Saturday as part of a pre-season visit to spark up interest in the region.

It's the first time they've been in town since committing to a new 10-year deal - worth $28.5 million - to play games at Manuka Oval.

The agreement is a massive boost for footy fans when you compare to the previous AFL arrangements, where the Kangaroos and Bulldogs were only interested in Canberra as a cash grab. The Giants will have played more than 20 years worth of games in the capital by the time the deal expires.

They have also invested in the region and preference taking rising Canberra stars like Tom Green and Josh Fahey in the AFL draft.

Even so, the $5 million hike remains a source of tension between the Raiders, Brumbies and the government and there was no Barr press conference to trumpet the deal like there was a decade ago.

As a men's and women's per game breakdown of government performance deals with the three teams, the Giants get $570,000, the Brumbies get $178,000 and the Raiders get about $162,000.

Andrew Barr's been everywhere, man. To Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide, Singapore and Dunedin, man. And now he's been back to Singapore, sparking rumours he visited the National Stadium again.

Barr visited the $1.1 billion sports hub in 2014 on his search for stadium ideas for a Canberra revamp. A decade on and he was back again, but this time to check out the indoor arena next to the stadium.

We're told the visit to the 12,000-capacity arena was part of fact-finding mission for a Horden Pavilion-style space being looked at for the site of the Civic pool and other infrastructure projects in Canberra.

The arena plan would scupper dreams of a Civic stadium, which was reinvigorated last year despite Barr's preference to rebuild Canberra Stadium and form a partnership with the AIS.

But the AIS Arena is reopening later this year (thanks to $15 million in maintenance upgrades), the University of Canberra wants to build a 5000-7000-capacity arena and there's an Exhibition Park revamp masterplan on the way. Do we need them all?

There's a gap in the airwaves and a former Canberra Raiders halfback might just be the man to fill the void.

Saturdays in the Capital with Channel Seven's Michelle Bishop and ex-Raider Sam Williams launches on March 4, with the pair to kick off from 10am until midday on SEN Track Canberra 1323AM.

Saturday mornings on Canberra radio were often dominated by sports shows on AM and FM radio in the past. Tim Gavel hosted ABC Grandstand for years, but the show has filtered through a number of hosts since he left the job. Now SEN wants to establish itself in the market.

"I've got some strong ties having worked with Ricky Stuart before, when he was at Parra. [SEN] enjoy what I do when I contribute [in Sydney], and they wanted to extend that and do a new show in Canberra," Bishop said.

"They saw a bit of a gap in the market because there hasn't been anything there."

Locker Room used to be a regular fixture of the Sunday Canberra Times and we're bringing it back this year with all the latest Canberra sport news, rumours and information.

We're keen to hear from readers about what's got them fired up in the capital, what they're happy about and how they think sport can play a role in the city's future. Reach out with your ideas and thoughts.

We've made it a whole lot easier for you to have your say. Our new comment platform requires only one log-in to access articles and to join the discussion on The Canberra Times website. Find out how to register so you can enjoy civil, friendly and engaging discussions. See our moderation policy here.