Canberra Raiders duo Hudson Young and Emre Guler to push Kangaroos claims in Prime Minister's XIII

The Canberra Raiders duo have been named in the Prime Minister's XIII squad to face a Papua New Guinean selection in Port Moresby on September 23.

Meninga will use the Prime Minister's XIII clash as a gauge on a host of players before naming his Kangaroos squad for the Pacific Championships to be played across October and November.

Young emerged on Meninga's radar last year before the Raiders back-rower went within a whisker of selection for Australia's ultimately victorious World Cup squad.

Now the 25-year-old - who has an ambition to captain the Raiders - has a chance to show Meninga just the kind of leader he aspires to be when the squad heads into camp.

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"Playing in a few big games, playing Origin helps you having that confidence and that leadership," Young said on the eve of the NRL finals.

"I've been put in good stead to have had terrific leaders all the way through - Sia Soliola, Jarrod [Croker], Jack [Wighton], big Papa [Josh Papali'i] - and to come through with them, I'm really lucky and we're fortunate to be in the position we are."

Guler would be a shock selection in a Kangaroos squad so soon but the Canberra prop will be happy to ride the wave as he prepares to enter his first representative camp at the top level.

The 25-year-old was one of just two Raiders to feature in every game this season - alongside centre Matt Timoko - before Canberra bowed out in a thrilling elimination final in Newcastle.

It's some turnaround for Guler, whose first five seasons in the NRL were riddled by inconsistency and injury.

"It's been a bit of a different year. You need a bit of luck too, I've been a bit lucky this year with no injuries and that has helped me to concentrate on training, work on my game and be consistent every week," Guler said.

"Very lucky, very blessed this year, but I've put a lot of hard work in behind the scenes and hopefully that builds into next year as well."

South Sydney star Cam Murray will captain the Prime Minister's XIII, with Manly halfback Daly Cherry-Evans to serve as his deputy. Eight players from Australia's World Cup-winning squad have been named in Meninga's side.

Meninga says the looming Pacific Championships have the potential to give international rugby league a shot in the arm and eventually rival State of Origin in fanfare.

The championships will include six international men's teams and seven women's teams and a valuable opportunity to grow pathways and nurture talent.

The Pacific Cup will include Australia, Samoa and New Zealand and a final. The Pacific Bowl will feature Fiji, Papua New Guinea and Cook Islands, and a final.

"This squad is a blend of experience from the World Cup last year, additional State of Origin players from this year, as well as younger players who we would like to see at this level," Meninga said.

"There was fairly unanimous agreement across the selections and I can't wait to see this group test themselves in the green and gold."

Janelle Williams has been named in the women's Prime Minister's XIII side after claiming the NRLW coaches award at the Mal Meninga Medal night.

The women's Pacific Cup features Australia, New Zealand and Tonga. Cook Islands, Samoa, Fiji and Papua New Guinea will play for the Pacific Bowl.

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