Canberra players haven't given up on welcoming another big name for 2015 despite NSW State of Origin hopeful Josh Mansour joining a growing list of NRL stars to spurn the club's advances.
Mansour on Tuesday announced he would re-sign with Penrith after having given serious thought to a lucrative deal with Canberra.
He was the latest player targeted in an aggressive recruitment drive by new Raiders coach Ricky Stuart to bolster the club's playing roster.
Wests-Tigers fullback James Tedesco is the only big name to sign on the dotted line so far, with Kiwi international back-rower Kevin Proctor and Canterbury hooker Michael Ennis declining offers.
This follows star fullback Anthony Milford's decision to leave for Brisbane, while centre Matt Allwood will also depart for the Warriors at the end of the season.
The low conversion rate of the recruitment drive might have Canberra looking like the lonely kid at the disco, yet Raiders prop Dane Tilse did his best to spruik the club on Tuesday.
He said while "Canberra may have a bad rap from Sydney-siders", it was a great city that allowed players to focus on improving their footy.
"Hopefully, some more can come," he said. "The more quality players in the squad we can get the better.
"There's always room for improvement."
Workhorse lock Shaun Fensom echoed his teammate's comments.
"It's good to see the club trying to get as many people here as possible," he said.
"Football is a business these days so, just like any other job, you've got to recruit."
However, he added it was important that any new stars who signed with the Raiders bought into the culture that the current crop of players was building back up.
"You don't want people to come in and disrupting that culture, but I'm sure the people they have been looking at will believe in it," he said.
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