Canberra's teenage centre Nick Cotric has declared he's ready to run out in round one of the NRL season alongside players he idolised growing up.
With skipper Jarrod Croker out of action with a knee injury, 18-year-old Cotric is one of the players vying to replace him in the Raiders' season opener against North Queensland, on March 4.
"It just depends what (coach) Ricky (Stuart) says, but I'd definitely take the opportunity with both hands. I think I'm ready," Cotric told AAP.
Cotric was born and bred in Canberra and has lived in the nation's capital his whole life.
He signed a full-time contract with the Raiders last year giving him the chance to train alongside childhood heroes Jack Wighton and Blake Austin.
"The first day was a bit nerve-wracking because a couple of them were my idols when I was younger," Cotric said.
"But the boys have been very welcoming, they're a great bunch of blokes."
After bulking up to 98kgs in the off-season, Cotric showed glimpses of why he is rated so highly by the Raiders during their trial loss to Newcastle, in Queanbeyan, on Saturday.
"It was heaps faster, with bigger boys but I learnt heaps from it," he said.
"It was great to get that experience to see what it's like."
While Croker's knee is out of a brace, it is likely to keep him out of action until at least round four or five.
He said versatile English recruit Jordan Turner and Brent Naden were also capable of stepping in but he expected Cotric to play first-grade at some stage during the year.
"Whether we want to thrust him into the deep end in Townsville round one, I'm not sure," Croker said.
"But he's got a massive future. He's got the size and the body to be there."
Turner's experience could see him make his NRL debut in round one after switching from St Helens last year.
"He's played over 200 Super League games," Croker said.
"He's quite a smart footballer so I'm sure he's one of the obvious guys there."
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