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For a long time they were the clowns. The butt of jokes. There to have scorn poured upon them, laughed at and derided with each successive failure. Ridiculed by those who didn’t know better and dismissed as contenders by those who should have. But their time has come.
The stories of Mark Webber and the Canberra Raiders are inextricably intertwined.
The story of a determined bloke from Quenbeyan, a bunch of hardened journeymen, leftovers and kids come good, and the sporting public who had given up on them.
Webber’s history as a ball boy for the Canberra side is well documented, as is his continuation as a representative of the club to this day. After his breakthrough 2009 season Webber had every right to cut all ties with the Raiders.
After all, he had come so close to taking out motor sport’s Holy Grail he had every right to distance himself from a bunch of also-rans, maybe jump on the bandwagon of a cashed up English Premier League club in his adopted country.
But Webber stood firm. How much Webber knows about rugby league talent spotting is up for debate, but his luckless and loveless past with the Australian public and media has enabled him to spot potential and desire a mile away … something the growing 2010 Raiders side have in bucket loads.
Make no mistake, this is not a perfect football team. This is not the highly polished Raiders of the early 90’s, full of rep players and precision.
Their playing style can switch from brutal to haphazard to just ridiculous with the change of a gear, their games as unpredictable as the Melbourne Grand Prix’s first corner.
Like Webber’s performance in Barcelona, this is a side that can be destructively dominant. Its core of blistering pace in the backs and monstrous muscle in the forward pack can leave teams whimpering for mercy on the dressing room floor at half time.
But then again, they are very capable of running into their teammate on the last lap and a number of times this season their games have ended (at least metaphorically) with a clear DNF.
Some of the blame for this surely must be directed at the Raiders rookie coach, club legend David Furner.
Furner’s position, appointed by the Raiders board headed by CEO and brother Don Furner Jr, draws a number of comparisons to Nathan Brown’s turbulent tenure as Dragons coach. Whilst his dedication to the club is unquestionable, his tactics often exposed the inexperience of the Raiders key players, leaving them to play what can only be described as ‘dumb’ football.
Also, like Brown, his tactic of trying to turn successful outside backs into modified halves is worrying.
Again, one thinks of Webber and team Red Bull’s questionable tyre decisions of late and can’t help but wonder where Canberra and Queanbeyan’s finest could be sitting in their respective competitions.
Our nation’s capital residents should rest assured though, that wherever they do end up in the final standings it will be due to a whole hearted effort with the knockers wiping the humble pie from their chins … and a bloody entertaining ride to boot.
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