NOWRA-BOMADERRY Jets product Matt Scott will this week make his long awaited debut for the Canberra Raiders National Youth Competition team, when he runs onto the field against the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles.
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The former-Nowra High School student is over the moon to be finally pulling on the green Raiders jersey this Friday night at Canberra’s GIO Stadium.
“I was absolutely stoked when it was announced that I was making me debut - I couldn't stop smiling when I got told before training,” Soctt said.
“It means a lot to me to be finally making my under 20s debut and it’s been a goal of mine for some time.
“It demonstrates that all my hard work and commitment to training is paying off.
“The most important thing for me though is to make the people in my life proud of me - what I've achieved is what I’ve been aiming for, so this is a massive thing for me and for them.”
Although his debut might have come later than he had hoped, the delay has allowed him to get in mind and body right for the memorable occasion.
“The reason I believe I got the call-up is because of the amount of effort I put in during the pre-season and so far this year playing with Yass,” Scott said.
“Still being a year younger than most in the competition, I believe this is a pretty big achievement.
“The changes in my body reflect that hard work, dropping from 117kg down to 105kg has seen be become a completely different player since coming to the Raiders, allowing me to take my game to a whole new level.”
Through the first seven rounds, the Raiders have three wins and four losses to their names, something Scott hopes to improve this Friday night.
“I expect the game to be very tough, as the speed of the game will be like something I've never experienced before, but I'm keen to make the step up and get involved in the game,” he said.
“I’ll be coming off the bench on Friday, so I know my job is to inject energy into the game when I get on there.
“My role will be to make as many metres as I can and have strong contact in defence.
“I can't wait to make my debut on Friday.”
Kick-off is at 3.45pm, before first grade get underway at 6pm.
Canberra Raiders NYC squad vs Manly-Warringah: 1. Jayden Carroll, 2. Cody Hodge, 3. Sebastian Kris, 4. Andre Niko, 5. Mikaele Ravalawa, 6. Logan Spaander, 7. Lachlan Cooper, 8. Emre Guler, 9. Zac Patch, 10. Zac Masters, 11. Jack Murchie, 12. Kalani Going (c), 13. Hudson Young, 14. Jarred Tuite, 15. Kye Madden, 16. William Samuel, 17. Fabien Paletua-Kiri, 18. Sato Ketia-Opo, 19. Matthew Scott, 20. Kitione Vikash, 21. Connor Brebner, 22. Derek Hay, 23. Sione Afemui.