Raiders a big hit in Canowindra
By BEN DREWE
CANBERRA Raiders forward Josh Miller thinks their two-day trip to Cowra and Canowindra will help them achieve their goal of a top eight finish in next year's NRL competition.
The Raiders held pre-season training sessions at Cowra's Sid Kallas Oval and visited schools in one of several excursions from the nation's capital before the start of the 2008 season.
And Miller, a former Forbes Magpie, thinks the trips are not only valuable for the towns they visit but also for the players and the club themselves as they are not holidays.
With the trips away they try and simulate training and playing away, Miller said.
A lot of the blokes try to get their preparations right for when we go away.
This could be crucial for the Raiders as they tend to be substantially less successful on the road away from Canberra.
The rugged prop enjoyed the two-day stay in Cowra and, having grown up in Forbes, Miller knows how much seeing NRL players means to the Cowra and Canowindra communities.
He was a big hit at Canowindra's St Edward's Primary School, or was on the end of a big hit as the photo suggests, and the 24-year old thinks coming from a similar background helps him relate with the kids.
I think it is (easier to relate to the kids coming from Forbes) because they are in a similar situation to what I was and these kids don't get to see NRL players that often, Miller said.
It is good to take football out to where they don't get to see it that much ... they appreciate it more.
The Green Machine will once again take their pre-season preparations to the Central West in February when they come to Orange for a trial against the Brisbane Broncos.
The Raiders will again hold training sessions and visit schools ahead of their February 23 clash at Wade Park and the players have a hard slog ahead of them getting ready for the Broncos.
Three months out from the trial, Miller believes both teams will be giving their all in what will be their first hit-out of 2008.
The trials are where it all starts ... all trials are pretty important for all NRL teams, Miller said.
The Raiders' joint 2005 player of the year is hoping he can secure a regular spot in the first grade side next season after battling injuries in past years.
Tickets for the NRL trial between Canberra and Brisbane are on sale at Ticketek.
Source: Central Western Daily
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