Deep sh*t now TLL is out, Hinchcliffe is in , Hinchcliffe wants to prove himself to Henry , hope he plays above himself.
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, CANBERRA Raiders utility Ryan Hinchcliffe has vowed to show coach Neil Henry he is still a valuable asset after earning an NRL recall yesterday.
Hinchcliffe will join the Raiders bench for today's must-win game against the Bulldogs at Telstra Stadium after a shoulder injury kept back-rower Tom Learoyd-Lahrs out of the team.
It will be the 22-year-old's first NRL game since the Raiders' embarrassing loss to St George Illawarra five weeks ago.
Hinchcliffe admitted yesterday he was playing for his career after Raiders management told him he might not be required at the club next season.
He hoped to impress Henry with an eye-catching performance against the star-studded Bulldogs pack.
"There's only three games to go after this and I'm still up in the air about what I'm going to do next year so it's definitely a chance for me to show what I can do in first grade," Hinchcliffe said.
"It's a good opportunity for me not only to prove myself to the Raiders but to other teams as well.
"I haven't spoken to my manager for a couple of weeks but I know he was speaking to a couple of clubs."
Hinchcliffe said his first choice was to remain in Canberra next season, but Henry was yet to confirm if he would be required.
He has managed just three NRL games since joining the Raiders in 2004, mainly because of Lincoln Withers' mortgage on his preferred position of hooker. Hinchcliffe will spend time at both lock and hooker today as the Raiders attempt to cover the loss of injured captain Alan Tongue.
He said he had tried to put his future at the back of his mind for the final month of the season to ensure he played his best football.
"I want to stay here because I've got a really good bunch of mates and we're a pretty close-knit team," he said.
"But I've sort of been trying to put that in the back of my head a little bit and just focus on these next few weeks and make sure I have a good time and not worry about it too much. I don't want it getting the better of me.
"It has been really hard and I got myself down for a couple of weeks there by really worrying about it.
"But I had a bit of a think to myself and just realised I've only got a few months and I've got to make the most of it and play good footy and enjoy the time I have left with my mates."
The Bulldogs are likely to make two changes to their team for today's crucial match. Veteran fullback Luke Patten is set to return from injury with Trent Cutler making way, and Andrew Emilio is set to replace injured centre Willie Tonga.
Henry said his team was taking a "finals mentality" into the game as it fought to keep in touch with the top eight.
"We're acutely aware of the challenge ahead of us," Henry said.
"The Bulldogs are a tough side, they've got a number of players in their side that are very good attacking players so we'll need to be very aggressive defensively and we need to control the ball and play a bit of field position against them.
"It's really all or none for us so it's sort of that finals mentality
http://canberra.yourguide.com.au/de...league&story_id=1035974&category=rugby+league
