Canberra Raiders coach Ricky Stuart said this pre-season has been the toughest he's experienced in recent memory, but there's a green-tinted silver lining.
A number of key positions are up for grabs ahead of Canberra's NRL season-opener against Newcastle on Thursday night, with suspensions to forward Corey Horsburgh and outside back Seb Kris further opening up opportunities for players pushing for selection.
It makes for some difficult decisions come Tuesday afternoon when Stuart officially names his 17 headed to the Hunter.