Ricky Stuart highlighted the Raiders' potential, emphasizing that injuries affected their performance, particularly young halfback Ethan Sanders.
Ricky Stuart knew his Raiders had Saturday night's performance in them. It was just a matter of having his full complement of players - and specifically up front - available for selection.
So, after being "bashed up socially and bashed up publicly", the Canberra coach used his post-game press conference after the win over the Bulldogs to remind everyone of what he already knew.
That last year's minor premiers, even if they are still up against it to make the finals this year, aren't actually that far away.
That goes for young halfback Ethan Sanders, who has been the subject of much criticism after struggling to find consistency in his first full season at NRL level.
But ask coach Stuart and he will tell you Sanders has arguably been the biggest victim of Canberra's injury toll and he pointed to Nathan Cleary's masterclass in Wednesday's State of Origin game to prove it.