Knights Holden Cup coach says Raiders will be "a real handful"

[Archie]

Round 4 NYC Preview: Knights v Raiders

NEWCASTLE KNIGHTS v CANBERRA RAIDERS
Round 4, 2013 NRL Premiership
Monday, March 31, 2013
NRL Kick-Off 6.30pm, NYC Kick-Off 4.15pm
Hunter Stadium, Newcastle
Referee: Chris Sutton

The Newcastle Knights under 20’s face their biggest test of 2013 when they take on the in-form Canberra Raiders at Hunter Stadium on Easter Sunday.

“I have had a look at them and they are without doubt one of the better teams of the competition,” coach Michael Crawley told newcastleknights.com.au

“Apart from a loss in Round 1 they have been really strong and have been scoring plenty of points.

“They don’t have many weaknesses and are going to be a real handful for us."

The Knights suffered a 26-20 loss to the North Queensland Cowboys on Monday night and Crawley said a result on Sunday would give his young team a huge confidence boost going forward.

“We have shown we have been in every game and we just haven’t been able to maintain it for the full 80-minutes and we have to work on that,” he said.

“We are showing a lot of good signs in that we are running good metres, are not missing a lot of tackles and our ball control has been good.

“Hopefully we can concentrate for the full distance this week because the boys are disappointed with the performances they have put in at home.

“And are very keen to get out there on Sunday and play well for the Members and supporters.”

Captain Adam Clydsdale is expected to miss the next three weeks after suffering an ankle injury during Sunday’s loss and in his absence James Elias will be given the responsibility of leading the team.

“James is playing his third year with the NYC and is a leader amongst the boys so it will be a natural progression for him to captain the side this week,” the coach added.

“Adam has recovered fairly well and was feeling a lot better at the backend of the week.

“And we are hoping he might be back for the Penrith game in three weeks time.”

After spending the first three rounds in the halves, Eddie Proudler will switch to hooker and James De Saxe will take over the halfback duties.

“Eddie came to us as a hooker and it is a good opportunity for him to play in his best position,” he said.
“It is good that we have guys like him ready to go.”

Source: http://www.newcastleknights.com.au/news-display/Round-4-NYC-Preview-Knights-v-Raiders/71213