Lachlan Croker was two years from being born when Ken Nagas won a premiership with the Raiders in 1994, but the 18-year-old rookie and 41-year-old retiree will play for Canberra at this month's Auckland Nines.
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New captain Jarrod Croker will lead a raw Raiders squad to the tournament, with Canberra choosing to rest the bulk of their big names.
But Sam Williams, Mitch Cornish and Josh McCrone have all been selected, beginning their fight for the halfback role to partner five-eighth recruit Blake Austin.
While Lachlan Croker isn't in the frame for NRL selection yet, it's a measure of the teenager's ability that the Raiders have chosen to blood him at the Auckland Nines.
Croker is the nephew of Jason Croker, the games-record holder for the Raiders and a teammate of Nagas in the 1994 premiership win. Nagas announced this month he would be making a cameo return after 13 years in retirement.
The young half was in the NSW Under 18s last year, was chosen as part of Laurie Daley's NSW Blues Pathways camp and has been training with the Raiders NRL squad all pre-season, having finished school last year.
Croker is one of three teenagers in the Raiders squad, along with winger Brenko Lee, 19, and forward Tevita Pangai Jr, 18.
Melbourne Storm's leading try-scorer from last year, Sisa Waqa, will make his debut for the club at the tournament, beginning January 31.
The Raiders have left out recruits Austin, Josh Hodgson, Sia Soliola and Frank-Paul Nu'uausala, as well as key NRL players such as Jack Wighton, Edrick Lee, Paul Vaughan, Josh Papalii and Dane Tilse. David Shillington and Shaun Fensom are unavailable because of injury, racing to be fit for the start of the NRL season against the Cronulla Sharks on March 8.
Other rookies in Canberra's Auckland Nines squad yet to make their NRL debuts for the Raiders include Rhys Kennedy, Jack Ahearn, Luke Bateman and Haydon Hodge.
Raiders Auckland Nines squad: 1. Sam Williams 2. Mitch Cornish 3. Jarrod Croker 4. Lachlan Croker 5. Sisa Waqa 6. Joel Edwards 7. Josh McCrone 8. Rhys Kennedy 9. Glen Buttriss 10. Brenko Lee 11. Bill Tupou 12. Jack Ahearn 13. Luke Bateman 14. Haydon Hodge 15. Mark Nicholls 16. Kyle O'Donnell 17. Tevita Pangai Jnr 18. Ken Nagas
