Much has been made of the raft of off-season changes at the Macquarie Raiders.
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New captain-coach Wes Middleton attracted a stack of new players to the club and after a round one draw he admitted it will take some time before the best of the Raiders is on show in Group 11.
But it's not just a case of the new recruits needing time to gel, as many of the club's returning and experienced campaigners have been asked to take on new roles under Middleton.
Kane McDermott is one of those, the 20-year-old expected to split is his time between hooker and lock in season 2019.
The former NSW Country under 18s player has spent the bulk of his career at hooker but with that being Middleton's main position there will be plenty of changes this campaign.
"I've played there a little in the past but it is a bit different," McDermott said, having played lock last weekend.
"Normally you've got the ball all the time and in the middle of the ruck there. You're a little less involved, the defence in the middle is the same but attack is different.
"But there might be a bit of rotation throughout the year."
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The rotation is set to start this weekend with McDermott back in the number nine while Middleton moves to halfback in a much-changed Raiders lineup.
Boche Satrick shifts from the number seven to the centres, with Aaron Daniel moving from there to the back-row after impressing in his limited chances with the ball at Narromine.
Daniel scored a key try late last weekend, but his side did bomb countless other chances in attack at Cale Oval.
There was promise shown in attack but errors hampered the Raiders' hopes while also forcing them to get through a mountain of defensive work.
The potential is clear to see but McDermott knows his side needs to be better in Sunday's clash with Forbes.
The defending premiers head to Dubbo after being beaten by Nyngan in round one, and already the Magpies are battling a lengthy injury list.
They're the defending premiers and they're always tough.
- Kane McDermott on Forbes
"It's going to be hard because they're the defending premiers and they're always tough," McDermott said, admitting he was surprised to see the Magpies lose in round one.
"It's a bit hard for us because we've got a lot of new players and we've got to adjust but there was good signs last week. We just had no ball and it was always going to be a hard game with the coaches on other sides, there was a lot in it."
McDermott is a former under 18s premiership with the Raiders and has despite being a younger member of the current first grade side he's developed into a key figure.
He was a regular last season as Macquarie battled inconsistency and was ultimately bounced out in the opening week of the final, but he's excited to see what this year's side can achieve.
"It's exciting," McDermott said.
"The last couple of years we haven't been going our best but we're really keen to give it a crack."
The action at Apex Oval starts with league tag at 11am on Sunday while first grade is expected to kick-off at 2.30pm.