Campo's Corner: Can Ricky Stuart save Canberra one more time?

Since Ricky Stuart arrived at the Raiders, the club has never been successful without him.

Canberra have made the preliminary final nine times since 1988, and Stuart has been a part of all of them, either as a player or a coach.

It's easy to make the case that Stuart is the most important figure in the club's history. Mal Meninga changed Canberra's trajectory forever when he signed with the Raiders in 1986, Les McIntyre was the club's godfather off the field, but when it comes to overall contributions there are few who can match Stuart.

Since taking over in 2014, when Canberra was at its lowest ebb since the foundation years, Stuart has done so much for a club who very much needed it. He helped rebuild the Raiders roster on the field and their pride off it, reforging links to the community that were once lost, and through his sheer presence making them a relevant and visible presence in the NRL conversation. 

There are plenty of former Raiders who are proud of Canberra, and are proud to be from Canberra, but none of them live it like Ricky Stuart.

The Raiders aren't just a team he played for, or a club he coached. To a great extent, they are who he is. He was at the Bulldogs, Eels, Roosters and Sharks, and he coached New South Wales and Australia, but at his core he was always Canberra's own.

That's what makes Canberra's current predicament so difficult. The Raiders are struggling, and have been for some time now. When a team struggles, the coach begins to feel the heat around the corner. But the Raiders are not just dealing with a coach, they are dealing with the club's favourite ever son.

Their loss to North Queensland last week, where they surrendered yet another half-time lead and yet again failed to fire much of a shot in