Raiders to pull Manly apart: Thompson

May 22, 2013 - 9:56 PM Canberra back-rower Joel Thompson has boldly stated that when the Green Machine is firing, their attack will pull apart the best of NRL defences.

Thompson's claim will be put to the ultimate test on Saturday night when the Raiders take on a Manly side coming off the back of a low-scoring 10-10 draw against Melbourne in a game where they made the most tackles in NRL history.

And while the Sea Eagles currently have the second best defensive record in the NRL, Thompson is anything but daunted about the wall set to greet he and his teammates at Brookvale Oval.

"With our gameplan and what we do out here, if we stick to it, (we) should pull them apart," he said.

"When everyone does their role ... we pull apart the best of teams."

Thompson is returning to the line-up after fracturing his toe in the round seven match against North Queensland.

"It's been a long three weeks. But there's not much I could do about it," he said.

"I could just train as hard as I can at the gym and that's what I did. I'm ready to go."

Thompson admits he's had an up-and-down 2013 season.

Not only has he spent extra weeks on the sidelines this year with a shoulder injury, the 24-year-old Indigenous All Stars representative also made the decision to leave the Raiders in 2014 to join St George Illawarra.

"Yeah, it was (a relief), deciding on my future," Thompson said.

"It took a toll on me. I was happy to get that out of the way. These niggling injuries are just a bit of a bad run. I'm just ready to get out there and play footy."

Meanwhile, playmaker Josh McCrone says he'll be fit to play after bruising his hip in the Raiders' 30-20 loss to the Cronulla Sharks on Sunday.

"It's obviously a bit sore for me, but (the doctor) is confident players have been worse off than me and have played," he said.

"I can't injure it anymore. So it's just going to be playing with pain."

Source: AAP