Monaro looking to back-up Country Championships Final

State of Origin players back up two days after playing, the Monaro Colts will try to do it after one. That's the plan anyway.

Monaro are in their third consecutive NSW Under-23s Country Championships final in a row, having won it in 2017 and missed out last year.

Monaro captain Josh Stuckey plans to back-up for his club just 24 hours playing in the country championships final.Credit: Raiders Media

This time they face Illawarra South Coast at Mudgee in the decider on Saturday.

Monaro captain Josh Stuckey said they would try and back up and play for their Canberra Raiders Cup teams in the season openers on Sunday.

It's not just two games of rugby league in two days, but throw in a 10-hour round trip up the highway as well.

Stuckey scored a hat-trick in the Colts' semi-final - part of an unbeaten run to the decider.

He's been named in the Queanbeyan Blues team to face Belconnen United Sharks at Seiffert Oval on Sunday.

"That's the plan. A lot of us are thinking about backing up, but just worrying about Saturday and thinking about the game and just see what happens," Stuckey said.

"It'd be pretty tough, but I think all the club coaches are pretty lenient. They know what we're doing and trying to achieve so they're just helping us out, letting us make our own decision whether we're going to back up or not."

The clubs opted to open the season on the Sunday on the same weekend as the country champs final.

If they started next week it would mean only having one game before having the Easter break.

Start the week after Easter and the season's finishing three weeks later.

The clash has come about because they moved the country champs forward to the start of the season, instead of holding it during it.

"Easter made it tricky just getting a bit of momentum. If we didn't start this week and we started next week, then there's the Easter break," Canberra Region Rugby League general manager Mark Vergano said.

"Or we start after Easter and I guess they felt that was too long into the year which would've pushed out the back as well.

"The clubs came up with that one [starting Sunday] because I was reticent to go there.

"Generally in favour of what they've done with the country champs [moving it forward], but it's hard on the players and lengthens their season."

Stuckey played for the Raiders under-20s last year and playing for Monaro puts him back in the shop window to impress NSW and Queensland Cup clubs.

His Colts teammates who played in last year's decider have shared the pain of that defeat - 26-22 to Northern Rivers - and were using it to drive this year's campaign.

Stuckey said they've achieved their first goal. Now it was time to finish the job.

"They just said they still remember the feeling of the loss and coming so close - [four] points I think it was last year - to winning another championship, they just want to get the chocolates this weekend," he said.

NSW U23 COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS

Saturday: Monaro Colts v Illawarra South Coast at Mudgee, 2.30pm. Live on crlnsw.com.au.

CANBERRA RAIDERS CUP ROUND ONE

Sunday: Goulburn Bulldogs v Queanbeyan Kangaroos at Goulburn, 2.15pm; Tuggeranong Bushrangers v West Belconnen Warriors at Greenway, 3pm; Woden Valley Rams v Yass Magpies at Phillip, 3pm; Queanbeyan Blues v Belconnen United Sharks at Seiffert Oval, 3pm.