Ethan Strange put on a scintillating show in the nation’s capital as the five-eighth’s hat-trick guided Canberra to a hard-fought 28-12 win over Manly.
The Raiders had slipped to a surprise defeat to St George Illawarra last week and fell behind to the Sea Eagles early.
However, the hosts eventually bounced back after seeing their nine-game winning streak burst by the Dragons to ease home against Anthony Seibold's flailing side.
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Ethan Strange in the frame for Kangaroos as hat-trick catches the eye
Strange had Daly Cherry-Evans and the rest of Manly’s right edge defence on strings throughout the night, as his violent left step often left DCE clutching at thin air.
Strange scored his side’s first four-pointer of the evening in response to Tom Trbojevic opening the scoring when he bamboozled the Manly halfback close to the line.
It proved to be a sign of things to come as the young gun bagged two more tries in four second-half minutes to flip the game on its head once again after Tolutau Koula had briefly handed Manly the advantage.
The rising playmaker finished with three tries, three linebreaks, 82 run metres and 11 tackle busts.
The starring performance not only fired the Green Machine back to the top of the ladder but also left an impression on Kevin Walters.
The newly-appointed Australia coach admitted he was firmly in the frame for selection for the upcoming Ashes series in England.
"From my experience with the Kangaroos, a good run through that finals series - a player who gets on a run that the Raiders could do - and they can play their way into the Aussie side," Walters said on Fox League.
"He’s one who could certainly force his way in."
The former Queensland and Brisbane mentor went on to praise the 20-year-old’s approach to the game.
"I like the way he runs the ball," Walters said. "He’s big, strong and enjoys the contact in the tackle. He actually likes the contact in defence and attack.
"Strange likes big backrowers coming out trying to whack him, which they do sometimes," Walters added. "But he’s good on his feet and he’s a good young player."
Meanwhile, Stuart was unafraid to push Strange's name forward for representative honours in the near future post-match, with the coach predicting a bright future for his player.
"He's still only 25 or 30 games into his career, but he's got an unbelievable future in front of him," Stuart said.
"I think he'll play for Australia this year and I think he'll be our next five-eighth for New South Wales. And I don't sit here gloating. I sit here as a happy coach saying that.
"He's got Origin attitude the way he defends and the way he runs the football. He's got the qualities of a rep player already as a young person. I don't say that outlandishly."