Barnett, 21, a former Country under 18s representative second rower, will start from the bench bench after a broken cheekbone has ruled Sia Soliola out fo rthe year.

Barnett was signed by the Raiders. He played his junior football with Wingham before graduating to the Tigers' under 18s.

He represented Country 18s from the Tigers and was a co-winner of the Group Three representative player of the year in 2012.

He left for Canberra the following year to play in the Holden Cup (under 20s). Barnett was named Canberra's under 20s player of the year for 2014 and has reportedly been in strong form with Canberra's feeder club, Monties in the NSW Cup this year.

Raiders under-20 coach Mick Mantelli told the Canberra Times that Barnett is for the big time.

"He's a great kid, he works very hard and is passionate about his game, I have no reservations about him getting a first grade debut," Mantelli said.

"He's been knocking on the door for a while, he's been on their agenda for a bit and it was only a matter of time."

Barnett's favoured position is second row and he is likely to come off the bench and play on the right edge on Monday night.