James Tedesco bigger danger than Sonny-Bill Williams: Papalii

The star fullback will play alongside Williams for the first time this weekend after Roosters coach Trent Robinson named his latest recruit in the number 17 jersey on Tuesday.

Just how Robinson uses Williams against the in-form Raiders remains to be seen, although the former All Black is expected to be injected for 20 or 30 minutes in an explosive burst either side of half-time.

Tedesco scored the match-winning try to break Canberra hearts in last year's grand final, and has been in scintillating from this season as the Roosters chase a third-straight premiership - a quest which continues to rapidly gather momentum with Williams set to end a near six-year NRL hiatus.

And it was Tedesco, not Williams, who Papalii said posed the most significant threat to his side.

"They've got the best player in the world with Teddy at the back, patrolling," Papalii said.

"Any break the Roosters make, Teddy's always there and scoring some freakish tries as well. He's always just around the ball, and without the ball he's always on the run and saving tries.

"He's just one of those who can create something out of nothing. We're going to have to be on our best game and hopefully give him no opportunities to play.

Should Canberra beat the Roosters like they did in round 10, they will leapfrog the premiers into the NRL's top four.

Since that encounter both sides have lost just once - Canberra to ladder-leading Penrith, and the Roosters to Melbourne. But that was all pre-Williams.

The 35-year-old won a premiership at Robinson's roosters in 2013, to go with the glory he tasted nine years earlier as a bright-eyed Canterbury Bulldog.

In between he won a World Cup with the All Blacks, and Super Rugby title with the Chiefs. Two years after the 2013 Roosters title, he claimed a second World Cup with the All Blacks.

More recently he's dabbled in boxing and had a brief, pre-COVID-19 stint with the Toronto Wolfpack in the English Super League.

"Everywhere he's been he's just been successful [which] speaks highly of who he is," Papalii said.

"He's obviously a well-known athlete round the world, pretty exciting to see him back.

"Knowing Stick [Ricky Stuart] as a coach, Sonny probably won't be the focus, it's players around Sonny that make Sonny a good player.

"We're playing the Roosters who have won back-to-back premierships and I think the focus will be on guys like [Boyd] Cordner, their halves, Tedesco. Sonny coming off the bench just boosts their lineup, he's a good player, has been at the top for a long time."

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English import John Bateman has long admired Williams from afar, and will go up against him for the first time on Saturday.

"As a kid, about 14, 15 year old I was watching his highlights non stop," Bateman said.

"Everyone knows who he is in the game, in the world of sport. He's huge for the sport he's been one of the best players in the game.

"It's exciting for the NRL. He's a massive player in what he's done in the game and not just rugby league, rugby union and boxing.

"We've barely mentioned him. They've got players all over the field that are great players. Goes to show they've won the title now for the last two seasons in a row.

"Adding him to the package is obviously a huge benefit for them."

Bateman said he'd resist the temptation to target Williams, and was more focused on building on Canberra's second-half defensive effort in Sunday's win over Canterbury.

"We leaked a few tries in the first half off a few kicks, it was one of them you couldn't really stop the first couple of kicks," Bateman said.

"The second half we tightened it all up. We need to have a good start against the Roosters, we can't afford them to have a good start."