The venue - Canberra Stadium. The Green Machine v the Sydney Roosters. A top-four title fight. The Canberra Raiders jumped above the Roosters - and South Sydney - into second with their win over the New Zealand Warriors on Friday.

And they'll stay there if Cronulla beats the Rabbitohs and the Roosters can't account for the Gold Coast Titans by at least 18 points.

Making it even bigger? It'll be Jarrod Croker's 250^th NRL game. The Raiders only went down to the Roosters by six points in round nine making for a mouth-watering contest in the run-in to finals, which the Green Machine have basically sealed their spot in with the Warriors hammering.

If the Raiders weren't play well enough already, they'll be further bolstered by the return of young gun Nick Cotric.

Cotric has served his three-game suspension for a dangerous throw and will be available to take on the Roosters.

He could slot in at right centre alongside New Zealand winger Jordan Rapana, or potentially back to his old spot on the Raiders left wing alongside co-captain Jarrod Croker.

There's also the outside chance of Joey Leilua (neck) being named in the 21 in the coming weeks as his return from surgery draws closer. The Roosters game might be too soon, but the Melbourne Storm is a possibility.

One of the reasons behind the Green Machine's climb to second on the NRL ladder has been their away form.

They've won seven of their 10 games on the road in 2019, including their past three trips away from Canberra. They're on track for their best campaign on the road under coach Ricky Stuart, with seven wins and a draw in 2016 their best return since he took over.

In a sign of just how far Raiders recruit and ex-Warrior Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad has come since moving to Canberra, he came off the field having at least equalled Dally M Medallist Roger Tuivasa-Sheck. Tuivasa-Sheck kept the Raiders fullback on the sidelines in Auckland, with Nicoll-Klokstad coming across the Ditch in search of opportunities.

He's been a revelation in lime green and continued that form in his first return home.

Nicoll-Klokstad was excellent at the back, running for 229 metres, producing one tackle bust and he was safe as houses at the back.

Tuivasa-Sheck's numbers were similar - 193m and five tackle busts.

The Raiders met with Nicoll-Klokstad's manager while they were in Auckland to discuss upgrading and extending his contract beyond the current two-year deal.

Something the young Kiwi was keen to do.

There's no sugar coating it. Josh Hodgson has made the new stripping rule his own. But could he also be the reason it gets changed?

The one-on-one strip is a hot topic at the moment with Warriors coach Stephen Kearney calling for it to be scrapped last week.

It would be a blow to the Green Machine who are clearly the best in the business at it.