Williams was disappointed his mate Bateman was leaving, but backed his reasons - to be closer to family.

The Raiders halfback said his return to Wigan could open the door for someone like Young to make an NRL name for himself.

Young's highly regarded at Canberra and has had a solid start in the second row since returning from suspension.

He's made a whopping 88 tackles over the past two weeks, just 15 games into his NRL career.

Bateman was an instant hit when he joined the Raiders last season and was a crucial cog in their charge to the grand final.

It's the sort of impact Williams thought Young was capable of.

"It's sad 'Batty's' going, but we've got some good players here. Hopefully a young player can step up - maybe Hudson Young, he's fantastic," Williams said.

"He's only young, but he's a great player and maybe he can step up next year and produce what Batty did last year."

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Williams backed Bateman's return to England, which will see him return to the English Super League and the club he won two premierships with.

Bateman's missed his daughter Millie since he moved down under - especially this year when the coronavirus pandemic meant she couldn't visit him in Canberra.

Williams played with him at Wigan and for England.

"First of all disappointed that he's leaving," he said.

"He's a great player and a great mate of mine so pretty sad that he's leaving the club, but we all back his decision.

"Family comes first and he's got a young girl back home and he's always made it clear that's his goal to do the best for her.

"He definitely proved himself last year in the NRL so if it's best for him to go back home and see her then good on him and we all back his decision."

Williams has steadily looked more and more at home in the Raiders' attack.

He's now third in the NRL for try assists with eight, scoring a nice solo try against St George Illawarra and setting one up with his kick to Canberra winger Bailey Simonsson.

"I've not played in this team a long time and I'm just trying to build combinations with Jackie [Wighton] - obviously I've played with [Josh Hodgson] before at England - and with Charnze [Nicoll-Klokstad] at the back," Williams said.

"It's going to take time, but we're working as hard as we can everyday to build that and I'm sure it will click pretty soon."

NRL ROUND NINE

Saturday: Canberra Raiders v Melbourne Storm at Canberra Stadium, 7.35pm.