The Raiders have been left scratching their heads all season about the lack of action from NRL officials given one of Wighton's strengths is his chase following one of his own kicks.

NRL head of football Graham Annesley told The Canberra Times it was important to protect playmakers - a good time to start would be in the blockbuster grand final rematch against the Sydney Roosters at Canberra Stadium on Saturday night.

The whole rugby league world will be watching as cross-code star Sonny Bill Williams makes his NRL return after a six-year absence.

Plus, the winner could have one hand on a top-four finish and climb to as high as third by the end of the round.

Croker said any chance to earn a week off during the finals series would be "like gold".

Targeting Wighton has become a tactic with the Raiders raising their concerns following their round four clash against Newcastle and then again three weeks ago against Brisbane.

There were also internal concerns about the way he was treated by Roosters prop Jared Waerea-Hargreaves, when the Green Machine produced one of the performances of the season to beat the reigning premiers.

Waerea-Hargeaves took Wighton down ridiculously late in the 72^nd minute as Wighton looked to put pressure on Roosters fullback James Tedesco.

Wighton also had his legs taken out by Roosters halfback Kyle Flanagan, while Raiders halfback George Williams was the victim of a late hit from Boyd Cordner and a high shot from Luke Keary.

All incidents went unpunished.

When asked about the late attention Wighton's been getting all year, Croker had a simple solution.

"Nothing we say or do is going to change what happens on the field - they're still going to target Jack," he said.

"He's one of our best players. We've seen how good he's been over the last couple of weeks, how strong he is and how good he leads that kick chase.

"Teams are going to keep doing that. Hopefully the refs see it and if they blow a penalty early it might stop them from doing it."

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Not that any of the extra attention has fazed Wighton.

The Raiders five-eighth's in stunning form, having scored four tries in the past two games - including two to lead Canberra to victory when a man down against Canterbury.

Wighton's just having a ball out on the field as he looks to keep a simple game simple.

He's been at his devastating best running the football, having taken it upon himself to get the left edge more involved.

Both he and Williams have had to step up in leading the Green Machine around the park in the absence of Josh Hodgson (knee).

"Footy's a simple game complicated by stupid people. But I'm just having fun and trying to roll into the back end of this season and see how far we can go," Wighton said.

"We've had a bit of bad luck through the year, but all the boys are stepping up and taking their roles and it's showing."

NRL ROUND 17

Saturday: Canberra Raiders v Sydney Roosters at Canberra Stadium, 7.35pm.

Raiders squad: 1. Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, 2. Jordan Rapana, 3. Jarrod Croker (c), 4. Curtis Scott, 5. Nick Cotric, 6. Jack Wighton, 7. George Williams, 8. Josh Papalii, 9. Siliva Havili, 10. Ryan Sutton, 11. John Bateman, 12. Elliott Whitehead, 13. Joe Tapine. Interchange: 14. Tom Starling, 15. Dunamis Lui, 16. Hudson Young, 17. Corey Harawira-Naera. Reserves: 18. Sam Williams, 19. Matt Timoko, 20. Kai O'Donnell, 21. Semi Valemei.

Roosters squad: 1. James Tedesco, 2. Daniel Tupou, 3. Josh Morris, 4. Joseph Manu, 5. Brett Morris, 6. Luke Keary, 7. Kyle Flanagan, 8. Jared Waerea-Hargreaves, 9. Jake Friend, 10. Siosiua Taukeiaho, 11. Boyd Cordner, 12. Sitili Tupouniua, 13. Isaac Liu. Interchange: 14. Freddy Lussick, 15. Lindsay Collins, 16. Nat Butcher, 17. Sonny Bill Williams. Reserves: 18. Angus Crichton, 19. Mitchell Aubusson, 20. Poasa Faamausili, 21. Drew Hutchison.