The man his fellow Canberra Raiders players affectionately call "Uncle" cleaned out his locker on Monday and drew the curtain after 346 games.

Now he's preparing to welcome his fourth child into his young family and begin the next stage of his life.

But the Raiders' Uncle will still be wearing lime green, using all of his vast experience to help the Green Machine's generation next in his role in player welfare.

The 35-year-old started his career under Ricky Stuart, the then Sydney Roosters coach giving him his debut as a winger in 2005.

He made 92 NRL appearances for the Tricolours before joining St Helens in the English Super League, where he played another 117 games and won a premiership in 2014.

Stuart brought him back to the NRL, where he's played 137 games over the past seven seasons and won the 2015 Mal Meninga Medal in his first year in the capital.

While he didn't taste premiership success in Canberra, the 2019 grand final rates as one of the highlights of his glittering career.

A career that also included 12 Tests for New Zealand and four for Samoa.

The images of the super-popular Soliola beating the drum to lead the Viking clap throughout that charge to the grand final will forever be etched in Canberra history.

It was also part of why Raiders fans took him into their hearts for everything he did both on and off the field.

"The relationships I've built over the years [is a highlight], not just the players, but the communities, with everyone," Soliola told The Canberra Times.

"The first games are always memorable, especially the one with the Viking clap, all of the finals games we all played throughout the years. Too much.

"There's a lot of really great memories, but 2019 was a really awesome one I'll keep forever.

"That was outstanding, even though the outcome didn't go the way we wanted it to, but to see the sea of green out there on the big day and getting the Viking clap going. That was pretty special."

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Soliola took some time after the Raiders' final game this year to think about his future, before opting to call it a day.

He went into that final game - coincidentally against the Roosters - with his mind still undecided whether he wanted to play on.

It was a tough time personally for the Raider with the big heart, following the death of his mother Fialelei.

"It was just the circumstances, being over there in Queensland, the performance we had in particular in that last game, I didn't really know how to feel to be honest," Soliola said.

"But after giving it a week to digest and then coming back and having a really good discussion with Rick and [Raiders chief executive Don Furner] it made the decision a whole lot easier and clearer.

"I left the door very much open to how things would pan out, because it was such a difficult time as well obviously with the passing of my mother.

"So I had a few thoughts running through my mind at that time.

"After stepping away for a bit ... we came to a conclusion this was the best time to hang up the boots and really focus on the next phase of my life, as well as the family.

"And understanding the direction 'Stick' wants the playing group to go as well, which was cool.

"It was a really good chat we all had and I really appreciate and I'm grateful for my time here at the Raiders.

"Also for the vision they have for me as well as a staff member."

Now he joins David Thoms and Andrew Bishop in a player welfare and education role.

It's a role he started with the Raiders this season with a view to life after football.

It ties in perfectly with the thousands of hours of community work he's done in his spare time - whether it's serving breakfast to the homeless at the Canberra City Uniting Church early morning centre, sleeping rough in the ACT's freezing winter or cutting his hair for charity - culminating in the 2019 Ken Stephen Medal for everything he does.

That work will continue and he'll also help the next New Zealand or Pasifika youngster moving to the capital to chase his NRL dream.

It's an experience Soliola knows all too well, having moved across the Ditch all those years ago.

Now he'll be the Uncle for all the future Soliola's chasing the same dream.

"I'll be working side by side with Dave Thom and Andrew Bishop in the welfare and education department as one of their officers there," he said.

"Basically I'll just be sponging all the knowledge and experience those guys have had.

"It's an area I can see myself in. I probably wouldn't do something I couldn't see myself doing long term.

"Being fresh out of the game and understanding the players from a player's perspective - I think that's one of the big advantages that I'll have going into this space.

"Also being someone that has transitioned over from a New Zealand and Pasifika background, and having that experience transitioning to Australia I am very curious and excited about how it works having gone through it myself.

"I think the hardest thing for me is learning how to use a computer and all the admin stuff."