Canberra Raiders prop Joe Tapine's hoping this year's NRL All Stars game can have a similar effect for his 2023 season.

Tapine's coming off his best NRL campaign, where he emerged as the premier prop in the game.

It was a key cog in the Green Machine going on a late-season run to make the second week of the finals.

Tapine also helped New Zealand make the semi-final of the World Cup, where they were knocked out by eventual winners Australia.

That lengthy campaign meant he didn't start pre-season until a couple of weeks ago, but the Green Machine big bopper said he wouldn't have put his hand up for the All Stars if he felt his shortened pre-season would lead to a slow start to the season.

Tapine pointed to the more relaxed All Stars format, which will allow him to rotate off the bench in eight-minute stints rather than having to put in the longer stints he's used to.

The 28-year-old felt last year's game, where he scored what turned out to be the match-winning try, helped kick-start his NRL season.

"Yeah a little bit. It gave me a bit of confidence - especially after the year before that, seeing how my training was working and I needed to springboard it into the season," Tapine said.

"I'll try to do the same thing this year.

"[The co-captaincy also] gave me that confidence. I knew I was a leader, but [Maori coach David Kidwell] having that confidence in me to captain that squad was huge for me and my confidence."

Tapine co-captained the Maori All Stars last year along with Redcliffe Dolphins half Kodi Nikorima.

He'd love the opportunity to do it again, but said the Maoris were blessed with leadership options.

Fellow Maori All Star and Canberra Raider Corey Harawira-Naera tipped Tapine to share the role with Dallin Watene-Zelezniak.

But Tapine also pointed to Penrith prop James Fisher-Harris and Jared Waerea-Hargreaves as captaincy options.

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"We've got a lot of senior players in there, great players from other clubs - we've got Fish and Hargreaves coming in," he said.

"I don't mind, but I'd love to do it again - but I'm not stressed about it."

Tapine said consistency and continuing to prepare the way he did last year was the key to repeating his boom 2022.

He vowed to work even harder and lift his standards as the Raiders look to improve on last year's top-eight finish.

"Staying consistent, keep doing what I did last year and even working a bit harder," Tapine said.

"You can't really stay the same in this game. You've got to get better and that's the goal this year."

Tapine said the ongoing deadlock between the NRL and the Rugby League Players' Association in their CBA discussions was never going to threaten the All Stars clash in Rotorua on February 11.

Players have boycotted promoting the NRL and there's been talk of potential strike action.

But Tapine said he never had any thoughts of missing the All Stars game, which has become a celebration of both the Maori and Indigenous cultures.

"Not really. I haven't thought about anything like that with this game," he said.

"It has so much meaning to a lot of players with [their] cultures and that, so that didn't cross my mind.

"This game's more than just that - it's celebrating two cultures."

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