The English international branded Wighton'sperformance in last week's win at Cronulla as "brilliant", and has put the Warriors on high alert before Sunday night's clash at Canberra Stadium.

Wighton was outstanding in the 24-20 round one win at Shark Park, highlighted by two tries and a late match-saving cover tackle on Mitch Brown.

Tomkins missed the Warriors' round one loss to Newcastle with a minor hamstring strain, and his return is a major boost as they look to continue their recent stranglehold on the Raiders.

Tomkins said he was extremely impressed by what he saw of Wighton at Shark Park, including the 22-year-old's boxing skills in his stoush with Sosaia Feki.

"He was brilliant last week, his attack was impressive and he won the game for them with a defensive effort right at the end," Tomkins said. "We saw he's a bit of a fighter too so he can do everything, he can attack, defend and fight.

"Jack's obviously a real talent we have to watch out for, we've got a big job to contain him and he's a genuine talent."

The NRL this year is littered with former centres blossoming at fullback, with Wighton joined by Parramatta's Will Hopoate and Canterbury flyer Brett Morris.

Canberra coach Ricky Stuart said he was more impressed by the "unseen things" in Wighton's game than his tries and try savers.

"Jack has one position to concentrate on all year and he was fabulous last week," Stuart said. "The little pieces of football people don't watch with his positioning and talk is what I really see.

"It's fantastic to score those tries and I'm sure everyone was as excited as I was, but just his positioning on kicks and in defence. So much at fullback goes unseen. You cover a lot of miles and he's learning to cope with that workload."

Tomkins also backed recruits Sia Soliola and Josh Hodgson, whom he played against in the English Super League with Wigan, to add a new dimension to the Raiders.

Hodgson, who played alongside Tomkins for England in the Four Nations, was impressive in his NRL debut against the Sharks.

"I've played against Josh since we were 16-year-olds in the academy, he's a real good player and will add a lot to the Raiders," Tomkins said. "He's a hooker who's prepared to tackle and he kicks pretty well, which we saw last week on the video. I think he'll be a great signing for them, he came of age a bit in the Four Nations."

As for Soliola, Tomkins will avoid running at the big-hitting Kiwi at all costs.

The back-rower punched out 116 metres and made 34 tackles in his NRL return last week after four years at St Helens.

"I've played against him a number of times, he's a tough bastard," Tomkins said. "He carries the ball really strong and can whack you if you run straight at him."

Tomkins was adamant the Warriors are reading nothing into three straight hidings they've given the Raiders, posting at least 50 points in each.

"Last year's gone, it doesn't mean anything now," Tomkins said. "Last week the Raiders proved they can get into a tough arm wrestle and grind out a win."