The most common question Josh Hodgson was asked after announcing he would leave the English Super League was: "Why are you going to Canberra?"

With the Burgess brothers entrenched at Coogee and James Graham in the Sutherland Shire, there was a perception in England that life in the NRL resembled a postcard. But Hodgson – the form hooker of the NRL – insists he didn't make the transition for a holiday, unfazed by those around him who criticised the club and the city of Canberra.

"Not only had the team not been going great but the place got bagged and everything," Hodgson said. "I didn't really get that when I got here. I thought this is a great place. The sun was shining and that's all I needed ... But people did say, 'Why Canberra?'. That was the main question I got. I just said, why not?

"Basically it was from people who had been to Canberra on holiday or people who lived and grew up in Sydney. I told them I wasn't coming over there for a holiday. I'm not going over there to live on a beach – I'm going to do a job, and to do the best job I can."

Despite the negative reviews from those close to him, Hodgson's commitment to the club never waivered. He was inspired by what coach Ricky Stuart had to preach, hellbent on helping the Raiders great in his quest to restore the club to the respected and feared unit it once was.

"Really the thing that brought me was speaking to Ricky and hearing how passionate he was about trying to get the club back to where it used to be and get people to really respect the club like they used to in the old days when he was playing," Hodgson said.

"He wanted a side that people thought would be tough to play on the weekend. That was what he wanted to build spoke to me about trying to build here. That was what I wanted to be part of."

The 26-year-old, who joined the club from Hull KR in 2015, has been a huge reason behind Canberra's success this season. When he made the decision to link with Stuart and the Raiders, he wasn't short of opinions given the number of ex-Raiders at the club.

"I mainly spoke to people who I was with at Hull KR who had played in the NRL and quite a few of them had played at Canberra too," Hodgson said. "There was Michael Dobson, Mick Weyman, Neville Costigan all played down here. Then there were others from the NRL like Clint Newton, Ben Galea - people who had played in the NRL for a lot of years and knew what they were talking about and gave me a good opinion on what I should do."

Hodgson, who overcame an ankle injury to play in Canberra's win against Penrith last week, will be put to the ultimate test when he squares off against  Cameron Smith in Saturday night's preliminary final at AAMI Park.

"He's the ultimate professional in terms of turning up every week and being consistent in what he does," Hodgson said. "He knows how to play on a big stage. He's been around a long time. He's played in these big games a lot of times and knows how to get the wins, as well as the people who have played in and around him for a long time. But I don't tend to worry too much about individual battles like that. I concentrate entirely on my role in the team and what I need to do for my own team."