Canberra, one of the premiership fancies at the start of the season, has dropped four straight games and faces an equally desperate Knights side with an identical 3-5 record.

Star forward Josh Papalii was rested from last week's loss to Souths following some below average form, and fellow forward Joe Tapine's wife created a stir by publicly criticising the playing minutes given to her husband.

Reports have since emerged this week halfback George Williams is homesick and wants to return to England to be with his pregnant partner, while fellow Englishman Josh Hodgson has stepped down from the co-captaincy after injuries and indifferent form, with Elliott Whitehead taking his place.

Tongue, who captained Canberra through similar turbulent periods, said a strong performance would help take the blowtorch off the club, and he feels the Raiders aren't too far away from clicking.

Sometimes you can get overwhelmed by it but you're not that far away from one good win and it builds that confidence.

"I can only speak about my time, but footy was our outlet. We all understood the media and the outside noise that comes with it is what makes the game and makes it exciting, but what we love doing is playing footy.

"You try and have a bit of fun at training, do the hard work when you need to rip in and focus, and that's what you go back to. Once you get the balance right the wins come, that would absolutely be a focus you would go with."

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Tongue said the hunger and desperation in defence the Raiders had based their recent success around, including a grand final in 2019 and a preliminary final last year, had gone missing for a couple of weeks.

However he was encouraged by their effort areas in last week's loss to the Rabbitohs, where Jack Wighton was the only member of their first choice spine to play.

Papalii will return for the Wagga game, and Tongue said the representative star must find his inner drive to help guide the Raiders out of their slump.

"Everyone knows the calibre of player he is but I think he would say, and everybody agrees, his standards weren't where anybody wanted them to be," Tongue said.

"It (rest) gave him a chance to get that energy back and a bit of hunger, which is so important.

"I think there's some hunger there that has just been missing the last couple of weeks. To me one of the big missing ingredients of the previous two weeks was the hunger and desperation, the pride in defence.

"We haven't seen that in a few years, the Raiders getting beaten because they haven't had the energy or the enthusiasm of the opposition. I'm sure Ricky (Stuart, coach) will put that back into them and it won't be too far."

Tongue said he would strip everything back and focus on the little extra efforts in games which can be contagious and lift teammates.

"I thought their game last week, other than a couple of tries they let in that they'd be disappointed about, it was a top-shelf performance," Tongue said.

"Some of the attacking combinations weren't there but line speed, energy and aggression-wise it's probably as good a performance as they've had all year.

"It's a bit like the Tigers, the Tigers aren't far off it and I can see that in the Raiders too. Everyone can be quick to point the finger and say it's all doom and gloom, but you can see they're not far off it and a couple of wins gets you back in it."

The Raiders have a golden chance to square their season ledger at 5-5, given they play the bottom-placed Bulldogs next week.

Tongue said it's crucial they grab the chance or the season could be tough to salvage.

"There are some clubs who would look at their performances and think 'we have to get players', but I don't think it's the case for the Raiders," he said.

"They've got all the cattle there they need, they've got a top shelf roster and all the ingredients. It'll come if they keep committing to the process and just value those little effort areas that are so important.

"The third man in a tackle, the kick pressure and line speed, those things that lift everyone around you. Those things are contagious and can turn the momentum."

Tongue said the match is also a critical juncture for the Knights, whose coach Adam O'Brien questioned whether they had found their "purpose" for playing after last week's 38-4 loss to the Roosters.

"There's a desperation but also a calmness that needs to go hand in hand," he said.

"It's such an important part of the season right now, there's some clubs that will make it or break it.

"This is a really big weekend for them (Raiders) if they want to build a reputation in that area like the Panthers have in Bathurst, that the Wagga region and Riverina is their backyard.

"They'll want to go out and perform well not just for the club, but for the region. We get so much support and talent from out there."

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