sport, raiders, canberra raiders, raiders, nrl, kato ottio, great britain lions, lions, josh hodgson, blake austin

It's something Josh Hodgson will never forget and something he hopes he can do again - visiting the village of former Canberra Raiders teammate Kato Ottio. The Great Britain Lions squad paid their respects to Ottio, who tragically died after training in Papua New Guinea almost two years ago. It was also an emotional day for ex-Raider Blake Austin, who said not being able to attend Ottio's funeral in January 2018 was one of his regrets. Austin, Hodgson and Elliott Whitehead were all teammates of the former Kumul and were able to visit Tatana Island as part of the Lions squad playing PNG in Port Moresby on Saturday. The rugby league world was in shock when Ottio died, with both the Raiders and the Widnes Vikings - who he was meant to join just weeks after his death - raising money to help Ottio's dream come true. The former volleyballer had wanted to build a house for his mother, which they now have - complete with a lime green paint job. "It was a bit of a touching visit. Obviously we wish we were going in different circumstances," Hodgson said on Thursday. "We wanted to pay our tributes to a friend. "It really took you back on just how many people and how many lives Kato had touched, and what he meant to the community there. MORE RAIDERS NEWS "We saw his grave and laid down a shirt for him on behalf of the Great Britain Lions ... and went and saw the home that was built off the back of the money raised for his family. "It's something that will sit with me for a long long time. It's something I'll never forget. "It's something I hope I get the chance to do again to be honest." Austin has since left the Raiders and joined English Super League club Warrington. But he made his debut for the Lions playing on the wing against New Zealand last weekend. Austin said it was a shame Ottio never got to "spend a few nights" in his new family home, which was completed in January. The former Raiders five-eighth recalled Ottio's famous smile, which lit up everywhere he went. But he also recalled the lonely times. When Ottio missed his family - almost 3000 kilometres away in PNG. "A pretty emotional day, brilliant to go back there and see the path that Kato walked," Austin said. "Obviously at the time the funeral was one we didn't get to come over. We live streamed it back in Canberra. "That's a bit of a regret that we couldn't be there so to see him where he's laid and to see the village. "They say it takes a village to raise a child and today we got to get a glimpse of why he's the person he was. "He was so happy and always smiling. To be back there and to pay some respects was really special. "He was lonely at times ... to drop everything and pack up and move to a foreign country to chase your dream it's going to get lonely. "But brilliant to see his mum and his brothers and sisters again. Really pleased I got to go along."

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