ENGLAND international Josh Hodgson has revealed he knocked back an approach from the Sydney Roosters 12 months before signing with Canberra.

Aside from the ACL injury which kept him sidelined for a chunk of this season, Hodgson has enjoyed a stellar NRL career with the Raiders to date and has evolved into one of the most dominant hookers in the game.

The 28-year-old played six seasons in the Super League — one with Hull FC and five with Hull KR — before agreeing to make the move Down Under in 2015.

Round 20

But his stint in the NRL could’ve started sooner.

“I nearly came over the year before with the Roosters, but it just wasn’t meant to be,” Hodgson told Sunday Night with Matty Johns.

“They had Jake Friend who’s such a great player, he had a great game (against the Sea Eagles on Sunday).

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“If I came to the Roosters I was going to play more NSW Cup than anything.

“In my eyes I’d worked so hard to get a starting spot at Hull KR, so I’d find it hard to come here and not really play, so I said no to that.

“The next year I got offered a starting spot at the Raiders and everything else panned out from there.”

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Growing up as a huge footy fan, Hodgson said he always wanted to test himself in the NRL where he’s likely to play out the rest of his career having recently re-signed with the Green Machine until 2022.

“I always used to watch the comp growing up and I was rugby league mad so any game I could watch I’d sit down and watch it,” Hodgson said.

“Your career’s so short, it was just one of my things that I knew I’d regret if I retired and didn’t at least try to come over.

“Once the opportunity came to get a crack and come down to Canberra, I was really open to it.”