All eyes are on hot favorites Walgett Aboriginal Connection (WAC) to see if they can pull off a third straight men's title as the Koori Knockout nears only a day away.

Former NRL player turned commentator Dean Widders said WAC will have a prepared side going into the tournament, which runs from 3-6 October.

He also flagged Bourke, Wellington and Wirajuri Aboriginal Rivers as strong western contenders.

"WAC have built up a great group of players that really love playing for that team and they've got the quality and the preparation, and the professionalism around them," the NITV host said.

"The draw last year was one of the toughest draws you'd seen a team receive for the WAC side, and they were still strong enough to overcome that."

The annual Indigenous rugby league competition gathers teams from across NSW and broadcasts to hundreds of thousands of Australians.

NITV host Dean Widders. [IMAGE: SBS]

It has drawn current and former NRL players like Jack Wighton (South Sydney Rabbitohs), Latrell Mitchell (Rabbitohs) and Will Kennedy (Cronulla Sharks).

The lead-up to the games have also attracted speculation over which NRL players may appear, especially with potential club commitments to the grand final between Melbourne Storm and Brisbane Broncos on 5 October.

For the first time, Coonamble's 2829 Gathering will send a men's and women's side to the Knockout.

The club debuted in the 2010s in the junior grades, and Dean said they could bring a few tricks up their sleeve.

"They can surprise some of the bigger sides that come out, but I think the win for a lot of the local teams, the little teams, is just having a presence there," he said.

"It's being there and coming together to catch up with family and friends that you haven't run into for a long time."

When it comes to the women, Dean ranks the Newcastle Yowies, Redfern All Blacks, Wiradjuri Aboriginal Rivers (WAR) as his top four contenders. 

He said women had exhibition games in the early 2000s before they became part of the tournament late that decade. It has been growing ever since.

"We've got passion for rugby league. It's our modern day corroboree," Dean said.

"It showcases a lot of our modern day culture and our values as a as a people.

"I think there's that real strong connection with rugby league and what it means and what it represents in all our communities."

The men will be drawn on Thursday evening 2 October.