By Abi Curran

James Tedesco has hinted he may celebrate in a unique way if Australia win the World Cup – write a children’s book.

The Australia captain raised some eyebrows last year when he released two children’s stories based on his own childhood to encourage youngsters to read more.

And the 29-year-old – who represented Italy at the past two World Cups – has not ruled out writing another book, particularly if he guides Mal Meninga’s Kangaroos to victory against Samoa at Old Trafford this weekend.

Asked about a possible sequel, the full-back said: “Yeah potentially. Maybe I’ll do one where I come to England or go to Italy and explore my roots as well so that could be in the works.”

The Sydney Roosters star released his debut children’s novel last year, with the title - Hat-Trick Teddy – based on his own nickname.

He followed it up with Red vs Blue, which tells the story of 12-year-old Teddy who is forced to leave his club and switch to rival team, the Camden Rams.

“Macmillan, the publisher, approached me and asked if I was interested,” he said. “It was a cool concept for me to talk about my childhood, how I got into rugby league and how my love for rugby league started.

“The feedback I got was awesome from kids. Obviously the moral of the story is to dream big and chase your dreams.”

Tedesco is closing in on achieving his own dream of captaining Australia to World Cup glory.

And while the squad have kept themselves busy with coffee trips, fishing and plenty of golf, they are thankful that their families are starting the make the 24-hour trip over to support their campaign.

“It’s a long time over here. We’re pretty far away from our families back home so a few have rolled in partners and kids which is good to see and the boys are happy,” Tedesco said.

“I think most of them will roll in next week as well so it’s awesome to have everyone together. It’s important that we’re all one family.

“We spoke about it before we came. We made sure if families wanted to come, we could all stay together in the same hotel and that’s how the culture has to be. It’s hard for a lot of the boys to leave their families.”

The Rugby League World Cup promises to be the biggest, best and most inclusive event in the sport’s 127-year history with men’s, women’s and wheelchair teams competing in 61 games across 21 venues throughout England. Tickets are available via rlwc2021.com/tickets