Cronulla skipper Paul Gallen will enter uncharted territory this weekend with a new figure set to become the target of abuse for St George Illawarra fans.

Enter Trent Barrett, the former heart and soul of the Dragons who will be plying his trade for the enemy at WIN Jubilee Oval on Sunday.

"I'm not that popular there, but that's something I like actually, it's not something that bothers me," Gallen told AAP.

"But I'd imagine he (Barrett) might be a bit more unpopular than me there on the weekend so that might be alright."

For years Gallen has been the most despised figure for fans sitting on the old Kogarah hill, his antics in his last outing doing little to dampen the vitriol when he appeared to feign injury to win his side a penalty.

The incident back in round 13 of 2007 - which included a wink to teammates which was caught on television replays - caused widespread uproar of what was perceived to be a growing trend.

Gallen said he wasn't too concerned about the incident back then or now, and he doesn't expect the attention from Dragons fans to have too much effect on Barrett either.

"He'll be fine - I'm pretty sure he'll be pumped for a big one," Gallen said of Barrett.

"I don't think it's going to be a Trent Barrett versus St George Illawarra type thing - it's the Sharks versus the Dragons.

"He's smart enough and he's been around long enough to know that."

The Sharks go into Sunday's local derby as huge underdogs, due as much to their form off the field than on it.

Injuries and suspension have decimated their side, but Gallen said there was enough resolve within the Sharks squad to cause an upset.

"If any game's going to build character it's going to be a local derby, especially when we've got a bit of adversity against us at the moment," Gallen said.

"Last week was a bit tough - three or four weeks ago we were on top of the world.

"All of a sudden the comp starts, Fraser (Anderson) left, two guys gone for the year and then Misi (Taulapapa) gets suspended.

"Last week was tough but we saw it as a challenge to build a bit of character amongst ourselves and get a good win against a pretty good team - unfortunately we displayed a below par effort and that's something we're not happy with.

"We're trying to fix that this week and what bigger challenge."

A sellout crowd is almost assured for the match with the last of the reserved seats snapped up on Friday afternoon.

Just 3000 general admission tickets remain available at the redeveloped venue.

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