From being urged to “lower expectations” to climbing into the NRL top four: the Sydney Roosters are defying critics with an 18-month turnaround no one saw coming.
What’s more, club figureheads insist the best is yet to come.
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The Roosters are potentially one win away from the top of the NRL ladder, looking at a sixth-straight victory when they take on the Gold Coast Titans on Friday. Spurred on by a Round 3 thrashing to Penrith, insiders say the side is now emulating the kind of DNA that took them to their last premiership in 2019.
Terms like ‘defensive control’ and ‘emotional control’ have entered the Roosters’ vernacular, and a mix of old and new talent has the side primed for a run deep into the 2026 finals.
“I saw some things that I haven’t seen for a long time in this team,” declared coach Trent Robinson after Saturday’s triumph over defending premiers Brisbane.
The Roosters’ recovery to now hasn’t exactly been smooth sailing, but here’s how Robinson and captain James Tedesco have managed to turn things around.
A PATHWAY OUT OF POTENTIAL NRL OBSCURITY
The Roosters endured a huge cleanout at the end of 2024, losing a laundry list of talent including Jared Waerea-Hargreaves, Luke Keary, Joseph Manu and Joseph-Aukuso Sua’ali’i – not to mention the impromptu release of Brandon Smith midway through 2025.
The mass exodus was made worse after several big name recruitment targets failed to materialise, prompting former club powerbrokers including Phil Gould to “lower the expectations” for success.
The loss of Waerea-Hargreaves, the club’s most represented player with 310 NRL appearances, was seen externally as a big blow. The saying goes that a rising tide raises all boats, and JWH’s tireless work ethic was a great demonstration of that: helping push a high standard in general.
Despite all the outside noise, a different outlook prevailed internally. Waerea-Hargreaves played his final year of footy in the UK Super League with Hull KR, and fondly remembers watching the Roosters flourish without him.
“There was a whole heap of us that moved on, but if anything it was time,” the 37-year-old told foxsports.com.au.
“To go to England and watch from afar, seeing the year these guys had got me that excited. I watched every single weekend seeing a style that I was really proud of – and obviously I’d been at the club for 15 years.
“You always have belief in your club and knowing what’s going on in the background. Every time I watched the Roosters play, they played a style that a former player was proud to sit there and admire.”
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YOUNG TALENT TIME: 2025 RESET YEAR AND THE NEW WAVE OF JUNIORS
The Roosters have been historically notorious for buying their way out of roster deficiencies.
You know the sell. The lavish dinners. Nick Politis. Television executives.
It’s the stuff of legend.
However, Robinson has driven a shift in recent years by doubling down on the club’s junior talent.
Rob Toia, Suia Wong, Salesi Foketi are all Roosters Academy graduates flourishing under the guidance of club legends Mitch Aubusson and Boyd Cordner.
Elsewhere, Waerea-Hargreaves has returned to the Roosters in a mentoring capacity, and is overseeing the development of upcoming SG Ball, Harold Mathews, Jersey Flegg players.
JWH “rubs shoulders” a couple of times a week with the NRL side’s pack, and has been really impressed by Naufahu Whyte’s ability to step up in 2026. But more than anything he likes what he sees coming through.
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – JUNE 10: Jared Waerea-Hargreaves has returned to the Roosters in a mentoring role,.Source: Getty Images
“Win or lose, I could see the development last year, I could see certain players playing with DNA. Even in interviews, I could see players talking about certain things they needed to be talking about,” Waerea-Hargreaves explained.
“There was enough DNA and enough younger guys coming through our academy space through our programs that had been in the system for a number of years already. It was only a matter of time before they were going to get their shot.”
Waerea-Hargreaves revealed he had no regrets about leaving the Roosters when he did, admitting he felt like he would be holding younger players back by extending his stay any longer.
“That’s the biggest thing about developing players, the NRL is hard and it’s hard for a long period of time,” he said.
“I feel like once these guys got their opportunity with a few good leaders and a few players in key positions, it was only a matter of time before you started seeing some good consistent footy.
“We’re just starting to see the combinations, it takes time. Now to see a brand of footy that they’ve been playing is pretty cool.”
With the Roosters losing long-term forward Angus Crichton and firebrand winger Mark Nawaqanitawase at season’s end, the pipeline of future talent keeps the club’s long-term prospects relatively secure.
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GOLDEN OLDIES FLOURISH IN MIX OF YOUTH AND EXPERIENCE
The Roosters boast the fourth-oldest roster in the NRL, however their experience continues to shine in the biggest moments of matches.
Captain James Tedesco is possibly the best demonstration of this. At 33, Tedesco is averaging better numbers than his run to the Dally M Player of the Year in 2025, with more metres, tackle busts, line breaks offloads, and fewer errors and missed tackles.
Away from the field, the evergreen fullback has become increasingly important in ushering in new signings and ensuring the club standards remain unequivocally high.
“Everything he does on the field – and everyone sees the highlights – is matched by the little stuff out there,” said spine partner Reece Robson. “Every ball that goes through he’s scrapping at, and he’s not just taking the tackle, he’s taking another 10 metres every time after each contact. Most fullbacks are happy to dive on it and get the ball back.
“Those little plays and the big efforts he does, he just doesn’t seem to get tired out there. It comes down to the individual. It’s a credit to not only Teddy, but Chez (Cherry-Evans) as well – both of them, at their age, to be doing what they’re doing is incredible.”
Elsewhere, existing senior players including winger Daniel Tupou and Lindsay Collins are driving the Roosters culture among players.
For Waerea-Hargreaves, it’s Victor Radley who brings the best attitude from the Roosters’ this season.
“He brings a hardness to the style of footy they play,” he said. “He pushes the limits – as we saw on the weekend – and he went out there and enforced a couple of tough tackles.
“He can influence the team physically so it’s really good to see him out there playing consistent footy, and I know the players around him would be happy to have him back as well.”
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BIG-NAME RECRUITS SPICE UP THE ROOSTERS SPINE
Although the Roosters did miss a couple of recruitment targets as part of the rebuild – an 11th hour renege from David Fifita being the most notable – their cupboard is by no means bare.
Eighteen months on, a lifeline for 37-year-old Daly Cherry-Evans as well as the signing of Blues hooker Reece Robson has provided a fresh foundation in the Roosters spine, alongside captain James Tedesco and five-eighth Sam Walker.
DCE slowly warmed to his partnership with Walker, with the pair trying different combinations in the opening rounds before landing on a structure that worked.
However, the punctuation mark has undoubtedly been Robson. The 27-year-old gives the Roosters a reliable, long-term hooking option after no less than seven different players wore the No.9 jersey since Jake Friend’s retirement in 2021.
Both Waerea-Hargreaves and coach Robinson see a resemblance to Friend in Robson’s playing style.
“I think you’re the first one to ever ask about Reece Robson this year,” Trent Robinson told Fox League’s panel at the weekend.
“He’s such a good player, we had Jake Friend there for a long time, he used to hold the middle together. [Reece] has got back to holding the middle together. You see his defensive work, but he’s also very clear. His vision is very good, he attacks the ruck, he knows what the [A and B] markers are doing and he allows us to play through that zone.”
If Robson is the glue that binds the Broncos middle, then Cherry-Evans brings a steady hand to steer the side, according to Waerea-Hargreaves.
“His calmness and what he offers with Sam Walker. Him having that leadership quality out there is so valuable,” he said.
Reece Robson is having an impact.Source: News Corp Australia
‘STILL NOT WHERE WE’D LIKE TO BE’
The side’s 2026 campaign started shakily, losing two from the first three matches with an attack labelled as the fourth-worst in the competition. A 40-4 thrashing to Penrith spurred a turnaround of sorts, and the Roosters haven’t looked back.
“We’re still not where we’d like to be, to be honest,” Robson told foxsports.com.au following the Roosters’ fifth-straight win on Saturday.
“It’s definitely getting there and that’s the most impressive and exciting part for me. We’ve come a long way and we’re playing some good footy but I think the best part about it is we’re not anywhere near where we can get to.”
The Roosters are using their first-half performance against the Broncos last week as a blueprint moving forward: 66 per cent of possession and field possession which limited their opposition to just 18 tackles in their half.
Defence is the foundation, according to their coach.
“If you can control your defence for long enough in these games, you’re going to win a lot – especially with the points that are getting scored this year,” Robinson said.
Then there’s the Roosters’ other key focus area: decision making. The side was disappointed with their lapsing discipline and repeat sets in the second half against the Broncos, but say discipline has otherwise been stellar through their run of victories.
The stats say the same: in the final 20 minutes of their past five appearances, the Roosters have won the collective contest 51-18.
“It’s kicked in a lot over the last five weeks, we’ve been very good at scenario [building] the end of games and these guys have made lots of really good decisions from 60 to 80 minutes,” Robinson told foxsports.com.au. “It’s been a real feature of their game and we’ve added some experience there to make those decisions as well.”
Within that, there’s an argument to say the Roosters’ biggest advantage from 18 months ago is that of experience. Robinson’s decision to stick with his roster, rather than a fully-fledged rebuild, is now paying huge dividends.
Prop Spencer Leniu has curiously been pushed to the outer at the club, with limited minutes in recent weeks, but insiders say he will get more minutes in the coming weeks as he finds his mojo once again.
Furthermore, the immediate future is bright, with Titans, Cowboys and a bye making up their next three appearances.
“That opening 50 minutes against the Broncos was pretty damn dominant, it was great footy to watch,” said Waerea-Hargreaves. “More of that please.”
Experience, both on and off the field, is what will steer the Roosters through any turbulence, according to players.
“The confidence that Trent puts in you, knowing that you’ve practised something and to do it, ticking small boxes and being a smart footy player. The things that he does makes you smarter,” said Cody Ramsey following his emotional club debut last week.
“Then there’s the things that Teddy does. The confidence that he gives you from day one, sitting you in the video room, coffees, chats, any questions – there’s never not a question answered from him. It’s a great place to be.”