The Roosters may be going into finals without three of their superstar players, but there’s a belief that this injury crisis could be an opportunity for coach Trent Robinson to “silence his critics.”
The Roosters have lost Sam Walker and Brandon Smith to season-ending ACL ruptures, while Victor Radley is nursing a shoulder injury.
Robinson has called on Sandon Smith to replace Walker at halfback, Connor Watson will start at hooker for Smith, while Sitili Tupouniua has been named on an edge for Radley.
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Bulldogs forward Max King joins the Fox League podcast to go inside the Bulldogs’ remarkable 2024 revival and chat about the impact of coach Cameron Ciraldo, captain Stephen Crichton and the club’s renowned defensive system
Siua Wong, Zach Dockar-Clay and 19-year-old debutant De La Salle Va’a are the new faces on the bench for the Roosters’ clash with the Rabbitohs this week.
While all the talk has been about whether the injuries have put a line through the Roosters’ premiership chances, veteran journalist Paul Crawley believes the Tricolours can still win the premiership — and if they do it’d be a big achievement for Robinson.
“I think it’s a real opportunity for Trent Robinson this year in the finals series to silence his critics,” Crawley said on NRL 360.
“If there’s been one criticism of Trent as a coach, it’s that he’s always been gifted these star-studded rosters.
“Yes he’s won three premierships and yes he’s proven himself as a champion coach… but I think if you look at that roster that we just saw from the Roosters and match it up with what the Bulldogs are going into a finals series with, I still think the Roosters have got the roster to win a competition.
“I think the Roosters still have the cavalry to win a comp, they’ve just got to go out there and play to their potential — and that’s Robbo’s job.”
Crawley not keen on Mitchell’s ‘ban’ | 01:51
News Corp journalist Dave Riccio admitted he was a little surprised to see Sandon Smith named at halfback rather than Joey Manu shifting to five-eighth with Keary moving to seven.
He believes the latter option would “take all the questions out” for 21-year-old Smith” however NRL 360 host Braith Anasta pointed out that Manu “hasn’t quite been in the best of form of late or up to his standards.”
And Crawley believes that Smith is “a bit more of a like-for-like” replacement for Walker, adding: “If you remember last year when they tried Manu at six with Keary, it didn’t work. So that would be just as big of a gamble.”
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Regardless of who steps in to replace the injured trio, the expectations will sit on the shoulders of Manu, skipper James Tedesco and particularly Keary, according to Anasta.
“We all know what Keary can do at his best and what he’s done in the past when he’s had to in big games,” he said.
“Whether he’s still got that or not, that question mark hovers over his head. This is an opportunity for him to say ‘I do still have it and I can give it one last shot before I head overseas’.”
Meanwhile, Walker’s season may be over but the 22-year-old will continue to be in the headlines as he sorts out his future.
Walker’s current deal expires at the end of 2025, meaning he becomes a free agent from November 1 should he not be locked in beforehand.
The Roosters have tabled a two-year extension worth $900,000 a season, which they will reportedly stand by despite his injury likely to rule him out of the first half of next season.
Injured Walker still worth $1.5 million | 01:35
However it was revealed by The Sydney Morning Heraldthat Walker’s management had an asking price of $1.5 million a season for the star halfback — which the Roosters reportedly scoffed at.
Anasta declared “that’s incredible” when reacting to the rumoured asking price, while Crawley believes if the Roosters pay Walker $1.5 million a season “they crucify their roster.”
“That’s a lot of money when you figure that into a salary cap — that’s a seventh of a salary cap,” Crawley said.
“When you look at the Roosters’ roster I think you’ve got to share the money around otherwise it ain’t going to work.”
Riccio, meanwhile, revealed that The Daily Telegraph are preparing a story on the NRL’s richest players — and if Walker inked a deal on that money he’d become the highest paid player in the competition.
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