Back in Sydney and hitting the ground running, Roosters front-rower Lindsay Collins opens up on his fifth pre-season with the club, his new role in the side and the impressive crop of young talent looking to break through into the NRL.
Coming off arguably his best season in the tricolours so far – which was capped off with a State of Origin series win on debut with the QLD Maroons – Collins is pleased to see a determined, hungry and energetic Roosters squad back at Moore Park preparing for the 2021 NRL season.
“Pre-season is going well. We’re pretty clear about what we want to do, what we want to achieve this year and where we need to take our game,” stated Collins.
“We’re focusing on what we need to do to achieve that and everyone’s buying in, particularly the younger fellas.
“It creates a strong, competitive environment and helps everybody grow.”
Heading into his fifth season of NRL and still only 24 years-old, the hulking front-rower now believes he has an opportunity to grow as a leader of the forward pack, despite ‘still feeling like a 20-year-old.’
The State of Origin representative also cited fellow Roosters front-rower Jared Waerea-Hargreaves as an inspiration throughout his career and hopes to be seen as a mentor for the younger crop.
“I’m starting to flick the switch and realising that I’m becoming a more mature football player, but I still feel like a 20-year-old. Time has been flying by,” Collins admitted.
“We’re a pretty tight-knit forward pack, I think ‘Jaz’ (Waerea-Hargreaves) has helped me a lot by seeing how he carries himself as a professional on the field and training paddock as well as off field.
“He’s had a great career so far and he continues to produce week-in-week-out, year-in-year-out. I’m soaking in what I can and I'm continuing to grow.”
While there are plenty of experienced heads in the NRL squad, Collins was quick to point out the positive influence of the younger members, stating that their enthusiastic presence has been a welcome addition to pre-season 2021.
We’re focusing on what we need to do to achieve that and everyone’s buying in, particularly the younger fellas
Lindsay Collins Roosters Prop
“There’s a couple of great young guys coming through. I don’t want to single anyone out in particular, but it’s great to see those guys giving it to the regular first graders,” he said.
“If I was doing this kind of pre-season at their age, I would be pretty gobsmacked, but everyone is buying into it and it’s great to see how we’re progressing as a club.”
You can see a number of our young guns on show for their first hit-out of the year when the Sydney Roosters take on the Wests Tigers at Kirkham Oval, Camden this Saturday 20th at 6:30pm, which will be streamed on NRL.com and Kayo Sports.
On Saturday the 27th, the tricolours - featuring a majority of the NRL squad - will play their own trial down in Queanbeyan as they take on the Canberra Raiders at Seiffert Oval. Further information regarding ticketing for this match will be released in the next week, and for those unable to attend, the game will be streamed on Roosters.com.au.
