Five Key Points From Round 7

Roosters Respond After Conceding First Points

With Cronulla scoring the first try of the match after 20 minutes of play, it was up to the Men from Bondi to reduce the Sharks’ eight-point advantage. 

Gaining field position off their first penalty of the game and a strong run down the middle from hooker Brandon Smith, the stage was set for the Red, White and Blue to hit back. 

They did exactly that, with Egan Butcher charging onto a short ball from Luke Keary, splitting the defense apart and crossing the white stripe just three minutes after Cronulla claimed their first try.

Smith Gives Easts the Lead

Less than 10 minutes after Butcher opened the Roosters’ account, lightning struck twice in the Shire as a slice of individual brilliance from Smith put his side in the box seat heading into half time. 

Scooping the ball up out of dummy half close to the try line, Smith looked to his right but ran to his left, deceiving the Sharks defenders before carrying three of them over the line as he reached out and planted the ball down. 

Halfback Sam Walker converted the try from next to the uprights, giving his side a 12-8 lead before the break. 

Props Lead from the Front

In slippery conditions, the forwards were tasked with stepping up and taking control of the match. Roosters front rowers Jared Waerea-Hargreaves and Lindsay Collins did exactly that, putting in over 50 minutes each of hard work. 

Waerea-Hargreaves was a force at the front, racking up a whopping 144 run metres with 64 coming after contact. While Collins was just as impressive with the ball in hand, running for 125 metres with almost half of those being post-contact. 

Collins proved his defensive expertise when he perfectly executed a bootlace tackle on Sharks winger Ronaldo Mulitalo who had fielded a Luke Keary bomb, bringing him down before he could streak away.  

At the end of the same set, Collins showed up once again to dive on a Nicho Hynes chip kick on the other side of the field, securing possession for his side. 

Tupou Becomes Seventh Most Capped Rooster

Veteran winger Daniel Tupou became the seventh most capped Rooster of all time, with the match marking his 229th game in the Red, White and Blue. 

It was a signature hard-working effort from the representative star, bringing the ball out of his own end and making plenty of ground up for his side. 

He ran for a total of 165 metres on Friday night, with an impressive 71 metres from kick returns - the highest total from the Roosters. 

Resilient Roosters Stay in the Fight

Despite falling behind early, Easts managed to take the lead prior to half time and keep themselves in the contest right until the final whistle. 

Trailing 8-0 after 20 minutes, they hit back straight away to bring the game back to a two-point margin. Continuing to build momentum, they managed to gain a four-point lead by crossing the line again, eight minutes after their first try. 

Trent Robinson’s men maintained the contest all the way until the dying minutes of the match, when Cronulla crossed the stripe against an under-manned Roosters defence. 

The Sydney Roosters will now turn their sights to Round 8, where they’ll host the St George Illawarra Dragons at Allianz Stadium in the battle for the XXII Annual ANZAC Day Cup.