Sydney Roosters Head Coach Trent Robinson says the team are ready to bounce back from their Round 11 loss when they meet the Penrith Panthers for the second time in a month this Saturday evening.
Returning to Allianz Stadium to host their first game at the venue in six weeks, the Tricolours’ mentor praised his team for their ability to ignore the outside noise and focus on the task at hand.
Robinson: 'It's Time To Go Again'
“There were some honest truths after that game as there should be,” Robinson explained.
“Then the talking stopped, and we had to put it into action and that’s what we’ve tried to do daily.
“Just try and stack it one on each other and get to the point where you get improvement out of your off-field and on-field behaviours, so we’ve improved that and we’ve got to prove it tomorrow.
“We’ve been pretty clear about what we want from ourselves. The extra noise has helped that get really clear for us.”
This week, Robinson welcomes back Tongan International high-flyer Daniel Tupou, who returns to the wing after completing rehabilitation for a hamstring injury sustained on Anzac Day.
It’s always great to have Toops back, there’s a lot of knowledge out there on that left wing about his role, how he plays and the importance of our style of play, so it’s great to have him back.
Trent Robinson On Daniel Tupou returning to the squad
The Roosters’ Coach was happy to sing the praises of debutant duo Junior Pauga and Sandon Smith, who were retained in the line-up following stand-out performances in the Tricolours one-point win at Industree Group Stadium.
Robinson commended Smith’s ability to perform under pressure, explaining that the 20-year-old’s precision and strength in the dummy-half role resulted in two point-scoring plays.
Watch: Sandon Smith Joins Roosters Radio
“I thought he was really good,” Robinson emphasised.
“I felt like he added quite a bit of sharpness out of there and energy.
“It’s always good to have a kid on debut come in and accelerate the play and try some things.
“When he came on, I think it was 24-18, and to get us to that point and also pass the ball so cleanly to get both the try down the short side and then obviously the field goal, it was a good start.”
Ivan Cleary has called on Jack Cogger to replace Nathan Cleary in the halves, while the international playmaker recovers from a hamstring injury.
Robinson understands that each club has a system and a ‘next man up’ mentality, so Saturday night’s clash will pose similar challenges regardless of the Skipper’s involvement.
“Teams run a system of players with whoever comes in or out,” he said.
“You’ve obviously got to have knowledge of players who come in to fill that position and understand their traits, but our system doesn’t change.”
“It’s been an indifferent season for us. I feel like we’ve had some really good wins and then we had a month of tough footy.
As far as freshness and attitude, we’re on track … we’ll keep moving in the direction we want to head.
Trent Robinson On the Roosters' progression
With Origin II selection calls looming, Robinson knows Roosters’ Captain James Tedesco will rise to the occasion, no matter his opponent.
“His challenge is mostly internal; I’ve said that before. It’s about how does he get the best out of himself,” he said.
“I can’t answer whether he’s thinking about that at all, but I know he’s really striving to get the best out of himself. His motivation is as high as I’ve seen it.
“The freedom in fullback is really important for those guys, but the freedom that they get is usually based on the system of the other 12 guys.
“Some guys really force their way which I think Teddy does, he forces the system and then gets the freedom on the back of it.
“Even before Teddy got to this club, he was driving his own standard.
“He got asked to perform on Sunday and he did and he’ll get asked to perform tomorrow.”
