The Sydney Roosters travelled to the Gold Coast to take on the Titans at Cbus Super Stadium in Round 21.
Roosters Set the Foundations
The visitors got off to a fantastic start, with a strong defensive set packing plenty of punch into the opposing pack before a brutal attacking set where they charged all the way to the Titan’s try line, aided by a six-again and penalty.
With a crafty grubber kick out of dummy half, Brandon Smith managed to force a goal line drop-out, placing even more pressure on their opponents.
The restart went out on the full, gifting the Tricolours a penalty kick from in front which Suaalii converted to give his side the lead after five minutes.
Butcher and Tedesco Link Up
After a dominant opening 10 minutes, the Roosters were able to kick off the try scoring for the afternoon as they punched holes in the Titans’ defence.
With Trent Robinson’s men on the attack, James Tedesco delivered a perfectly timed short ball to a determined Egan Butcher who shrugged off two defenders on his way to the try line before reaching out to plant the ball.
Butcher Rolls Over
Just three minutes later, Butcher returned the favour to his skipper as he dummied to break through the defensive line and found Tedesco looming on the inside who raced away to scored beside the uprights.
Air Suaalii Returns with the Goods
It wasn’t long before the Red, White, and Blue extended their lead even further with an aerial raid towards high-flying winger Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii.
After an impressive 56-metre set of six, halfback Sandon Smith called for the ball on the last tackle and launched an attacking bomb towards the try line from 20 metres out.
Leaping above the pack, Suaalii came down with the ball and forced his way over the stripe to score his side’s third try of the first half.
Suaalii Leaps High, Claims Try
Collins Crosses after Manu Magic
With the Tricolours on a rampage, they found another four-pointer as a barnstorming Lindsay Collins found himself on the end of an astonishing flick pass from Joseph Manu.
Taking a run out of dummy half, Manu was wound up in a two-man tackle before making the brave decision to deliver a no-flick pass behind his back which ended up in the hands of Collins, who charged across field and into a gap between Tanah Boyd and Jojo Fifita to score just his second try of the season.
Collins with the Cena Celebration
Reminiscent of retired World Wrestling Entertainment superstar John Cena, Collins delivered the iconic ‘you can’t see me’ celebration while the commentary team realised the stark resemblance between the pair as the visitors celebrated their fourth try in an 18-minute span.
Easts Force Errors with Determined Defence
Despite conceding a few late tries in the contest, the Roosters’ defence was particularly impressive for the majority of the game.
Less than 10 minutes into the encounter, the Titans looked to convert a Roosters’ error into points as they attacked their line, but a heavy hit from Egan Butcher with Luke Keary around the ankles forced the ball out of Chris Randall’s hands.
The Gold Coast were on the prowl again shortly after, but a bone-rattling shot from Collins on David Fifita forced him into a desperate offload which was knocked on by Kieran Foran.
Tedesco: 'We've Got Belief'
In the opening exchanges of the second half, Randall accelerated through a gap in the Roosters’ defensive line and escaped into the backfield, but Tedesco proved his defensive capabilities as he stopped the Titans hooker in his tracks and stripped the ball out of his hands.
The Captain delivered another superb try-saving effort midway through the half, as he struck Brian Kelly with a heavy blow to knock the ball loose just as the home side looked likely to find their first points of the match.
The Skipper will look to inspire his teammates to victory once again when they visit the Brisbane Broncos in Round 22.
