Lisa Fiaola Cup 2025: Roosters coach Jayme Fressard on learning from the best, coaching next gen

Jayme Fressard has overcome the biggest of setbacks to reach the greatest heights in NRLW. Now the young role model has one eye on life after football as she guides the Roosters’ next gen of female talents.

Jayme Fressard. Photo: Jason McCawley/Getty Images

Jayme Fressard has experienced just about everything rugby league can offer.

Missing the first two NRLW seasons through injury, the 27-year-old worked her way back to the top and became a premiership player last season.

More recently Fressard has tried her hand at coaching, forming a pivotal part of the Roosters’ pathway to unearth future first grade talents.

The Lisa Fiaola Cup head coach took the team to the finals last year and they remain undefeated throughout the opening four rounds of this year’s edition, amazingly not conceding a try in the process.

“I love it. This is my second year and for me I’m learning a lot more about the game and a lot about myself as well,” she said.

“I’m lucky to have Strangey (John Strange) as a mentor through it all. I love being around the girls.

“In both years I’ve had them they’ve been such a good crew.

“I’m really enjoying it and I think it helps my game as well when I go back onto the field, because now I’m aware of so many other things.”

This year has a twist however.

The Sydney Roosters now come under their banner in the U17s, presenting a new challenge to get a group across a wide geographic spread to come together as a cohesive unit.

Fressard has taken it head on, combining her experiences working in schools with what she has learned in the coaching caper.

“Especially with the Central Coast and Sydney teams combining, a massive thing for me was I didn’t want the girls to be divided and feel like it was a Central Coast vs Sydney kind of thing,” she said.

“I work in schools where I do a lot of youth development and run programs, so I tried to incorporate that a little bit into our sessions with fun games at the start and mixing the girls up with different partners.

The Roosters made the finals in the first Lisa Fiaola Cup. Picture: Warren Gannon Photography

“We also did a really heavy beach session and from that day the girls have clicked really well.”

Fressard believes she has a greater understanding of the game, and how to avoid making her NRLW coach fret when she’s on the field.

“I know why Strangey stresses out so much now when girls drop the ball or push passes,” Fressard joked.

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“One thing for me is not pushing passes as much. I’ve always been an outside back so I’m so revolved around them and what they do, where the last few years I’ve had to understand what forward’s roles are.

“There was even one time at training last year when Strangey asked me to jump into hooker and I knew everything to do because I had learnt that from coaching as well.

“It’s helping my game in that I feel I can be a bit more versatile with understanding different roles and different things. It’s just a good environment for me to learn and grow both on and off the field.”

The coaching staff of the Roosters in both Fiaola and Tarsha Gale Cup is littered with current players, something Fressard said is a conscious effort from the club to prepare them for the next stage of their lives.

“A massive thing from Strangey is getting us girls to think about life outside of our playing career,” she said.

“We’re not going to be playing forever. So for us it’s trying to build us up for our life after footy.
“I’ve got a really good support network. I’ve got Isabelle Kelly and Jocelyn Kelleher who are my assistant coaches and we all have our different roles at training.

“I’m super blessed to have a good team and support around me.”

The Roosters continue their Lisa Fiaola campaign against the Rabbitohs in Woy Woy on Saturday.