12th to 1st: Roosters plan their own Project Apollo
Roosters captain Boyd Cordner says the reigning NRL premiers are ready to defend their title from 12th place — and here’s how they’ll do it.
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Roosters captain Boyd Cordner says the reigning NRL premiers are ready to defend their title from 12th place, revealing the challenge of winning in a severely shortened season is now their lockdown motivation.
With ARLC chairman Peter V’landys having confirmed the opening two rounds of the NRL will season will stand, The Daily Telegraph can reveal Roosters players have spent two weeks using their sluggish start as fuel for training while in lockdown.
Despite headlines on Monday night about the NRL potentially restarting the competition, Cordner said his side not only expected to recommence their year at 0-2 after losses to Penrith and Manly, but were using it as training motivation.
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The Australian Test captain added that his teammates were also well aware that the longer the COVID-19 shutdown continued, the tougher it would become to defend from 12th, especially in a season reduced to 14 competition games or fewer.
“If it becomes a shorter season, things will be tougher for us, definitely,” Cordner said.
“But that’s the challenge. We have to be ready to go, and straight away.
“There’s a chance we might have as little as two weeks to prepare before that first game, which is why it’s so important everyone stays focused on training.
“As a team, we really need to hit the ground running.”
For roughly 48 hours at the start of this week, NRL officials discussed the idea of restarting the season in two conferences, and with every team on zero points, as part of Project Apollo.
However at lunchtime on Tuesday, V’landys revealed the points gained over the first two rounds would stand.
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Regardless, Roosters players have already spent the past fortnight using their slow start as motivation to ensure every member of the squad sticks to training schedules in makeshift garage gyms and on backyard running fields.
The group also has a WhatsApp group where programs for everything from weights and sprint training to stretching routines are posted daily.
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Despite dropping their opening two games of the year, Cordner insisted the Roosters were capable of a third straight title, even if the season ends up being drastically reduced.
“We’re certainly confident we can turn things around quickly,” the NSW Origin star said.
“Over those first two games we were in a position to win both times, we just needed to put some polish on things.
“We’ve also still got the same core group of players we’ve had there for a couple of years.
“So our challenge is to hit the ground running.”
Currently, the Roosters are one of six teams who have dropped both games to start the season, joining Cronulla, St George Illawarra, Canterbury, the Warriors and Gold Coast.
Parramatta, meanwhile, lead the competition having gone undefeated over the first two weeks while also racking up a points differential of 46.
CAPTAIN CORDNER’S CALL TO ARMS
Kangaroo stars Boyd Cordner and Cameron Murray have thrown their heavyweight support behind Project Apollo, convinced rugby league’s biggest names will lockdown immediately if it means resurrecting the code.
With ARLC Chairman Peter V’landys wanting to restart the NRL season by June, both Cordner and Murray have told The Saturday Telegraph that Australian Test players will do “whatever it takes” to assist in the bold comeback plan.
Already, the newly-formed NRL innovation committee has been tasked with reviving the competition within the next eight weeks, even if it means putting all 16 clubs into quarantine.
Another option is restarting with a State of Origin series, with potential lockdown zones including Sydney Olympic Park, the country Queensland town of Gladstone, even a remote island in the Pacific Ocean.
Asked about going into lockdown so that rugby league could restart during the COVID-19 pandemic, Cordner said: “As players, we need to do whatever it takes.
“And if going into isolation is required by the game to get things started again, I’m sure that’s what we’ll do.
“Already we’ve seen what the Warriors were prepared to do, and then what they did over a couple of weeks to keep the NRL running.
“And as rugby league players, this is what we do … we want to play.”
While the Roosters superstar added that isolating for weeks, and potentially months, would be difficult for some NRL players – “especially those with large families” – he stressed the sacrifice would be worth it.
“Obviously a lot of guys are at different stages in their lives,” Cordner continued.
“Some are young, single and would have no problem going into isolation.
“Others though, have big families – three, maybe four children – and obviously it’s going to be a lot more difficult for them.
“But at the same time, I think every player realises we wouldn’t have the lives we do without rugby league.
“So you have to do everything possible to get back to the game.”
South Sydney star Murray agreed.
“Personally, I’m happy to do whatever it takes to start playing again,” he said. “As long as it can be done in a safe environment that’s approved by health professionals, I’m ready to go.
“Not only from a selfish point of view, because I’d love to be playing again, but also for the wider community.
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“I think this issue is far bigger than just footballers getting paid again.
“This is about getting rugby league back on TV screens so people who support the game can have a reason to smile.
“Rugby league is an important part of Australian culture and I’ll do whatever I can to get it going again.”
Currently, an eight-member committee led by ARL commissioner Wayne Pearce is working out ways to construct an environment where the NRL competition can resume while still ensuring the safety of its players.
Dubbed Project Apollo, the push involves a range of possible scenarios that include having all 16 clubs together in quarantine, having teams separated into conferences or even isolating clubs in communities across NSW and Queensland.
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Should the competition restart in June, players could be separated from their families for several months, with RLPA boss Clint Newton stressing earlier this week that athlete safety remained his top priority for any comeback blueprint.
Asked when he thought the NRL season would resume, and how it might look, Cordner continued: “Right now, that’s a hard one to answer.
“Will we play a full season? I don’t know.
“I’d like to think there’s a chance but I’m guessing it will more likely be a modified competition.
“But even if we could have a season where you play everyone once while also having State of Origin and a finals series, that would be a big win for the game.”