NRL SuperCoach ‘it’s a trap’ series — Sydney Roosters

THERE’S plenty of hype surrounding the Roosters but their co-captain and SuperCoach’s second highest scoring hooker is TRAP. See why here!

THERE is a lot of optimism and positive vibes surrounding last year’s 15th placed team, the Roosters.

Of course, they went from three straight minor premierships to the second most disrupted season of 2016 (only bested by the Eels). So, with no major injuries this preseason nor any preseason controversies, perhaps the preseason hype is warranted.

Getting straight into it though, I’m calling Jake Friend as the TRAP lying in wait at the Roosters. Hang on, you say, you’re calling the second highest scoring hooker of 2016 a TRAP?

Put simply — yes! Jake Friend had a great season last year — in fact, he had a career SuperCoach year in his season average of 63. But we have to break it down and dig a bit deeper into the numbers.

PREDICTED ROUND 1 TEAMS

Jake Friend could be a SuperCoach trap. pic Mark Evans

Friend played all 24 games of the regular season last year. Of those games though, he played 11 without Mitchell Pearce, and 13 with him in the team. His average without Pearce? 70.4 points per game, from an average of 75.2 minutes per game.

His average with Pearce? 56.6 points per game, from an average of 76.5 minutes per game. A difference of almost 14 points per game is significant! However, it’s clear that time on field wasn’t the issue. So, what was the major difference? Put simply, it was his involvement as a playmaker. When Pearce was not in the team, in the absence of an experienced half (noting that Hastings, Nikorima, Matterson and Watson all had turns filling in there) Friend had to step up and control the team and in turn that often meant he controlled the attack in the opposition’s red zone.

92 points in major attacking stats (tries, try assists, last touch assists, linebreaks, linebreak assists) when Pearce was in the team compared to 168 (despite two less games to get that 168) is a big difference.

What can you expect from Jake Friend in 2017? Consistency, as always. His tackle counts are ridiculous as he averaged 47 points in tackles alone. More often than not he will score you 50-55 points in tackles and hit-ups alone. But at a 63 average, you need a bit more than that, and Pearce being in the team makes those additional attacking stats hard to come by. In summary, by no means is Jake Friend a horrible SuperCoach option.

However, he appears unlikely to match the 63 average that you are paying top dollar for, so he will more often than not lose you cash. As an aside, you might look to pick up Friend as a second hooker later down the track once his price has adjusted to where his scores actually fall. The Roosters have great bye coverage as they will play both Round 12 and Round 18. Just give Friend a miss from Round 1.