NRL 2022: Trent Robinson recalls Paul Green’s impact at the Roosters

Roosters players honoured Paul Green at the club’s headquarters on Friday morning before coach Trent Robinson paid tribute.

Trent Robinson has paid tribute to friend and former assistant coach Paul Green as the rugby league world continues to mourn his shock death.

Green played 20 games for the Roosters but made his biggest mark at the club in 2013 when he helped Robinson lead the club to its first premiership in 11 years.

Paul Green often wore the headset to relay key messages for the Roosters.

“I remember ‘Greeny’ was my last coaching hire,” Robinson recalled.

“He’d won a couple of comps with Wynnum Manly, he’d been with Wayne (Bennett) at Brisbane, and then he came down.

“I still remember his first session. He came in when we were getting all our systems in place, and he got straight into the coaching. He was really confident about his knowledge, and he got straight into it in his own style with his forthright approach.

“The players really loved him for that.

“He was an amazing coach and an amazing guy. His humour was really important and his brutal honesty was also really important. His vision as a coach was special.”

The Roosters spent Friday morning looking at photos of Green during his time at the club and then spoke about the importance of mental health and encouraging players and officials to reach out if they needed help.

The Roosters have formed a special bond with Gotcha4Life. Picture; Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

“You need, sometimes, to reach out,” Robinson said.

“We had Gus Worland come in and speak about Gotcha4Life only a couple of weeks ago when we played in the Manly game.

“The need to be open about it and talk about it a bit more and not hideaway from the help that you need (is important). It highlights the personal side of what we do and the need for support.”

Robinson said he had some thoughts on the support provided to coaches, who have often been forgotten about compared with the pressure players are under, but didn’t want to elaborate on them.

Instead, he wanted to praise Green for being the man to lead North Queensland to its first premiership back in 2015 in a game that is regarded as one of the greatest grand finals ever played.

“That was all Greeny,” Robinson said.

“To win the first in a place is difficult. You have to get over the psychological barrier of not having done it before. For him to do that in the way that they did, it was one of the most memorable grand finals in the history of our game.”

Originally published as NRL 2022: Trent Robinson recalls Paul Green’s impact at the Roosters