Robinson relishing battle of premiers versus pacesetters

James Tedesco gets all the plaudits but Roosters coach has singled out a gnarly veteran for special praise.

Jake Friend will play his 250th game for the Roosters on Saturday night Picture: AAP

Sydney Roosters coach Trent Robinson’s mouth was shaped like a crocodile’s when it knew a good feed was coming up. Half-a-grin, assured, unflinching, menacing. I think he licked his lips when the topic on his tongue was Saturday evening’s fixture against a Parramatta side that was on top of the NRL ladder for points but not perception.

The two-time defending premiers versus the competition frontrunners. The blockbuster’s blockbuster. But before discussing that mouth-watering match — bring it on, et cetera — Robinson shed intriguing light on two of his superstars. First, James Tedesco. The greatest player in the NRL but somehow, also the most improved. Second, Jake Friend, the tough and accomplished hooker playing his 250th NRL match. What a contrast, eh? Tedesco, barely a scratch on him. He’s done it easily. Friend looks like he’s been shot, stabbed and mugged. He’s done it tough.

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Asked if he encouraged Tedesco to bask in his form — how good am I going! — or ignore all the praise — oh, shoosh! — Robinson replied: “That’s an interesting one. I’m not going to be negative on the positive talk about Teddy. It’s true, so it’s OK for people to say it. Then it’s about, how do you understand it’s there and then get back to consistent play? People have talked about the last few weeks, but he’s been doing this for a long time. His ability to understand that he’s got raps, and then go out there and play a quality game the next week, it means he’s got a consistency of what he believes in on the field, but also his mental ability to control himself.”

Robinson added: “A lot of people rise and fall with either the raps that come or the negative feedback but Teddy is very level-headed. He knows what he cares about. A lot of coaches, if a player gets raps, you try to play it down. If people are bagging you, you try to use it against the outside world. You try to blame somebody else. Whereas it’s OK if people rap Teddy, because they should. He’s a very good player. It’s about giving the players the tools to understand that’s really good, now what do I need to do? What am I in control of? Teddy is exceptional at that.”

Robinson said of Friend: “Aw, jeez. How long have you got? We had a joke yesterday that it’s been a pretty cruisy 250 games for Jake. I think the guys that have played with him for those 250 games would thank him, every single one of them, for the way he has played. He has embodied a warrior in the way he has gone about his footy. He’s got class that not enough people see. It’s quite funny when people talk about hookers in our game. We have a bit of a chuckle here at the Roosters. Everybody who has played with Jake knows what a great leader he is and what an incredible player he is. He does his job and then he goes and does other people’s jobs.”

Robinson said: “The consistency he’s played with over a long period of time is incredible. Incredible. People haven’t seen it. Some people have, but … he’s a man’s man and blokes love playing with him. He came on as an 18-year-old and if you remember, he was playing that tough footy, that style, straight away. But he had some off-field issues. We were trying to get him back to being an NRL player, let alone to playing 250 games and captaining his club. Early days, there’s a difference between character and behaviour. Some of his behaviours needed to improve as an 18-year-old. But his character was strong and we saw that. He’s played tough every single week of those 250 games. People follow him. He doesn’t say a lot but you talk to people who have played with him, they know what it means.”

Asked if Friend was underrated outside the Roosters, Robinson said: “I would say he is. Because if you really look at the game and what the role of a hooker is, the man ticks a lot of boxes. People sometimes want a flash moment. A trick play that a hooker comes up with that people applaud. Try doing what he’s done for 250 games and his teammates will applaud.”

Roosters versus Eels. Must-see TV. Robinson in crocodile mode: “We want to nullify some of their areas and then attack.”