Are the Roosters' premiership hopes OVER after injury carnage? | Wide World of Sports

chaotic scenes there at alian Stadium but uh for the roosters Sam Walker ACL he's going to have surgery this week Brandon Smith MCL and ACL may not have surgery on it just yet Victor Radley fractured scapula season likely over but not 100% yet are you prepared to put a line gal through the roosters prip chances now look they got all three out for the rest of the season probably let's not forget Jordan rapana went out with a broken ice soer too ear in the match it was absolutely chaotic look I think had they lost one uh look I thought had they lost a halfback Walker they probably could have B Bing sandon Smith he's trained with them all year I I get the feeling the players in the in the squad would trust him he knows what the game plan's all about but then they lost obviously Radley and uh and the other Smith yeah that's a big loss to have three of you starting 17 out of the out of the contest it's it's a huge out big big they got great depth of roosters and they'll still be be competitive whether they can win the competition um yeah remains to be seen guys you said for a number of weeks now that they're potentially the Premiership favorites but this clearly would change your mind now uh no not really but I I think it was one of the more absorbing games of rugby league that I've been bed with for a long long time I'll remember this game for a long time first of all during the week Ricky Stu Stewart told me they would beat them he said we'll we'll go there and beat them and he was very confident about it and in the early stages of the game you get a feel for a game you get a feel for who's ready and who's not The Roosters were not ready to feel that uncomfortable all weekend they didn't anticipate that sort of game and I thought that the Raiders had them on tilt long before the injuries came I really thought they were bustling and hustling and doing what they wanted to do and they got out to a good lead and but the second half with the roosters with all those injuries and they courageously fought on and then the ra uh the Raiders courageous courageously kept defending their own line I think the whole second half was played on the Raiders Tri line and they just kept turning up for each other they weren't just tackling they were banging in defense they were physically assaulting the opposition and going really well and it was an absorbing game in rugby league full credit to the Raiders what a win that was that brilant like a street fire gust for the and I SP R before the match I said mate you're playing the best attack inside the competition do you have to outc score them or defend he goes we got to outscore them now I don't know if he'll selling me a dummy but they didn't try and outscore him they tried to beat him it was a dead set street fight they were there to bash them and they bashed them they I get the feeling had the roosters had their full compliment the back end the second half they may a to get over line but they didn't they had them three losses big losses in side as we know but the Raiders beat them up and and as you said how Crea they were defensively the roost had plenty of ball on their TR plenty ball plenty of opportunities to score points but they couldn't they just they had them frazzled yeah I I spoke on radio before the game and people say like we all know how the roosters are so talented they score more points than any other team they said what's the thing that's lacking I said unlike Melbourne and penth they don't like being uncomfortable they haven't learned to play uncomfortable if the opposition can make him feel feel uncomfortable they'll try to Wing their way out of it rather than digging in now yesterday was different they actually really did dig in yesterday I thought the roosters were really courageous given everything that it happened their game fell apart when Walker goes off and then they had those other injuries as well their hook has gone off just chaed the dynamic but they've got enough talent to get over that and they just weren't able to do it the Raiders were just too tough for him on the day if I heard you saying the call yesterday actually disagreed you you said you'd play a lot of the ples this week I wouldn't vers the bunnies I'd rest them totally I think training these days is intense enough and hard enough that they can put the players they need to to take those positions and and get the get what they need out of training rather than playing versus Roost first the ra sorry the bunnies we know how much they hate each other these two clubs and the bunnies are going to be doing everything to get under their skin I believe anyway they'll be trying to beat them up they'll be trying to take them out as well they'll be trying to bait them into doing something stupid if I was a roosters I'd be resting everyone this week just playing almost their Reserve grade side and just getting ready for week one of the semi-finals Bry the other subplot was Whitehead V Robo Y what did you make of that and I mean Whitehead yes has quite the rap sheet but most of the offenses have been fairly minor yeah yeah we've got it here and he's had I think we counted them up 11 charges in in the NRL he's had three hip drops in the past and they're all fines only and this one's obviously more serious that it was a grade two so after the match he's tried to go and apologize and then it's Whitehead who's raised at first in the press conference he said that he felt disrespected he felt it was not on the way Trent Robinson spoke to him and Trent Robinson said I just said you know it's too compon in your game and that was it I'm pretty sure Trent Robinson probably said more than that but In the Heat of battle after a match Trent Robinson's lost his hooker his halfback his strike weapon back rower he's staring down the barrel of a unbelievable opportunity going out the back door in the space of 80 minutes with those injuries you know I don't mind to blue between two BLS I agree I re it's all right no problem what the game I have absolutely no problem with any of it Robinson sticking out for his players sticking out for his team having to go to BL up for himself White's going to apologize trying to apologize probably trying to the right thing he feels bad for what what has happened and he's stuck over himself look I know the media we love a feud but I got I got no issue with any of it at all he c a bit of a a bake from Trent Robinson and you know as long as I'm sure I'm sure he give it back to Robo too I got no problem with any of it the only criticism might be is it bit Rich Gus the fact that Jared War hares and Victor Radley have significant rap sheets and trade Robinson's having a go at Elliot Whitehead yeah well if you look at the numbers there they're the most um the match Review Committee has been to the roosters more than any team in the competition with you know charges and week spent off and fines and all that sort of thing I mean the roosters sail pretty close to the win most of the time when they're playing as well um you know but for me the challenge now for the roosters is you can only control what you can control they've got a roster deep in Talent deep in Talent all right they got a young fell there in sandon Smith who can come in and play in the playmaker role they've got to find themselves a dummy half they can trust I think Zack doer clay can do that role uh certainly that you know Conor Watson can fill in there at different times I wouldn't change Conor Watson from being number 14 but they've got enough talent to still win this competition it's not as though that Panthers and storm and sharks are shooting the lights out at the moment they're just not you know like it's there's no one really put their hand up in the last couple of weeks and said they want to be Premier we're all waiting for Roosters to do it they haven't done it but now it's a new challenge and I actually thought that part of his press conference um Trent Robinson he handled really well he said let's get excited about the challenge ahead all right we've got some kids that's why you have 30 players in your roster and they have got 30 players 30 real good players in their roster I know they're missing the ones that they'd really like to have in the game but they can still put a side on the field that can win and you know there's no reason why they can't they lose a little bit of X Factor without Walker but you know that's I agree I think they got a good enough roster to replace it that's why I'm saying play them all next week because all of a sudden you got to put Luke Ki in charge you got to get the young into the you lose Tesco you lose a cury you lose a tupur or someone again I think it's too big risk planning the biggest Feud Z doer play didn't Zack doer play didn't get much time yesterday if he gets a run next week you don't want him go another should come back to they train these days the intensity of training how hard they train that they will get enough out of training that they don't need to play they don't I don't think they need to risk playing against sou syney the booker feuds the hatred there I don't think they need to play The Players if I was them and I'm not I'm not them obviously but I would I would rest them I think it would be a training Gallop against s so their B Team their B Team could beat them so I'd play their B team but