James Tedesco was hammered with questions about an Origin recall for the best part of two years, and now that he’s won back his fullback jersey, the Blues legend is fielding queries about whether this will be his last game.
Only two men have played more games for NSW than Tedesco, with the 33-year-old winning back his spot after Panthers star Dylan Edwards claimed it in 2024.
Tedesco has one year left on his Roosters deal and is considering signing an extension, but what’s unclear is whether he wants to continue his representative career beyond 2026 that includes a World Cup at the end of the year.
“I haven’t really given it too much thought,” he said.
“I just want to get through this year and reassess what the future looks like, whether it’s rep footy or longer in the NRL. My goal is to get to 300 games (he’s played 290 so far) which is close now.
“It’s pretty hard to make a decision when it’s far away, but once the year finishes, we’ll see what happens with rep footy at the end of the year and then make a more detailed decision.”
A modelling career after rugby league may be ruined after he broke his nose against the Sharks a few weeks ago, evoking memories of former teammate Blake Ferguson whose beak was horribly bent out of shape late in his career.
Tedesco broke his nose 11 years ago as a result of friendly fire with Mitch Moses at the Wests Tigers and has ruled out surgery even though one of the Roosters trainers had to get through countless towels to mop up the blood after his latest mishap.
“It was already a bit the other way, then it got smashed back. If it went the other way, it would have been like ‘Fergo’, but it straightened it out a little bit,” he laughed.
“I’ve broken it before. Mitch actually was the first one to break it back in 2015 at training. He smashed me across the face.
“Someone sent me the photo of Braith Anasta when he had the tape job a couple of years ago. It would have been a funny photo if they did it to me, but it was OK. I think my wife came in a bit worried, but it’s fine.
“It’ll just be a bit crooked and have a bit of a bump on it now. When I finish, I’ll maybe get it all fixed up like a few boys have in the past, but it’s all good.”
Tedesco wasn’t a part of the NSW side that knocked off the Maroons at Suncorp Stadium in the 2024 decider, but he’s excited to prove doubters wrong when the Blues head up there next week as despised outsiders.
“It’s going to be huge. You don’t get a much bigger occasion than a decider at Suncorp with everyone against us. It’s going to be a cool experience,” the game one hero said.
“It’s all about us, though. We haven’t been at our best, and we’ve got to acknowledge that and really come together this camp to make sure we’re at our best for game three.
“It’s just about being connected, being on the same page and going forward because we know we’ve got the talent here.
“Look across our team, there are so many great players. It’s really just about getting on the same page and working together. If we find that strong connection throughout camp, that will put us in the best position for game three.”
Originally published as ‘Pretty hard’: James Tedesco weighs up rep future as Blues legend gives details on teammate who broke his nose in 2015