Many analysts will be tipping the Roosters to go backwards in 2027.
After all, there is only one way you can go once you’ve reached the top.
Can Joey Manu (left) emulate the instant success of Sonny Bill Williams and Daly Cherry-Evans? Nine
Trent Robinson is set to lose at least six players from his squad that clinched the premiership this year.
Mark Nawaqanitawase and Angus Crichton are jumping ship to rugby, Daly Cherry-Evans is headed to the Super League, Connor Watson is driving down the highway to play for the Dragons, Spencer Leniu is joining the Eels, and winger Daniel Tupou has hung up the boots.
They are all stars in their own right who played big roles in the success of the Tricolours – albeit Watson missed the big dance due to concussion.
Oh, and assistant coaches Michael Cheika and Matt King are also gone.
But while the line-up is losing some star power, rivals have been put on notice by a report from nine.com.au’s The Mole this week.
The Roosters are exploring the possibility of bringing back superstar Joey Manu for a “guest stint” before joining Papua New Guinea for the inaugural Chiefs season in 2028.
Manu was one of the best players in the NRL before packing his bags and flying overseas at the end of 2024 to try his hand at rugby.
While he’s been out of the game for a couple of years, he would still be one of the better centres in rugby league and adds an X-factor to any side he slots into.
With Nawaqanitawase and Tupou disappearing from the flanks next year, bringing Manu into the backline for the second half of the season would inject some serious talent.
The knock-on effect will, obviously, cost one player their spot in the team that evolves through the early part of next season.
But the Roosters have a history of making bold signing gambles which tread on toes but have often been rewarded by an immediate premiership.
The Chooks finished 13th on the ladder in 2012 before Robinson was brought to the club to replace seasoned coach Brian Smith.
Robinson’s signing was a gamble in itself, given he was relatively unknown in Australia at the time.
The club also added Sonny Bill Williams to the roster that year.
Williams was a Bulldogs phenom when he burst onto the NRL scene in 2004 and spent just four seasons in the blue and white before his bombshell defection to rugby.
The Roosters brought him back to league to do a job and together with the guidance of rookie coach Robinson, the Roosters won the premiership in 2013. Mission accomplished.
The club, led by uncompromising billionaire chairman Nick Politis, shocked the league again in 2017 when they went after Storm champion Cooper Cronk, and landed his signature.
It meant pushing the club’s favourite son Mitchell Pearce out the door, and at the time it raised eyebrows from fans.
Cooper Cronk with Luke Keary celebrate winning the 2018 grand final. nna\telbra
But, again, it paid off with premierships in 2018 and 2019, before Cronk retired with a perfect record in the red, white and blue.
Two years ago the Chooks took a punt on Nawaqanitawase.
He was an obvious talent in rugby but his introduction to the 13-man code was far from smooth, with many critics highlighting his error rate and defensive deficiencies early in his NRL career.
He left the game this month as an Ashes winner with Australia, a State of Origin champ with NSW, and with a fresh premiership ring on his finger.
Along the way the Roosters also brought veteran halfback Daly Cherry-Evans south of the bridge to Moore Park for a hit-and-run job.
On the back of a bizarre Chad Townsend sojourn that spectacularly failed the year prior, critics once again questioned the strategy of bringing an ageing halfback to a club where Sam Walker and Hugo Savala were seen as the future.
Twelve months later, the Cherry-Evans signing was proven a stroke of genius. He kicked the field goal that decided the grand final in a one-point win over Newcastle.
Critics will always claim the Chooks buy premierships, but it’s better than sticking with the status quo and being a perennial also-ran.
Will the brief return of Manu next year bring about more success at the eastern suburbs glamour club?
Time will tell. But it would be a brave pundit to write them off.