The arrival of Daly Cherry-Evans and Reece Robson in the off-season saw many tip the Sydney Roosters as one of the early premiership contenders heading into the 2026 campaign.
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But, after just three rounds, the Tricolours have already come under heavy scrutiny after leaking 40-points in two of their opening three matches.
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Their most recent performance occurred on Friday evening against the Penrith Panthers in which they struggled to contain the club’s attacking threats and were repeatedly exposed around the edge of the field.
“Two 40-point results conceded in week one and week three. Not good for a team that knows you’ve got to be one of the best defensive teams to play finals,” Cooper Cronk said on Fox League after the match.
“It was almost like their goal-line defence wasn’t able to get the line speed and make good decisions to attack the Penrith Panthers.
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Revealing that the side is still a “work in progress”, Cronk stated that the next couple of months could describe their season and if they have a chance of making a deep run into the finals that many people predicted before the start of the year.
“They’ll be a work in progress but they’re going to be a team that cop a little bit of flack if they lose and they’ll get a lot of wraps when they win,” Cronk added.
“And for the next sort of four to six weeks, they need to find their rhythm and their style of play and start banking in some wins and consistency.
“Because if they are more losses than wins in eight or ten weeks’ time, then there’s going to be a lot of noise around the Roosters.”
Former NRL player turned analyst Braith Anasta and Australian Kangaroos coach Kevin Walters echoed those sentiments.
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The duo stated the pressure on the Roosters is inevitable if they keep conceding several points during a single match and are unable to win, especially given the quality of their roster and, in particular, their spine.
“There will be because there is a lot of pressure on them for good reason. They’ve got a good squad. They’ve brought DCE to the club and Reece Robson.” Anasta said.
Kevin Walters continued, “Their spine needs some work. They need to get some games together, train together and their edge defence hasn’t gone down quite as well.
“So lots to work on for the Roosters but we are only into Round 3.”