Roosters coach Trent Robinson says Alex Johnston\u2019s impending record-breaking moment hasn\u2019t been discussed at training because his side doesn\u2019t plan on the Rabbitohs winger becoming the game\u2019s most prolific try-scorer.<\/p>\n
Johnston is one shy of Ken Irvine\u2019s 212-try tally, with Friday night\u2019s blockbuster between the game\u2019s fiercest rivals seemingly the perfect place for him to break the record and add another chapter to the Book of Feuds.<\/p>\n
It would be extra spicy if it were to happen at Allianz Stadium given the ongoing turf war between the two clubs as the Bunnies try to take home games to the Moore Park precinct.<\/p>\n
The Roosters haven\u2019t had any team meetings about ensuring Johnston doesn\u2019t break the record on Friday, with Robinson hoping he can watch history get made from the comfort of his couch next week when Souths take on the Wests Tigers. <\/p>\n
\u201cTo be honest, that hasn\u2019t been brought up because our job is to allow no tries on that edge. That\u2019s the focus for us,\u201d Robinson said, with Johnston scoring 18 tries from 24 games against the Tricolours. <\/p>\n
\u201cSo there\u2019s not a sort of discussion about \u2018don\u2019t let somebody (score)\u2019 because we don\u2019t want tries. And so the passion about how we defend and how we improve from last week was pretty key for us. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t want him to score any tries. For me, hopefully the following week he\u2019ll break that record. Alex is a really good person and a good man and a great footy player and he deserves everything he gets.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo I\u2019m really happy for him and what he\u2019s done in the game and I look forward to celebrating hopefully on a television from a distance.\u201d<\/p>\n
The veteran Roosters coach didn\u2019t want to weigh into the debate surrounding whether fans should be allowed to storm the field whenever Johnston breaks the record, with Robinson more focused about the defensive cohesion on his right edge.<\/p>\n
Siua Wong has been brought into the back row to play next to key recruit Daly Cherry-Evans after the Roosters were exposed on the edges, with Johnston part of South Sydney\u2019s lethal left side that includes Latrell Mitchell, David Fifita and Cody Walker. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere were probably two things that we identified which I sort of won\u2019t go into, but there were two things that we felt like we needed to fix to improve that edge,\u201d Robinson replied when asked what he\u2019d identified out of last week\u2019s Warriors loss.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat didn\u2019t come up after the game, but we\u2019ve been working on them and we needed to double down this week.\u201d<\/p>\n
The focus on the Roosters and Cherry-Evans has been intense this week, while the blowtorch has also been applied to Broncos coach Michael Maguire just months after he helped end their premiership drought. <\/p>\n
The round 1 hot takes are just par for the course these days, and the best way to silence the noise is by winning. <\/p>\n
\u201cRound 1\u2019s always a grand final. We\u2019re always excited about round 1 and how big it is, but it comes with the territory. It\u2019s great,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
\u201cI think the more we talk about it, the more interest (we generate). You guys (media) cop a lot of flak at different times, but the more you talk about it, then it builds interest. <\/p>\n
\u201cSo I love where our game\u2019s at, I love the interest in our game. We\u2019re going to have to wear opinion on how we\u2019re playing. We\u2019re not going to like it sometimes, but (you have to) perform. That\u2019s the only way to answer that, and that\u2019s us week to week.\u201d<\/p>\n