For Tarryn Aiken, the ACL injury came on the eve of the 2025 NRLW finals, where she could do nothing but look on as the Roosters ultimately went down by four points to the Broncos in a brutal Grand Final loss. <\/p>\n
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\u201cIt was definitely tough (being on the sideline) for Grand Final day, and the team were going through the wars out there!\u201d Aiken said. <\/p>\n
\u201cI think there was, at one point, three different people down injured. It was even harder to watch, with all the resilience they showed that day, while I sort of felt helpless not being out there with them.\u201d <\/p>\n
Throw in a missed 2026 Origin campaign, where Aiken also watched on as her Maroons teammates lost the series, and you get the sense the talented halfback is ready to make up for lost time. <\/p>\n
\u201cI feel like it all just lights a fire in your belly to come back and be better. To come back and do your job for the team,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n
Aiken doesn\u2019t shy away from the seriousness of the injury; a fateful, and innocuous sidestep against the Sharks in round 11 that derailed her season. But Aiken also explained how she found strong support at the Roosters, a club known to lure big names and in the NRLW \u2014 keep them. <\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, it was definitely the hardest part of my career so far,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of uncertainty when you do your knee, around how the surgery will go, and how you\u2019ll recover. You wonder if you\u2019ll ever get back on the field in general, and then wonder how you\u2019ll play when you come back.<\/p>\n
\u201cI went into full time rehab mode to be back for the start of this season, leaning on the Roosters high performance and video staff, they were great. I think the opportunity to have the full time physio at the Roosters definitely helps.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tarryn Aiken is assisted from the field. (Photo by Matt King\/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n
Aiken found she didn\u2019t have to look far for some inspiration when it comes to making a successful comeback from an ACL injury. <\/p>\n
\u201cObviously seeing Sam Walker going through it at the club, that was interesting to see from afar. I\u2019ve been watching how he came back, and how he looked like he hadn\u2019t missed a beat in how he has played since,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe also had Tania (Naividi), who did her ACL on the captain\u2019s run before the Grand Final, so I feel like her and I were on the recovery journey together this year.\u201d <\/p>\n
For a player that has already won the Golden Boot award, and multiple Premierships, Aiken still sees more joy to come in playing alongside her star Roosters teammates, who she said have built a strong bond at the club. <\/p>\n
\u201cI think they\u2019re all world class players,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve got the two best centres in the competition, and then, Liv (Kernick) who has been, one of the best players, if not the best in the last couple of years. They definitely make my job a lot easier, but also make it really enjoyable to play as well.\u201d <\/p>\n
Jocelyn Kelleher, who has one of the best towering bombs in the NRLW, also impresses her halves partner.<\/p>\n
Knights prevail in NRLW season opener | 03:07<\/p>\n
\u201cI think her kicking game has come a long way, and I think that was really unreal in the origin series,\u201d Aiken said. <\/p>\n
The impressive Chooks\u2019 lineup remains this year\u2019s premiership favourite in the NRLW, and Aiken said the winning culture and bond between players is addictive at the Roosters and a massive drawcard in the game. <\/p>\n
\u201cI think the culture goes a long way, the club goes a long way, winning 40 games and the club\u2019s done a really good job with our program. It\u2019s probably why a lot of people have stayed loyal as well to the club, and want to be here and want to play for the Roosters,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve had a core group of players together the last few years, so it feels like family here now. We are getting to watch our teammates\u2019 kids grow up. Having Gigi (Mille Elliott\u2019s baby) around, it\u2019s really special. Everyone lights up when Gigi\u2019s around at training.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tarryn Aiken is back. Picture Warren Gannon Photography Newscorp AustraliaSource: News Corp Australia<\/p>\n
Aiken will take on the new look Gold Coast Titans in her round one return, where the Roosters rugby recruit will take on star Rugby sevens player, Teagan Levi.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not too sure what to expect to be honest. It\u2019s always a tough battle when we come up against the Titans,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve got our own sevens recruit, Sariah Paki, playing as well. I think they\u2019ll line up against each other, actually, Tegan and Sah, so it\u2019ll be a good battle between them two, which will be great to see.\u201d<\/p>\n
The first step in a season awaits Aiken, and should her and the Roosters make amends for last year\u2019s Grand Final, she believes it will rival her best moments in her career to date. <\/p>\n
\u201cEvery year sort of special in its own way, to come back and maybe finish that way this year, would be awesome,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"For any athlete, a dreaded ACL tear is a daunting prospect. Watch every game of every round of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":777385,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[568],"tags":[64,63,761,762,158,85],"class_list":["post-777384","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nrl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-national-rugby-league","tag-nationalrugbyleague","tag-nrl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/777384","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=777384"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/777384\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/777385"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=777384"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=777384"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=777384"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}