Sydney Roosters - The Trent Robinson Years Quiz

Answer: Minor Premiers, Grand Final winners

First, how the NRL season works. All teams (16 in 2013) play 24 home-and-away games. The top eight qualify for the finals. The team that is number one on the table at the end of the regular season is declared the Minor Premiers. There are four weeks of finals, which are knockout games, except for two of the four games in week 1 (the top four play each other in a Qualifying Finals where the loser gets a "second chance" and the winners go straight to week3); Semi-Finals (4 teams), Preliminary Finals (4 teams) and the Grand Final (2 teams). The winner of the last match, the Grand Final, wins the premiership.

Eastern Suburbs District Rugby League Football Club was formed in 1908 and joined the inaugural year of the New South Wales Rugby League. They transitioned to the National Rugby League in 1998 and are the only non-merged club that has competed every season in Australia's elite rugby league competition. They changed their team name from Eastern Suburbs to the Sydney City Roosters in 1995 and the Sydney Roosters in 2000. With St George and South Sydney, they were considered the most powerful teams in the history of rugby league in the 20th century. This changed somewhat in the early 21st century. In 2013, they had not won a premiership since 2002, and Grand Final appearances without winning in 2003-4 and 2010 were not considered successful seasons by the club.

After coming 13th in 2012, Trent Robinson was appointed Head Coach after being an assistant coach in 2010, the last time the Roosters reached the Grand Final. They finished the season as Minor Premiers with an 18-6 record. They defeated Manly Warringah 4-0 in the qualifying final to progress straight to the Preliminary Final in Week 3, when they defeated the Newcastle Knights, 40-14. In the Grand Final, they ground out an 8-6 lead by half-time, but Manly scored two tries quickly in the second half to lead 18-8; the Roosters dug in and scored three converted tries without conceding any further points to win their 13th premiership 26-18. No team in premiership history had come from a lower position (13th) to win the following season's premiership. Robinson was only the sixth rookie coach premiership winner, and only the second rookie NRL coach to claim a Minor Premiership. He also became the youngest-ever recipient of the Dally M Award for Coach of the Year.

Answer: Minor Premiers but lost their Preliminary final

The Roosters retained the minor premiership in 2014 with the same 18-6 record as 2013. In the Qualifying Final, they were pipped by the Penrith Panthers 19-18, forcing the Roosters to play a semi-final, which they won 31-30 against the North Queensland Cowboys.

However, in the Preliminary Final, they lost to their nemesis, South Sydney 32-22, and were eliminated. Souths went on to win the Grand Final with a 30-6 win over the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs.

Answer: Lost to the 2nd placed Brisbane Broncos

For the third year in a row, the Roosters posted an 18-6 regular-season record and won the minor premiership (for the 19th time). However, season-ending injuries to Mitchell Pearce and Jared Waerea-Hargreaves ultimately affected their finals campaign.

They lost their Qualifying Final to Melbourne Storm 20-18 but rallied to defeat Canterbury-Bankstown 38-12 in their semi-final. In the preliminary final, they were eliminated by the second-placed Brisbane Broncos 31-12 (who in turn were pipped by third-placed North Queensland Cowboys 17-16 in the Grand Final).

Answer: 15th

The Roosters won only one of their first eight games of the 2016 season, and won only six in total in the regular season; and lost 18 games. This was not only the first time they missed the finals under Coach Robinson, but it was also the only time they missed the finals under Robinson's tenure between 2013 and 2026.

In the finals, the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks won their first-ever premiership 50 years after they entered the competition in 1967. They defeated the Melbourne Storm 14-12.

Answer: Preliminary Final - Lost to the Cowboys

The Roosters finished second on the ladder with a 17-7 regular season (Minor Premiers Melbourne went 20-4). The Roosters won their qualifying final against third-placed Brisbane Broncos 24-22, earning them passage straight to the week 3 Preliminary Finals.

However, they lost their preliminary final in an upset to the eighth-placed North Queensland Cowboys, who had beaten Cronulla-Sutherland 15-14 and Parramatta Eels 24-16 to reach Week 3. However, the Cowboys lost the Grand Final to the all-conquering Melbourne Storm 34-6.

Answer: Cooper Cronk

In the period 2010-2020, the Melbourne Storm were the dominant NRL team, appearing in six Grand Finals; the Roosters had the second most appearances, with four. Melbourne's success at this time was due in part to the "Big Three": Cameron Smith, Billy Slater, and Cooper Cronk. Cronk, in 2017, announced that that season would be his last as he was moving to Sydney to be with his fiancée. It was assumed he was going to retire as there was no mention of a club transfer at this stage. The Roosters snapped him up, and as a scheming halfback, Cronk played a major role in the Roosters returning to win the Minor premiership (18-6) on points difference over Melbourne Storm (18-6).

In the finals, all other teams were defeated, leaving the Roosters and the Storm to fight out the Grand Final. The problem was Cronk had a 15 cm (6 in) break in his scapula from the Preliminary Final against South Sydney. The severity of this injury was kept from the public. Cronk received painkilling injections on the day but, if he tackled, he risked more serious damage. Normally a team's attack is based around the halfback organising one half of the field and the five-eighth organising the other. Cronk was also the Roosters' main tactical kicker. He could no longer kick. The Roosters badly wanted his on-field leadership and tactical ability, so they devised a plan where five-eighth Luke Keary would play in attack on both sides of the field with help from fullback James Tedesco. Cronk would be a decoy but still be the chief play caller. Cronk played 78 minutes with zero runs and zero kicks, but his game management and on-field leadership were superb and were a major factor in the Roosters' 21-6 win and first premiership since 2013.

Answer: They won back to back premierships

In 2019, the Roosters and Storm once again dominated the regular season. This time, the Storm were the Minor Premiers (20-4), and the Roosters were second (17 -7). When the two teams met during the season, the Roosters won by a point (21-20) in Round 6, and the Storm won in Round 15 (14-12). However, Melbourne lost their qualifying final to Canberra 12-10, meaning there could be no Grand Final replay between the two clubs. They met in the Preliminary Final, where the Roosters grafted a 14-6 win, eliminating the Storm.

The Roosters defeated Canberra Raiders 14-8 in the Grand Final, making the Roosters the first club in the NRL era to win back-to-back premierships. The last team to win the double was the Brisbane Broncos in 1992 and 1993, five years before the formation of the NRL.

Answer: First time in four seasons they did not make the Preliminary Final

In a COVID-shortened season of 20 games, Penrith, after a slow start, finished fourth at the end of the regular season (14-6) (Penrith only lost one game to be Minor Premiers; Melbourne finished second (14-6). However, the Roosters lost both their qualifying final to Penrith 29-28, and then their semi-final to Canberra Raiders (22-18) to miss the Preliminary Final for the first time in four seasons. Melbourne defeated Penrith 26-20 to win their sixth Grand Final and fourth premiership (they were stripped of their 2007 and 2009 titles for salary cap breaches).

Answer: Manly Warringah crushed them in a semifinal 42 -6

Fifth-placed Roosters (16-8) played eighth-placed Gold Coast Titans (10-14) in their Qualifying Final, and the Roosters scraped home 25-24. However, they were crushed 42-6 by Manly in the Semi-final, ending their season. Penrith defeated third-placed South Sydney 14-12 in the Grand Final.

Answer: South Sydney

In 2022, the Roosters finished sixth on the regular season table with a 15-9 record. They had to work hard to make the finals, having to win their last eight games to reach the post-season, including a ten-point win over the rival neighbours South Sydney (26-16) in the last regular season match. However, as South Sydney finished seventh, the two teams were destined to meet in a Qualifying Final a week later. Souths turned the tables and eliminated the Roosters in a Qualifying Final 30-14.

Penrith Panthers won successive premierships with a 28-14 win over Parramatta Eels.

Answer: Melbourne Storm

As was the case in 2022, the Roosters finished outside the top four. Their seventh-place finish meant they had to win four in a row to win the premiership. They managed to defeat the sixth-placed Cronulla Sharks 13-12 in a Qualifying Final, which meant they met third-placed Melbourne Storm, who had lost 26-0 to Brisbane in their Qualifying Final.

With two minutes remaining, it looked like the Roosters were going to defeat the Storm by an identical margin, 13-12. However, Storm winger William Warbrick scored a try in the corner. With a successful conversion to make it 18-13, the Storm had wound down the clock, so there was no time for the Roosters to have one last attacking raid. The Roosters were eliminated. The Storm were eliminated 38-4 the following week by Penrith, who went on to beat Brisbane 26-22 in what was considered to be the best Grand Final since the Cowboys defeated the Broncos in the 2015 premiership decider.

Answer: Lost Premininary Final to Melbourne Storm

Losing their Qualifying Final to eventual premiers Penrith, 30-10, the Roosters had to defeat Manly Warringah Sea Eagles in week 2 to progress. They did this convincingly, eliminating them 40-16. This drew them into the Preliminary Final against bitter rivals Melbourne, who subsequently thrashed them 48-18. Melbourne progressed to the Grand Final and lost to Penrith 14-6. It was the fourth straight premiership for the Penrith Panthers.

Answer: Both occurred

There were a lot of personnel changes after the 2024 season: Joseph Suaalii and Joseph Manu both joined Rugby Union; Jared Waerea-Hargreaves and Luke Keary joined the Super League; Sitili Tupouniua joined the Canterbury Bulldogs and Terrell May joined the Wests Tigers; Michael Jennings and Dylan Napa both retired. Conversely, Mark Nawaqanitawase came over from rugby union and was an instant success, being the highest try scorer in the regular season with 24. Also, James Tedesco won the Dally M Medal for Player of the Year for the second time, having previously won in 2019. Both these players helped the Roosters reach the top eight, which they did in the last week of the regular season by winning five of their last six matches. However, they lost in week one of the finals, losing 20-10 to Cronulla.

The Brisbane Broncos won their seventh premiership and first in 19 years, they did it the hard way, being at least 10 points down in each of their finals matches.

Answer: Daly Cherry-Evans

The signing of Daly Cherry-Evans by the Roosters for the 2026 season was controversial. At 36, many thought he should have retired and be a one-club veteran. However, Cherry-Evans, who won his only premiership with Manly Warringah in his rookie season in 2011, was keen for another before he retired and reasoned he would have more chance with the Roosters than Manly. Coach Robinson wanted him to help protege Sam Walker in the halves, which would free up fullback James Tedesco to play his natural running game. It was a masterstroke. By Round 24, the Roosters were in first place, but then Sam Walker badly injured his leg, and they lost their last three regular season games to finish fourth. This still gave them two shots in the playoffs, which they needed as Walker was still injured. They lost their in the first play=off game to Minor Premiers Penrith Panthers 19-12, forcing them to play Week 2 against fifth-placed Cronulla-Sutherland, who had dispatched the North Queensland Cowboys the previous week. However, Walker returned from injury earlier than expected, and they duly thrashed the Sharks 46-10. They drew third-placed Dolphins in the Preliminary Final. The Roosters shot out to a 16-0 lead, weathered a fightback by the Dolphins, but ultimately scored 7 tries to 5, making the final score 36-20.

Their Grand Final opponent was Newcastle Knights, who had finished in seventh spot, but who had grafted three away wins in the playoffs to be within one win of their first premiership since 2001. Newcastle, a one-club city, got behind their team and had most of the crowd on their side on Grand Final game day. They shot out to a 12-0 lead after 31 minutes, but the Roosters gained momentum, and a try by Mark Nawaqanitawase, which was converted, gave the Knights a 12-6 half-time lead.

In the second half, the Roosters attacked relentlessly, gaining most of the possession, and the Knights defended their tryline resolutely, but the inevitable happened with Billy Smith going over in the 48th minute and Nawaqanitawase going in for this second in the 16th. Scores were 18-12 at the sixtieth minute. In the 70th minute, Cherry-Evans potted a field goal to give the Roosters a seven-point buffer, and ultimately the win. Newcastle were able to pull one back in the 77th minute with a try to Greg Marzhew, which was converted, but time had run out and, fittingly, it was Cherry-Evans that had the ball when the full-time hooter sounded. The Roosters had won their fourth premiership under Trent Robinson.

Answer: Grand Final runner-up

Trent Robertson won four premierships in his first fourteen years coaching the Sydney Roosters. During this period, this was matched only by Ivan Cleary, who won in four consecutive years 2021 to 2024. However, Robinson did not lose a Grand Final with the Roosters in his first 14 years.

He was Dally M Coach of the Year in his rookie year when they won the premiership in 2013. However, his tactical genius as coach was best seen in 2018, when he crafted a Grand Final win against all odds when his chief playmaker, Cooper Cronk, was injured; and again in 2026, when he lured an aging Daly Cherry-Evans to the club and built a premiership-winning team around Cherry-Evans and Sam Walker being the halves and chief playmakers.