Sydney Roosters 2026 season preview
2025 recap
The Roosters squeezed into the top eight in 2025, which is either a big success or a disappointment depending on how you look at it.
Given that they lost the likes of Luke Keary and Jared Waerea-Hargreaves before the season started, their relatively inexperienced team did well to make Finals.
On the other hand, top eight is a bare minimum for the Chooks, and a 20-10 loss in week one of the Finals to Cronulla was a sad way to end their year.
2025 position: 8th (Eliminated in week one of Finals)
Key signings
Reece Robson (North Queensland Cowboys), Cody Ramsey (St George Illawarra Dragons), Daly Cherry-Evans (Manly Sea Eagles), Tommy Talau (Manly Sea Eagles)
Key departures
Chad Townsend (Retired), Ethan Roberts (Wests Tigers), Sandon Smith (Newcastle Knights), Zach Dockar-Clay (Manly Sea Eagles), Xavier Va’a (York Knights)
Players to watch
The arrival of Daly Cherry-Evans fascinates me. On one hand, a player who’s played over 350 NRL games and achieved everything there is to achieve in the game looks a great signing. On the other, I wonder if his signing could stall Sam Walker’s progress at halfback. Walker’s likely to shift to number six this year but he’d be the starting seven in most NRL sides, so I’m intrigued to see how the two of them link up.
Reece Robson will be the Roosters’ new hooker after six seasons with the Cowboys. The 27-year-old has also established himself in the New South Wales team over the past couple of years, and with respect to the players who filled in last year, he should be the replacement they’ve been looking for since Jake Friend’s retirement.
Young gun
Although he’s still only 20, this could be a make-or-break year for De La Salle Va’a. The towering prop made his debut back in 2024, then made just one further appearance in 2025. He’s got stiff competition in the forwards, but if he doesn’t get more game time this year, I wouldn’t be surprised to see him try his luck elsewhere.
Our prediction – 5th
I think the Roosters will improve this year (and they were pretty good last year). The signing of DCE is a bit of a gamble, but I can see it paying off, while the young players who made breakthroughs last year like Robert Toia should continue to go from strength to strength.
