Sydney Roosters playmaker Tarryn Aiken has rejected comparison with Cooper Cronk as she prepares to defy a painful shoulder injury in pursuit of her third NRLW premiership.
Aiken, the Queensland and Jillaroos five-eighth, was a late inclusion for last weekend’s semi-final elimination of back-to-back premiers Newcastle after being told just three weeks earlier that her season was all but over.
Playing with the aid of a painkilling needle and heavy padding on her shoulder, Aiken laid on two tries and kicked a late field goal to seal the 25-16 win as the Roosters advanced to Sunday's decider against Cronulla.
Aiken slots a field goal
“As soon as I did it, I knew mentally that I was going to be back,” Aiken said. “I put the body under a little bit of stress … but I just really wanted to get back out there.
“I mean it’s one more game now, but I just kept telling myself I had two games to get through with the girls and to be honest I didn’t even feel it on the field.”
Like Cronk, who ignored a severe shoulder injury to lead the Roosters to a premiership in 2018 after joining the club from Melbourne, Aiken already has two grand final wins to her name with the Broncos.
Despite missing the final two rounds due to her AC joint injury, Aiken was named in the Rugby League Players Association 2024 ‘Dream Team’ and nominated for the Dally M Halfback of the Year award.
Aiken returned alongside star centre, Jessica Sergis, who came off the bench against the Knights with her knee strapped after being out of action with an MCL injury since Round 3. Sergis ran out as fast as she could, taking a powerful hit up straight away.
Inspirational Roosters captain Isabelle Kelly provided another huge boost for the Roosters premiership hopes after taking the field just seven days after dislocating her elbow during the Roosters round 9 clash against the Eels.
“The past few weeks Jess and I have been doing a lot of running together and it was good having her there to just help me get back on track,” Aiken said.
“Issy has outdone all of us to be honest, she is just so tough and the biggest competitor. She obviously had to play through a bit of pain and just showed us how tough she was.”
Despite beating the Sharks 40-0 four weeks ago, Aiken said the Roosters knew they would face a much tougher opposition on Sunday.
Biddle causing trouble
The Sharks had been unbeaten until their loss to the Roosters and suffered successive defeats against the Broncos and Wests Tigers.
However, they recovered to upset the Broncos, who were minor premiers, in last weekend’s semi-final in Brisbane to earn a place in the grand final against the Roosters.
“I still think we haven’t played our best footy yet," Aiken said. "Obviously, we want to go to another level next week and we are going to have to if we want to win the game.”
Match: Roosters v Sharks
Grand Final -
home Team
Roosters
2nd Position
away Team
Sharks
4th Position
Venue: Accor Stadium, Sydney
