Robbo lauds wounded Roosters' courage under fire

Trent Robinson has lauded the courage of his Roosters under fire as James Tedesco now looks to pass HIA protocols in a six-day period after copping a brutal hit from Eels powerhouse Maika Sivo.

In Jake Friend's 250th NRL game the Tricolours rallied under a mountain of early defence in the second half, getting a second wind even when James Tedesco was crunched out of the game.

Just as he has his previous 249 outings, Friend shrugged off a shoulder issue to play out the game, while Daniel Tupou also limped through much of the first half with a corked leg.

Sivo pulled a scary Jonah Lomu impression out of his back pocket when he scored in the 59th minute, trampling over Tedesco just as the Kiwi rugby superstar did to England's Mike Catt at the 1995 World Cup.

Tedesco met a similar fate as he was knocked out of the match but the Roosters still powered away to an impressive 24-10 win.

"He's good," Robinson said of Tedesco after full-time, with the star fullback able to walk from the field after lying prone on the turf for several anxious minutes.

"We were talking about what he could've done and he was actually really well prepared.

"He knew he had to brace, he actually came forward, he knew he had to steel himself for Sivo's physicality close to the line there, and it didn't work.  

"But there's a lot of courage in the way he did that."

The Roosters return to Bankwest next Friday to face the Dragons, with Tedesco to be on light training duties this week as a result of his concussion.

The Tricolours' physios will also be working overtime after a particularly physical encounter, with Robinson paying tribute to Tupou's performance under duress.

An early knock had Robinson ready to sub utility Mitchell Aubusson into the contest, but Tupou pushed through to be one of the Roosters' best performers of the night.

"Toops got a really bad cork on one of the first plays," Robinson said.

"I thought that was an exceptional game from him. The left edge, with Josh Morris and what Toops did throughout the game, he's a special player.

"It didn't look like it was getting any better. He looked like he couldn't walk, but he couldn't move...

"The next 15 minutes he was just getting through it and then the man grew the longer the game went. That's a measure of the character right there."