Trent Robinson has responded to criticism over the Roosters' decision to sign Brandon Smith, claiming it is "unfair" to place the side's struggles on one player's shoulders.
After a horror performance against the Panthers in Round 11, the club are seemingly in real turmoil for the first time in years, with issues being raised over Robinson's tactics and the recruitment decisions.
Braith Anasta publicly questioned the acquisition of both Smith and Matt Lodge, while concerns over the long-term direction for Sam Walker have also been at the forefront in recent weeks after the young playmaker was dropped to NSW Cup.
Smith was signed to Bondi on a lucrative deal as the club's long-term hooker, but found himself on the bench last Friday night after struggling to perform in the starting role.
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But speaking to the media on Thursday morning, Robinson said it was up to the coaching staff to get the best out of the Kiwi star in his time on the field.
“I think it’s unfair," the three-time premiership-winning coach said.
"The commentary is normal, to analyse the team and the team’s performance is normal... but to put it on individual guys, that’s more on me to get the collective going and it always takes a little bit of time.
"This is not our first dance when it comes to spine players coming in and not hitting the ground running at the start of the year.
"As long as you see the application and the want at training, through extra time post-training… that’s on me to make sure that all players understand what we want."
Will Brandon Smith change positions for Roosters?
After criticism of Smith's performances in the No.9 jumper for the Tricolours, many have pushed for him to move to lock-forward or permanently shift to the bench utility role.
But with the club allowing Sam Verrills to move on at the end of 2022 and the only other recognised hooker on their books being Broncos discard Jake Turpin, the belief is that the Roosters will persist with Smith in the role.
Robinson pointed out Smith's form at Melbourne as a dummy-half two years ago and admitted he needed to get the balance right to get the best out of his star recruit.
“He was hooker of the year in 2021 – he played a lot of hooker in that year," Robinson said.
"He has played a lot of hooker over his career and we signed him as one, so that’s up to us to accelerate the skills and also our system... we will get there.
“He’s obviously played consistently 50-60 minutes over the course of his career, and us getting towards 80 minutes could be a goal, but that’s not the goal at the moment – it’s how we maximise those 50-60 minutes.
"Some of that is starting on the bench and some of it is being replaced in the middle of the game and trying to nail that consistently is what we’ve got to do over the next month."
Who is replacing Joey Manu for Roosters?
With the absence of Joey Manu this weekend due to an ankle injury and the aforementioned Walker also sidelined, the Roosters have called up Drew Hutchison to fill the vacant role at halfback against the Dragons on Friday night.
Robinson has plenty of faith in the experienced Illawarra junior to come in and steer the ship against his former side.
“Drew has been in our system for a long time, so that’s the positive," the coach said.
"He knows our footy as well as anyone and has played lots of position, but he is a half. There have been some changes, that’s not ideal, but it is with guys who have constantly been playing in our team – that’s the positive side.
“He’s an experienced player now, I think he is 28, and he is a half – that’s his original position. He has kicked a lot in his career, obviously a left-footer, and that’s been a slight benefit was that he was able to go back and play that last week and played well.
"He’s a quality teammate, so the boys are looking forward [to playing with him]."
