Jared Waerea-Hargreaves stole the headlines, highlights and a lowlight or two as well in his record-breaking 307th Roosters appearance.
But in the fine print of their favourite madman’s milestone match, the Tricolours enhanced their premiership credentials in a 42-12 demolition of the Dragons.
Long before the score blew out, it was the Dragons’ 46 tackles inside their opposition’s 20-metre zone by the 50th minute that told the tale for both sides.
St George Illawarra, themselves boasting finals claims before kick-off, rarely threatened and regularly drove coach Shane Flanagan to obvious frustration in the coach’s box.
Plenty of those tackles pressing the Roosters’ tryline came with a one-man advantage, Waerea-Hargreaves naturally and somewhat poetically the man sin-binned for a high tackle on Max Feagai.
By half-time the Red V had dominated everywhere but on the scoreboard. And yet the Roosters’ 14-6 advantage somehow flattered the visitors, such was their impotence when pushing for points against a 12-man defence.
The JWH experience included a bloodied bonce that required six stitches and belting anything that entered his orbit. That included Feagai with a shot to the head in the 16th minute.
The Roosters faithful alongside the tunnel answered him with a standing ovation all the way to the bin.
Down to 12, Dom Young didn’t help the Tricolours by turning a seven-tackle restart into a bone-headed obstruction penalty.
The Dragons in turn refused to help themselves either though, throwing away attacking chances with simple errors before Young redeemed himself by crossing in the corner.
Dom Young scores for the Roosters.Credit: Getty Images
Not until Zac Lomax flew for a Ben Hunt bomb did the Dragons truly look like converting, though a desperate Daniel Tupou try-saver denied Fegai from opening the Red V account.
When they did score from the next set, Jacob Liddle’s dive over from dummy-half did it in the simplest way possible.
Hunt’s boot threatened to provide more points to start the second half before a left-edge shift finally sent Christian Tuipulotu over. Victor Radley did his utmost to hammer Tuipulotu into touch, but only succeeding in knocking himself out of the game with his desperate head-first tackle.
The Roosters answered in rapid fashion, Luke Keary turning Lindsay Collins back inside from close-range for breathing room and a 20-12 lead.
From there, the NRL’s most prolific attack went to work on meeting their 30-points a game average. Sam Walker laid on a lovely grubber under pressure for Angus Crichton to score.
Collins swooped onto a loose Dragons ball, sending James Tedesco on a 60-metre jaunt to the line before Tupou and Sitili Tupouniua joined him on the scoresheet late.
Tupouniua’s try made for 102 Roosters points against the Dragons this season after their 60-18 Anzac Day thrashing.
But rookie Ethan King, who saw game time with seven minutes left in the match, summed up the Tricolours’ day as well as anyone.
After his uncle, Roosters assistant and ex-Origin star Matt presented his debut jersey, King’s first involvement was a scrambling defensive play to deny Tyrell Sloan a late consolation try from a kick.
Like the rest of the Roosters on Sunday, it wasn’t the points they scored, but the points they shut out, that impressed most.