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Sydney Roosters captain James Tedesco has overcome an injury scare to orchestrate a big win over struggling Canberra in Gosford.
James Tedesco has orchestrated their comeback after an injury scare, but the Sydney Roosters won't leave Gosford unscathed from their 44-16 NRL victory over Canberra.
Heaping more pain on the struggling Raiders, the Roosters fought back from 10-0 down after 28 minutes to romp to a 28-point victory on Saturday that will have consequences for Canberra's crumbling season.
Not for the first time this year, an ambulance was called for the Roosters with Isaac Liu suffering a haematoma to his right eye.
The powerful lock was taken to hospital after he was involved in a sickening head clash with Corey Horsburgh as the Raiders forward scored in the first half.
Liu was taken immediately from the field as his eye swelled to completely shut, needing to be drained at hospital.
It adds to a list of unfortunate injuries in the Roosters squad after Sam Verrills suffered a semi-detached retina and Drew Hutchison continues his recovery from broken ribs and a punctured lung.
"It's been an interesting 12 weeks. I can tell you that," coach Trent Robinson said.
"I'm really proud of the way the guys have handled it and now it's time to take a breath, get some energy back and get ready to go again."
Scares went around the ground soon before Liu was hurt when NSW Origin captain Tedesco pulled up suddenly with a hip pointer injury.
The Roosters fullback was rushed from the ground and needled for the pain before easing concerns by returning to star in the win.
The Blues skipper is in no doubt to play the Origin opener on June 9, with pain management the only issue.
The comeback was sparked soon after Tedesco returned to the field, when Joseph Suaalii became the first 17-year-old to score a try in the NRL since Dale Copley in 2009.
In his second NRL game, the teen showed off his devastating fend and ball-play with a try assist for Sitili Tupouniua's second.
Suaalii's four-pointer half an hour in kick-started a five-try blitz for the Roosters who scored 28 points in 20 minutes, the tri-colours also enjoying a one-man advantage for part of that time.
Prop Ryan James was sin-binned for dropping his knees into Jared Waerea-Hargreaves' head in the 34th minute.
Joey Manu again showed off his athletic ability at five-eighth with a double - his second a stunner where he kicked for himself to score.
The loss comes as the Raiders deal with the fallout of releasing George Williams early from his contract this week.
The Englishman took a swipe at the club on social media, claiming they turned their back on him rather than support him during a tough time.
Amazingly, the post was liked by several of Williams' teammates, exposing a brewing issue within the Canberra club as their season took yet another knock.
Saturday night's loss exacerbated it, with the Raiders having lost seven of their last eight games.
"You could only imagine how disheartened they are (in the sheds). We all are," said coach Ricky Stuart.
