Mitch Aubusson set for Roosters milestone

Sydney Roosters legend Mitch Aubusson will play his 303rd NRL game next week, set to become the most-capped player at the club.

Coach Trent Robinson confirmed he will play Cronulla.

Saturday’s 42-12 win over Newcastle was his 302nd NRL game, putting Aubusson level with Roosters legend Anthony Minichiello. 

Aubusson is retiring at the end of the season and has been in and out of the side this year, but Robinson said he would be honoured to see him make history against the Sharks. 

“Aubbo will be playing his 303rd game next week. It’s a real honour,” Robinson said.

In a special moment for the 32-year-old, the crowd was cheering ‘Aubo’ as he ran onto the field at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Saturday night.

“The unassuming Aubbo who would rather hide behind the curtain and disappear into retirement, it just shows the value of him. He’s the unassuming hero of our club,” Robinson said of the touching chant.

Saturday’s win marked a special night for Aubusson as well as Luke Keary who played his 150th NRL game and Daniel Tupou, who brought up his 100th try with a double.

Meanwhile, Sonny Bill Williams continued his return to the NRL with a 33-minute performance against the Knights, doubling his time from last week.

Brought on before halftime, Williams immediately got his hands on the ball and created havoc through the middle against soft Knights defence.

He finished with 80 running metres, three offloads, a linebreak assist and 15 tackles.

“He got the two stints either side of halftime and then back on at the end which was a bit of an experiment,” Robinson said.

“I thought his balance of his game was really good. 

“He got his defensive work done, moved well, retreated well and then variation in play, hard carries, offload, combination plays with other forwards, combinations with halves. 

“The combination of those three was very strong so it was good to get him more time there.”