Why the NRLW finals are all about one question

Thu, 10 Sept, 7:45 pm, Final score, Roosters 42, Bulldogs 12

Fri, 11 Sept, 5:40 pm, Final score, Tigers 10, Raiders 22

10 22 →Sat, 12 Sept, 12:00 pm, Final score, Eels 33, Cowboys 28

33 28 →Sat, 12 Sept, 5:10 pm, Final score, Sharks 16, Dragons 8

16 8 →Sun, 13 Sept, 12:00 pm, Final score, Broncos 52, Warriors 18

52 18 →Sun, 13 Sept, 1:45 pm, Final score, Knights 20, Titans 32

20 32 →Fri, 18 Sept, 7:50 pm, Game not started, Tigers versus Raiders

- - →Sat, 19 Sept, 4:05 pm, Game not started, Broncos versus Knights

- - →

Ahead of the NRLW finals, there is only one question to be answered because it is the only one worth asking.

Can anyone in the league stop the Sydney Roosters, who enter the semifinals as undefeated minor premiers after a record-breaking regular season that has been a wonder and a terror to behold?

There have been perfect seasons in the NRLW before, but the last one came when the league had just four teams, and none of them were like this.

The Roosters have already broken the record for most points scored in an NRLW campaign and are equal second for fewest average points conceded.

They have won their past five matches by a combined 200 points to 34 and have three players — Jess Sergis, Jayme Fressard and Brydie Parker — who have scored more than 10 tries at a rate of one per game or better.

Sergis has 16 four-pointers, the second most of any player in a single NRLW season, and both their halves, Tarryn Aiken and Jocelyn Kelleher, have broken the old record for most try assists in a season, with Aiken recording 17 in just nine games.

Captain Isabelle Kelly swears there has been little talk of perfection around Bondi way in what could be a case of once bitten, twice shy.

The Roosters also went through 2025's regular season undefeated, but were struck by several key injuries late in the year and ended up losing an epic grand final to Brisbane.

"It's so weird; it probably wasn't until we won the game the other day that it came up.

"But as a player, I don't reflect on that. I know the girls aren't reflecting on that.

"We didn't even talk about the minor premiership, let alone being undefeated.

"Finals footy is a different beast. You can go all the way through, build consistency and be undefeated, but we've bowed out twice in the semifinals [in recent years] and had that heartbreak of losing a grand final.

"Everyone steps up. The game goes to a new level."

Every other team that now finds itself at the new level is framed by its suitability to taking down John Strange's winning machine.

Sixth-placed Newcastle ran them closest. They went down 12–10 back in round two and are the only team to hold the Tricolours to fewer than 20 points this season.

The gritty Knights have been through an unusual season; they've made the finals with a losing record and have not beaten another top six team all year, but will face the Roosters should they upset third-placed Brisbane this Saturday.

Lock Kayla Romaniuk believes forging tight bonds is the only way to take down a top side, let alone a team like the Roosters.

"They have strike everywhere, so it's a lot. But staying connected is the best way," she said.

"Those top teams, we can get in an arm wrestle with them, which is good, but sometimes we've lacked a little consistency. But finals is a whole new competition. It's do or die."

Just a week after that tight finish, the Roosters snuck home 22–18 against Canberra in one of the best games of the season and their only other match decided by one score or less.

The fifth-placed Raiders, who open the finals against the Tigers on Friday night in Campbelltown, led 14–4 early in the second half and 18–16 with less than 10 to go courtesy of a controversial try to Fressard.

According to Canberra halfback Zahara Temara, it was the Roosters' poise that got them home more than raw skill or brilliance.

"A bit of their class showed. We were ahead for most of that game, but in those big moments they stood up and showed their experience," Temara said.

"That's something I've started to learn and see, because we do have some inexperience in our team, how much those pressurised moments matter."

The likeliest challenger is Gold Coast, which has put together a season with its own share of blinding light.

After going down 34–10 to the Roosters in round one, the Titans have ripped off a 10-match winning streak of their own.

They scored the biggest win of the season in a 58–0 destruction of fourth-placed Wests Tigers just two weeks ago and enter the play-offs having downed four semifinal teams in a row.

Karyn Murphy's side is battle-hardened and unrecognisable from the side that was so off the pace in the season opener, a game skipper Georgia Hale said they might revisit during their week off just to see how far they have come.

"We were still finding our combinations. We knew what we wanted to eventually get to and the steps to take to get there," Hale said.

"I think any team can be beaten in this competition. Every team has their cracks. Every team has a little bit of weakness in them.

"When you go about your business, when you buy into it and back it and believe in it, your process can outdo anyone."

Hale's belief is powerful, and in Jaime Chapman, Teagan Levi and Evania Isa'ako, the Titans will like their chances in a firefight, but the great danger is the Roosters might still have gears to find.

Their regular-season finale against Canterbury was marred by a flat first half and they trailed the Bulldogs 12–10 at the break.

The second stanza was a procession as the Tricolours ran in 30 unanswered points, but Kelly believes it is the lows and not the highs that are driving her team to what could be the most dominant season in NRLW history.

"There's games we weren't at our best. Bulldogs stood out, Raiders stood out, there's a few games at the start of the season where we knew we weren't up to our standards," Kelly said.

"I think, going into the back end, we started to find little areas of our game that needed to be improved."