Richie Barnett: Attacking spark can burn the Dragons

Dragons will turn the the screw on the Roosters from the outset, keeping them under pressure. Photo / Getty Images

Opinion

Defence wins grand finals, so the saying goes. But I reckon attack might just prove the difference on Sunday.

There is no mystery as to how the Dragons are going to approach the match. They are going to turn the screw on the Roosters from the outset, grind them down, keep them under intolerable pressure and then strike when the mistakes come. It's an approach that has worked well for them for some time. But with their big three playmakers of Todd Carney, Mitchell Pearce and, most importantly, Braith Anasta at lock, this Roosters side has the edge in attack.

I reckon they'll have just enough to get over the line. I'll certainly be wearing my Roosters jersey proudly at my local pub on Sunday.

It's going to be a great day whatever happens. Grand final day always is.

The biggest challenge for the Roosters is dealing with the Dragons' physicality. They play such a draining style of football, pegging you back and making you work so hard the whole time that it is extremely difficult to muster the energy to do anything against them in attack.

But this Roosters side are so dynamic. They probe left and right, looking for weaknesses. If there are any they will find them. Both sides will be extremely motivated but, having come from dead last just last season the Roosters might just have the edge there too.

Anasta recounted a story this week about how a fan asked him to sign a wooden spoon at the end of the last season.

Those sorts of things live with you. You don't forget them.

Now they are just one match away from completing a truly remarkable turnaround, the Roosters who went through that horror show last season will be supremely motivated.

The way clubs can reverse their fortunes so rapidly is one of the most incredible things about the modern era. I never experienced it as a player.

At the Sharks it was just a grind. Everything was hard, all the time. When I went to the Roosters we were pretty steady, maybe a bit above average, but we never plumbed the depths and had to recover the way the current side has.

The club recruited well, coach Brian Smith has introduced a complete culture transformation and the results have been dramatic. The improvement in the likes of Shaun Kenny-Dowall has been incredible.

The Roosters weren't the only club to turn things around. Don't forget the Warriors. They went from 14th to fifth. That is a superb effort. It just shows how little there really is between all the teams and what can happen when they get their recruiting right.

The Junior Warriors have been another great story this season. I've really enjoyed their matches. The NYC is a great showcase for the game's emerging talent. Coach John Ackland has done a brilliant job taking the Warriors to a grand final in his first season. There is clearly a fine crop of talent coming through.

I've received plenty of comments from fans recently disappointed that the club is letting some of that talent go. The reality is that they have no choice given their financial constraints.

You can't keep everyone. Take the exciting hooker Nafe Seluini. He was the junior player of the year this season but next season he'd still be, at best, the third-ranked hooker at the club. He would be lucky to see much, if any, game time in the NRL.

The NYC is great for players' development but it also puts them in the shop window. If they play well their value goes up. Unless you're the Melbourne Storm, you simply can't pay promising juniors $80-$100 grand. Penrith obviously have some money to spend on that position and Seluini will probably have a much better chance of playing there. It's a good move for both the player and the club.

Don't get me wrong, the Warriors would love to have kept him. They'd love to keep all of their best juniors - but it's just not possible.

The fact that other clubs are recruiting Warriors juniors speaks volumes about the success of the club's development programmes. If anything, it's a huge positive - just as it will be if the Juniors can take out their grand final on Sunday.