Roosters premiership winner eyeing Suaalii reunion at Waratahs with Cheika

He’s pumped to be reuniting with Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii, but Angus Crichton’s first point of contact will be Michael Cheika when he returns to rugby for the first time in more than a decade.

For all manner of reasons.

In a twist of fate that Crichton views as a blessing, Cheika will rejoin the NSW Waratahs as coach for the 2027 Super Rugby Pacific season after two seasons as a Sydney Roosters assistant.

The globe-trotting Cheika has spent a quarter of a century decorating his rugby CV while working at endless clubs from Padova to Randwick, Leinster to Leicester, Stade Francais and nationally with the Wallabies and Pumas.

Crichton, though, last played the 15-man game at Scot’s College before signing with South Sydney as an 18-year-old back in 2014, when Cheika coached the Tahs to their one and only Super crown.

No wonder then that the 17-time NSW State of Origin stalwart plans on leaning heavily on Cheika during his transition after getting to know the master motivator at the Roosters.

“It’ll be good. He’s a legend of a bloke and he’s a great coach and especially he’s a great rugby coach,” Crichton told AAP.

“Him being over here will definitely be a benefit for me, him understanding a little bit more about league and me being out of the (rugby) game so long.

“He’ll be able to help me adjust back and and learn a bit quicker than I would have without him.”

A former Australian schoolboy representative, Crichton played in the centres before switching to league.

The 30-year-old could form a deadly midfield pairing, at both the Waratahs and potentially the Wallabies, with fellow code-hopping star Suaalii.

“I look forward to that and it excites me and it’ll be great, but if you look too far ahead you’ll fall over,” Crichton said, still with a firm focus on his Roosters duties.

Whatever position he plays, the 2019 NRL premiership winner is relishing the chance to continue working with Cheika.

“The way he is around the boys and the person that he is, he’s such a great character,” Crichton said.

“You see a lot of head coaches get super serious and they sort of lose that fun side of the sport.

“That side of rugby league is such a big part of it, the locker room, the relationships you make and the memories that you have, and he’s such a good energy and just a good bloke to be around, have a joke with, have a laugh with.”

The Waratahs’ latest league recruit is “not at all” surprised to see Cheika returning to rugby.

“He’s pretty much the perfect guy for the job,” he said. “So I had a feeling that they’d probably come looking for him.”

Crichton, who is still recovering from foot surgery three months ago, is contracted to join the Waratahs on November 7, all but ruling out the classy back-rower from the looming Rugby League World Cup.

But he could yet be called on for Australia A’s two-match tour of the USA next month, or for the Wallabies’ spring tour of Europe in November.

“I’m so focused on what’s ahead of me this week and I’m not looking too far ahead yet. I know after the season I’m going to have some solid weeks getting this foot ready for next year,” he said.

“So we’ll figure it out, where I need to be.”