EXCLUSIVE: Phil Gould baffled by Roosters mystery after 'strange' roster reshuffle

Phil Gould has urged the Roosters to start "lowering the expectations" for success, after a number of the club's recruitment targets fell through.

In what looms as Trent Robinson's biggest test since taking over as coach, the Tricolours have lost a litany of high-profile talent and struggled to replace them.

Luke Keary, Jared Waerea-Hargreaves and Joseph Manu were among the marquee exits, while front-rower Terrell May was released in mysterious circumstances.

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On the flip side, the bid to sign David Fifita ended in heartbreak, while the move to bring Ben Hunt to the club also fell through as he returns home to Queensland.

Once known as the league's most notorious big spenders, those times have well and truly gone according to Gould, who has a long history with the Roosters.

"They have been one of our top sides for a long, long time," he said on Wide World of Sports' Six Tackles With Gus.

"They've bought one player. The recruitment has been interesting, because they got in a market for a few players and missed them, which is unlike them.

"They had David Fifita backflip on them, which we just don't see at the Roosters.

"They went out in the market for Dane Gagai and there were some strange things that went on with who they were trying to recruit.

"The thing with Terrell May was strange, I can't get to the bottom of that - he's a great signing for the Tigers and he could play Origin this year. I just didn't understand that."

Robinson will be forced to start the season without both Sam Walker and Brandon Smith, putting a major dent in the Roosters' spine and premiership hopes.

Chad Townsend will fill the halfback void on a short-term basis, but the other vacancies in the top grade will be up for grabs and could land with young players.

Gould believes the time may have come for the Roosters to look towards the future, even if it means failing to push for a title in 2025.

"They do invest heavily in their pathways programs and they have some outstanding young kids coming through," he said.

"I just think as far as where the Roosters are at the moment, they need to transition that.

"Take a breath, take a step back and transition it and make sure that a number of these kids coming through get into NRL and get plenty of experience before they go out and try to buy these marquee players.

"They are all about winning comps and don't like going backwards - but sometimes you have to take a step back to go forwards and there's no doubt they are in a rebuild.

"I still think they have got a lot of classy players, but it's just a matter of lowering the expectations and raising the appreciation for the kids they have got." 

Robert Toia, De La Salle Va'a and Blake Steep are among the young players who will be pushing for a spot in the side for the season opener against the Broncos on March 6.