Jake Friend

A powerfully built hooker, Jake Friend was admired for his endurance and work ethic.

He won three premierships with the Sydney Roosters, two as co-captain, and was twice awarded the Jack Gibson Medal as Player of the Year for the Roosters.

As a Queenslander playing in the Cameron Smith era, it was always going to be hard for him to get a start for the Maroons, even though he played for Australia, in the 2016 Four Nations tournament.

He finally made his Maroons' debut in 2020, aged 30, and helped his state to a shock series win under the coaching of Wayne Bennett.

A Noosa Pirates junior, Friend played in the Queensland Under 17 side and also was chosen for Australian Schoolboys, from Noosa State High, in 2007, for a tour of New Zealand.

In 2011, he represented the Prime Ministers XIII against a Papua New Guinea Prime Minister's XIII in Lae, after a season in which he did not miss a NRL game.

After the disappointment of the 2010 grand final loss to St George Illawarra, Friend experienced the joy of victory in the 2013 grand final against Manly.

He toured Britain with Australia's Four Nations squad in 2016, making his Test debut against Scotland, in Hull.

His leadership on and off the field was invaluable for us, and I thought his performance in Game I was right up there in terms Origin debuts

Wayne Bennett Queensland Maroons coach

Friend played in the Roosters' back-to-back premiership wins in 2018 and 2019, against Melbourne and Canberra respectively. He made his Origin debut in Game I, in Adelaide, in 2020, helping the underdog Maroons to an 18-14 win over New South Wales.

Queensland lost the return game in Sydney, but Friend retained his place for the decider in Brisbane, which the Maroons won 20-14.

Friend had to overcome a number of setbacks in his career, some the result of injury, others of his own making. He showed tremendous resolve and character to emerge as a leader at the Roosters.

Following repeated bouts of concussion, Friend announced his retirement in April, 2021.

He had played 264 NRL matches for the club, since his debut, in 2008. Friend has his own plumbing business.