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AAP
AAP
Jacob Shteyman

Nothing Strange about Jasmin's star turn under dad

Sydney Roosters star Jasmin Strange comes up against her former team Newcastle on Sunday. (Darren Pateman/AAP PHOTOS)

After stepping out of her dad's shadow Jasmin Strange shined.

And now that she's back under John Strange's tutelage at the Sydney Roosters, she knows she's more than just "the coach's daughter".

Winning back-to-back titles with two different clubs would go some way to proving that.

Strange burst onto the scene as a teenager with the Roosters in 2022, but injuries limited her to just one senior appearance with the club before she moved to Newcastle.

Lining up against the club she won the NRLW premiership with in 2023 in a second successive semi-final on Sunday, the 21-year-old feels her father's guidance has made her an even better player.

"I think that I went to the Knights just to take my opportunity to not be the coach's daughter," she told AAP. 

It would've been easy to stay at the all-conquering Knights, who won all but one game last season on the road to a second straight title and the record-longest winning streak in the competition.

But despite her success, Strange felt she had more to give.

"That was a really good opportunity for me, but I definitely felt like my game last year struggled," she said. 

"So coming back, I know that what my dad offers as a coach, and I was really keen to be under him again."

Defensively, she has gone to another level since shifting into the centres at the Roosters.

"I definitely think that my game's grown a lot this season," she said. 

"I think that playing centre is better suited for me, especially in defence, where I get to solve things myself and make defensive decisions. I think I was trying to do a lot of that from the wing last year." 

The stats back her up.

Strange has improved her defensive efficiency this season, missing just 13 per cent of her tackles compared to 22 per cent last year. 

"I just had a really frustrating year," she conceded.

"I wasn't enjoying actual footy last year. I think that coming here now, every single person in our team has a role, instead of relying on just one person and everyone else doing their job."

Strange is glad to have her father's support, even though she never lost it at Newcastle despite scoring a try against his team in a 20-4 defeat.

"I think dad was secretly happy for me when I scored but not happy for his team, obviously," she said. 

"But yeah no, there was no rivalry there. Dad's just happy that I'm doing well. He wanted his team to do well and me to do well."

The Stranges became the first father-son-daughter trio to play or coach in the NRL and NRLW when Jasmin's little brother Ethan debuted for the Canberra Raiders last season.

The strapping five-eighth had a breakout year in 2024, making 21 appearances as he established himself as the next star to come out of the Strange stable.

"I'm genuinely so happy for him," Jasmin said.

"He's just killing it, so I'm just proud of him."

Having made her senior representative debut with the Maori All-Stars, it won't be long before international coaches come knocking.

Strange qualifies for the Australian, New Zealand and English national teams through her parents, but for now she's fully focused on winning another NRLW title.

"I'm also carrying a few niggles so I wouldn't be too stressed if I just see this thing out and focus on that," she said.

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