ROOSTERS fullback Anthony Minichiello sought the opinions of retired champion Andrew Johns and former teammate Michael Crocker as reassurance in his comeback from the bulging disc in his neck that threatened to cut short his career.

The former Australian and NSW representative makes a timely return from 11 weeks on the sidelines in Friday night's battle for fourth spot against the Dragons at the Sydney Football Stadium. He has been very cautious in his comeback, having also battled back injuries in the past three seasons after missing very little football early in his career.

"He's certainly not cured," club doctor John Orchard said last night. "Whether it is something he has for the rest of his career is too difficult to tell at this stage. He's spoken to Mick Crocker, who had a bulging disc in 2004 but hasn't been troubled since. And he's spoken to Andrew Johns, who had to retire because of the recurrence of his last year. We're hoping he goes down the road of Mick Crocker and not 'Joey'."

Minichiello made a successful comeback for feeder team Newtown when he played 50 minutes in the NSW Cup on Saturday. A shoulder injury to Amos Roberts has given Roosters coach Brad Fittler the perfect excuse to select Minichiello.

"He provides us with something we've missed a lot," said Fittler, whose team has lost five of its past eight matches and must beat the Dragons to secure a home final. "He's a high-quality player. He's just got that spark and ability to turn half chances into something. We haven't had that. We've lacked that punch from our own end."

The mind games have already started from the Dragons camp with prop Jason Ryles declaring the Roosters under more pressure.

"It's certainly a good game heading into the semis," Ryles said. "They've got a lot of pressure on them to finish in fourth spot. It's another game where we will go in as underdogs, and that's just the way we like it."

Premiers Melbourne - still smarting from their shock loss to Newcastle - have listed NSW back-rower Ryan Hoffman to return from an ankle injury against South Sydney at Olympic Park on Sunday night. And the Bulldogs have received a boost ahead of their match against the Raiders with promising centre Jamal Idris agreeing to a two-year extension until the end of 2011.

¡ The NRL is claiming a victory over the success of its under-20 competition, labelling it "the blueprint for success against rival codes" despite a drain of players to French rugby union and the UK. The competition's team of the year, named yesterday, features 10 players with a combined total of 72 first-grade matches.

Team of the year: Lachlan Coote (Penrith), Jharal Yow Yeh (Broncos), Justin Carney (Raiders), Tony Williams (Eels), Kevin Gordon (Titans), Ben Barba (Bulldogs), Chris Sandow (Rabbitohs), Russell Packer (Warriors), Masada Iosefa (Panthers), John Kite (Bulldogs), Joel Thompson (Raiders), Daniel Harrison (Bulldogs), Shaun Fensom (Raiders). Interchange: Ben Hunt (Broncos), Matt Mundine (Dragons), Jordan Rapana (Titans), Ben Matulino (Warriors).