Sydney Roosters coach Trent Robinson insists the decision to rest Latrell Mitchell was not form-related.
Instead, he says the decision not to play him against Newcastle on Good Friday was solely for the 19-year-old's own development.
Mitchell has not been named in any of the Roosters' grades for the clash, after he was hooked from the field late in their 32-8 loss to Brisbane last Friday night.
The Roosters have gone to lengths this week to claim Mitchell has been rested and not dropped, however Robinson admitted on Thursday he didn't see a big difference between the two.
Regardless though, he said it was a decision made only for Mitchell.
"It's not about form or going back and proving anything," Robinson said.
"He just needs a week off and he will get back into it soon."
Mitchell was one of the Roosters best players in an undefeated opening month for the Sydney club, but his performances have since paled.
He appeared to take a slight leg injury before letting Manly centre Dylan Walker find open space in their loss to the Sea Eagles a fortnight ago, while he made three errors and missed just as many tackles before being taken off against the Broncos.
"It's just part of his development," Robinson said.
"We've had a good discussion about it. He's pretty clear on what he needs to do and so are we.
"So we expect him to take a breath and then get going again."
And Robinson said the centre's response had been impressive.
"He's a 19-year-old guy but he knows his footy and he knows himself really well," he said.
"He's worked hard this week, been really clear on what he needs to do and has got on with the job."
Robinson was particularly critical of his team's performance in last week's loss, which included 52 missed tackles.
He expects his team to make a statement at McDonald Jones Stadium on Friday.
"We're playing Newcastle but we want to improve on what we've done over the past couple of weeks," he said.
"It's a tough place to go, a team that Nathan Brown is developing really well and you can see the attitude they're playing with."
STATS THAT MATTER
* The Roosters have won six of their past seven against Newcastle, all by 16 points or more.
* Newcastle haven't conceded less than three tries in a match since round 25, 2015.
* The Knights have scored 38.9 per cent of their tries through the middle this season - the second highest ratio of all teams behind Brisbane.
Source: Fox Sports Stats
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