Sydney Roosters superstar Cooper Cronk has endorsed Adam O’Brien, the man expected to replace Newcastle coach Nathan Brown at the end of the NRL season.

Roosters assistant O’Brien served an 11-year apprenticeship under Melbourne Storm super coach Craig Bellamy before moving to Sydney this season.

It is understood O’Brien will be unveiled as Newcastle’s coach this week after Brown announced he’d depart the underachieving Knights after four years at the helm.

Cronk has spent a decade working with O’Brien in Melbourne and Sydney and backed the attack specialist to succeed in Newcastle.

“He’s a terrific person and has tremendous relationships with everyone involved in the footy club,” Cronk told NRL360.

“He’s a sponge, his work ethic through the roof, he comes from the Craig Bellamy role in that regard.

“I’ve been in football meetings for the past 10 years with Adam and he’s got an encyclopedia of rugby league information he can fall back on.

“Probably the biggest rap I can give him is the time and effort he puts into improving individual players, whether it’s on the computer screen or out on the track.

“Any player from the number one star to the bottom player on their list, he’s out there for hours after training helping guys improve so come game day they can reach their potential.”