Veteran Sydney Roosters coach Brian Smith has warned players that the survival of NRL clubs is more important than handing out massive pay rises to the game's big names.

Smith said he understood the need for the best players to be rewarded accordingly, but admitted the prospect of teams going out of business filled him with fear, and would do more damage to the sport than losing stars to other codes.

"The underlying thing for footy players is if there is an opportunity to earn more money then I don't think too many people will deny them that," Smith said.

"But at the same time, the league have the problem that nobody is going to earn anything if the competition crashes.

"In the past, clubs have gone under and people have not been paid and personally that makes me sick and I hate the idea of that happening again."

Parramatta fullback Jarryd Hayne, who is one of the game's highest-paid players, warned the NRL this week that he and others will walk away from the code unless the salary cap is increased.

But Smith said players cannot expect to earn the large sums taken home by European soccer stars and in the NBA and NFL.

"We are a tiny little country compared to Europe and America and we tend to make comparisons to what Premier League soccer players are earning," Smith said.

"And then we start making comparisons with people who work in different industries altogether and it is just unfair and ridiculous.

"I heard someone talking on the radio recently about how difficult it is to get sponsorship or third-party agreements for players at any great level in this country because it is such a small market.

"I am really keen to get the balance right of protecting the clubs and getting the boys at the top what they can, but it has to be a fine balance."

Smith also revealed that bad boy hooker Jake Friend, sacked by the Roosters last December after being arrested for a drunken altercation with a taxi driver, could be in line for a return to first grade against North Queensland on Monday.

It was one of three alcohol-related incidents Friend was caught up in last year, but despite axing the 20-year-old Queenslander, the Roosters allowed him to train with the club's lower grade teams.

And as part of his rehabilitation under the club's guidance, he also worked in a Sydney cafe and was cleared to make a return to the NRL by chief executive David Gallop earlier this year.

"He churned out a lot of minutes in the Toyota Cup game last week and is in pretty good shape," Smith said.

"It will depend on how our rep players come back but it is not beyond possibility that he might pay some part on Monday."

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