Why Cooper Cronk brushed Melbourne Storm semi-final for All Blacks World Cup clash
For so long Cooper Cronk has been the NRL’s symbol of the perfect planner, so his decision to watch the All Blacks in the World Cup over Melbourne’s semi-final came as a shock to teammate Luke Keary.
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Last Saturday night Luke Keary texted Cooper Cronk to see what his Sydney Roosters halves partner made of Melbourne’s demolition job on Parramatta.
The reply caught him off guard.
”I’m watching the rugby,” Cronk replied.
It would surprise many that Cronk, widely lauded for his painstakingly precise approach to just about every element of the game, was more interested in the All Blacks’ Rugby World Cup win over South Africa than his own NRL team’s preliminary final opponent.
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But maybe, just maybe, knowing when to switch off is part of his secret, a key ingredient in the winning formula that’s kept league’s perpetual winner at the peak of his game for so long.
“He’s not your typical (player), he doesn’t watch too much footy or anything like that,” Keary said.
“We don’t speak about it much at all. In here, he’s very thorough and diligent. But away from it, he’s just a normal dude.
“We’re very good friends. We don’t catch up about footy but. Coffees, babies — I went to his kid’s birthday.”
Turns out work-life balance exists in rugby league too, even for a retiring legend readying to play potentially his final game, against the club he symbolised for so long.
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That’s one valuable lesson Keary will take from Cronk, who has been grooming his partner in crime as lead playmaker once he is gone.
“It’s just kind of a natural progression,” Keary said.
“He probably thought about how he was going to do it but I didn’t really have to think about it too much. You just kind of do what he says and add your little bit extra on top.
“Even the last-tackle stuff, something simple like that, he’s let me kind of take over, especially this year, just to progress my game.”
Key to the transition is that the pair have forged a strong off-field friendship since joining forces 18 months ago.
That, and a willingness to adapt their respective games around each other.
The result? A halves combination even Storm five-eighth Cameron Munster concedes is the best in the competition.
“You learn each other’s tendencies and how each other plays,” Keary said.
“You’ve got to give a little and take a little to accommodate the other person. He’s been awesome at that.
“I feel like he’s had to change his style more than we’ve had to change our style for him.
“I’m not sure what he was like in Melbourne but he’s one of the most selfless people I’ve played with.
“There’s no ego in it, he doesn’t care if he’s the man in the spotlight or the bloke who takes a backward step.
“Once he’s done and we sit down and reflect on it, I’ll realise just how much of an influence he’s had.”
The Roosters say it’s possible Cronk could yet return to the club in some capacity, a prospect Keary would find “invaluable”.
But they’ll face stiff competition from the Storm, who are reportedly pursuing the former Queensland and Australian halfback for a consultancy role.
So too at the SCG on Saturday, when a 2018 grand-final rematch that’s arrived a week early will decide if the Chooks’ quest for back-to-back titles continues and Cronk plays one last time.
Keary said there’d be no midweek revisiting last year’s decider given coach Trent Robinson’s philosophy of constant evolution.
“You can’t recreate what you feel, you can’t emulate what you’ve done, and you don’t want to try and do it like you’ve done it before,” he said.
“You want to just make your own path.”
Originally published as Why Cooper Cronk brushed Melbourne Storm semi-final for All Blacks World Cup clash