Crocker: Manly toughest of all time By Tony Webeck, Chief Queensland Correspondent NRL Despite the suggestion of disunity off the field, Manly always present a united front in the field of battle. Despite the suggestion of disunity off the field, Manly always present a united front in the field of battle. Former Rabbitohs hard-man Michael Crocker has urged the current batch of young Bunnies to embrace the magnitude of Friday nights assignment against ladder leaders Manly, labelling the Sea Eagles the mentally toughest team of all time. The clash of 1 v 2 at the famed Sydney Cricket Ground will evoke memories of the brutal 1970 Grand Final between these two teams that is best remembered for South Sydney skipper John Sattler playing on with a broken jaw and will give the 2014 Rabbitohs a chance to rubber-stamp their premiership credentials. Renowned as a fierce competitor whether turning out for the Roosters, Storm, Rabbitohs, Queensland or Australia, Crocker was credited for changing the momentum of the 2007 Grand Final with a crunching hit on Sea Eagles fullback Brett Stewart that forced the Manly No.1 from the field but insists no other teams in the modern era come close to Manlys mental toughness. Master coach Wayne Bennett said in the wake of Newcastles 50-10 loss last Sunday that the Rabbitohs were a predictable football team but Crocker says that the greatest test against Manly comes between the ears. Theyre a proper football team and every one of their players has got a really good football brain. Theyre the most mentally resilient and mentally tough team in the comp I think, probably of all time, Crocker told NRL. Theyve played with each other for a long time, they play for each other and I think thats shown with all the dramas off-field that they still come out and play good football. A lot of their group, they want to stay together forever and that just shows how tight they are and that tightness helps them to win footy games. Manly are the type of team that can win a game in the first 15 minutes if theyre red hot and they can win it in the 80th minute if they need to. They just know how to win and win big games. Thats something that this [Rabbitohs] team has been learning a lot over the last couple of years especially and its definitely going to be a good test for them on Friday night. The Sea Eagles broke the hearts of South Sydney fans chasing an elusive 42-year premiership dream in last years Preliminary Final when they came from 14-0 down to win 30-20 and are similarly well-placed to stand in their way this year. In addition to Friday nights blockbuster, South Sydneys run to the finals consists of games against Brisbane, North Queensland, Canterbury and the Roosters but rather than being intimidated by a tough run in, Crocker says they should embrace the opportunity to assert themselves against fellow premiership aspirants. And with just seven wins from their past 20 encounters against Manly and having exited the finals at the hands of the Sea Eagles twice in the three occasions they have qualified since 1989, its a mental battle the Rabbitohs would be well served to win.
Posted on: Tue, 05 Aug 2014 03:44:03 +0000
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