No snub in Cronk omission
THE Kangaroos have denied they’re disrespecting the Kiwis by resting one of their big guns for today’s league test, while senior figures in the New Zealand camp have swatted away questions about the selection shock.
Veteran halfback Cooper Cronk will sit out the Four Nations match in Coventry, leaving Michael Morgan to partner Jonathan Thurston in the Kangaroos halves.
Speaking at the Kangaroos’ hotel in Birmingham yesterday, captain Cameron Smith said resting Cronk had always been the plan.
Asked whether the decision could be seen as disrespectful to the world’s number one ranked rugby league nation, Smith replied: ‘‘Not at all.’’
‘‘We were told before we even left for England that everyone was going to get a rest at some stage,’’ Smith said.
‘‘JT (Thurston) didn’t play last week.
‘‘A lot of the guys that were in our 17 in Perth didn’t play last week, and they’ve all been put back into the team for this game.’’
Smith refused to speculate on the Kiwis’ thoughts, and if the New Zealanders did have an opinion, they weren’t giving it away when three senior figures fronted the media at Coventry’s Ricoh Arena a short time later.
One by one, coach David Kidwell, captain Jesse Bromwich and prop Adam Blair all insisted the Kiwis were only focused on their own preparation.
Blair even claimed he wasn’t aware that his former club teammate wouldn’t be playing at the weekend.
‘‘I haven’t really looked at the (Kangaroos) team,’’ he said.
‘‘This is the first time I’ve heard about Cooper.
‘‘For us, our focus is our focus.’’
Bromwich, however, said he didn’t think the Australians lost any strength by leaving Cronk out.
‘‘They’ve got a pretty handy replacement there in James Maloney,’’ he said.
‘‘He won the (NRL) premier- ship this year and he’s been a really good player over a long time. They’ve got a few good players there to choose from which is tough to come up against.’’
While Bromwich seemed to believe Maloney would get the nod, Kangaroos coach Mal Meninga revealed he would come off the bench and Morgan would start in the number six jersey. GETTY IMAGES
Meninga said leaving Cronk out was more about respect for his own players than disrespect for his opponents.
He was simply giving deserving members of his squad the opportunity to play during the tour, he said. ‘‘(Cronk) has had a big year and played every game. It’s more about resting him and getting him right for the back end of this tour.’’