If it’s an emotional lift the Canberra Raiders need to snap out of their poor NRL form, they might well have the perfect one in the shape of returning legend Jarrod Croker.
Reeling from a 53-12 humiliation at the hands of Penrith last Friday, coach Ricky Stuart has turned to the club’s 292-game veteran for his first appearance since he injured his right shoulder in round nine last year.
That was Croker’s only first-grade game of 2022 and he has toiled away in NSW Cup this season before being recalled to replace struggling centre Harley Smith-Shields.
Croker’s inclusion will be a popular one among Raider fans as he closes in on becoming just the second player in club history to reach the 300-game milestone.
Ahead of their trip to Brisbane to face the Broncos on Saturday night, Canberra halfback Jamal Fogarty said the playing group was buzzing for Croker’s return.
“He’s had a tough couple of years, battling injuries,” Fogarty said.
“To see him coming out the other end just makes everyone so cheerful around the club and everyone’s smiling.
“Everyone loves Toots (Croker), more importantly as a person first, he’s one of the most humble people for someone that’s done so much for this club.
“I don’t think his blood pressure gets over 80, he’s very calm and composed. Us edges, we need that senior voice with the calmness when it’s a bit chaotic.
“We all know what Toots can do on his day, and everyone’s just generally excited.”
Croker’s experience could prove crucial, with Canberra in recent weeks rolling out a backline all aged 23 or under before the return of 33-year-old winger Jordan Rapana last time out.
“He’s definitely going to bring calmness to the chaos and that’s what we need,” Fogarty said.
“When things get a little bit heated and we get a bit fatigued, people want to try and solve things by ourselves.
“Having Toots in the team with his calmness, he’s going to reinforce making sure that we’re doing things together.”
Croker will share the captaincy role with Elliott Whitehead.
“It’ll just be good to have Toots helping me lead the team around,” Whitehead said.
“He’s very calm, I’m a bit over the top sometimes.
“We are going through a tough patch at the moment, but we’ve been in this situation before in the last couple of years and we’ve found a way out of it.”
By Alex Mitchell in Canberra
