Cust vs Croker at 9

  • We had an issue with background services between march 10th and 15th or there about. This meant the payment services were not linking to automatic upgrades. If you paid for premium membership and are still seeing ads please let me know and the email you used against PayPal and I cam manually verify and upgrade your account.

maxta

First Grader
Premium Member
Ok....neither seem ideal and we all have different opinions on Fainu being available and when, but regardless, is not an option to start 2021.
Thought maybe could Foran play the role....but doubt it for 2 reasons....after checking myself in reality....
1) The hefty workload would only increase risk of a battle weary body always at high injury risk...
2) He is a Top shelf International 5/8, and a proven Star at 5/8.....IF anything would play at 9 in a itility role if needed...
So who gets the starting 9 position, as many have pointed out, Croker seems to be training at dummy half.
Personally I reckon Cust is a fair way the better option and could actually make a (decent) hooker due to his attributes.
Is quite strong and also has above average acceleration and definately likes to sniff around the ball runner...pushing up with the attack which keeps defence on the back foot.
Happy to see Croker on the bench if there are a few injuries, but feel he has under delivered when given prime opportunity.
Whats the thoughts Silvertails ?....hit me hard, but play fair !!
 
just does not seem to be an inclination by the club to go after another recognized 9 so can only mean Cust and Croker as the main contenders of course and still can not see any real advantages not starting with Cust . Croker can still offer some utility value apart from a back up 9 . Not sure if he has prior experience there but Elisiah Taylor with his good step and elusive running and reasonable footy skill level could even make a go of it there if he is bought into the system and eventually too 30 .
 
Crocker should not be in the 17 at all. He simply isn’t a first grade quality player no matter how badly Des or others want him to be.

If we start with him or even have him on the bench I’d be worried. He will never be a mainstay in this team, so cut the cord now.

Start Cust, Schuster on the bench if Foran is starting at six and get our rotations right.
 
Croker to start games. Cust to star whilst finishing games off.

I'm expecting Croker to be better in 2021. It was only March 2020 he was saying he wanted to be in the halves and spent 19-20 offseason as a utility.


This off season he won't be practicing being a utility. Its hooker, hooker or hooker.

I've always said Cust is a future star of this game, and I've seen nothing to change that view.
 
I thought maybe I'd merge the 98 threads already on cust v croker v hooker v nutella sanga's but thought... hey, it's the off season, what's one more thread?

Plus I like maxta's thread efforts in the off season.

Anyway. For me and (and for the 99th time)

Cust.
 
Croker to start games. Cust to star whilst finishing games off.

I'm expecting Croker to be better in 2021. It was only March 2020 he was saying he wanted to be in the halves and spent 19-20 offseason as a utility.


This off season he won't be practicing being a utility. Its hooker, hooker or hooker.

I've always said Cust is a future star of this game, and I've seen nothing to change that view.
Agreed. Croker offers no impact. Use him to start the games and keep Cust fresh. I also expect Croker will do a good job at hooker for us this year. Its a bit like when Barrett played Parker on the wing, everyone said he was ****! Put him in his natural position of centre and he plays well. I expect the same from Croker, even though it's not his natural position I see him as a way better 9 than he is a 6. Croker has a good long kick, tackles well, leads kick chase and is super fit. I think most teams will go a spare hooker on the bench as impact and this is where Cust comes in.
 
Ok....neither seem ideal and we all have different opinions on Fainu being available and when, but regardless, is not an option to start 2021.
Thought maybe could Foran play the role....but doubt it for 2 reasons....after checking myself in reality....
1) The hefty workload would only increase risk of a battle weary body always at high injury risk...
2) He is a Top shelf International 5/8, and a proven Star at 5/8.....IF anything would play at 9 in a itility role if needed...
So who gets the starting 9 position, as many have pointed out, Croker seems to be training at dummy half.
Personally I reckon Cust is a fair way the better option and could actually make a (decent) hooker due to his attributes.
Is quite strong and also has above average acceleration and definately likes to sniff around the ball runner...pushing up with the attack which keeps defence on the back foot.
Happy to see Croker on the bench if there are a few injuries, but feel he has under delivered when given prime opportunity.
Whats the thoughts Silvertails ?....hit me hard, but play fair !!
Agree with everything you say but my only concern with Cust is his passing game, he would need a lot of improvement, I think Croker has had enough chances and failed to shine so I would prefer not to see him back in the 17
 
Agree with everything you say but my only concern with Cust is his passing game, he would need a lot of improvement, I think Croker has had enough chances and failed to shine so I would prefer not to see him back in the 17
Cust does have a lollipop pass on him. His strength will be his running game against tired defenders, more reason he would better suit the bench. We either sign a hooker or start with Croker... in my opinion. Only tike will tell. People forget Croker is still only 23 and only played 30 odd games, mostly off the bench
 
Cust does have a lollipop pass on him. His strength will be his running game against tired defenders, more reason he would better suit the bench. We either sign a hooker or start with Croker... in my opinion. Only tike will tell. People forget Croker is still only 23 and only played 30 odd games, mostly off the bench
Well I don’t know who tike is but can you tell them to hurry up and spill the beans ‘cause I want to know now damn it!
 
The photos from training are one or 2 seconds of the session. Just because croker is there at dummy half in a photo doesn’t mean he is the 1st choice.

Cust and foran are both still in the rehab group anyway I think.
 
Foran into 9, when his pec is healed. He can’t train there yet people.

watch the Newcastle manly game from 1995 on another thread. 34 year old Des sucked it up and played well at dummy half. Tooves, cliffy, Des and kosef doing lots of interplay. That is manly next year. The numbers on their backs won’t mean much.

The parts of those 4 will be played by foran, dce, cust and schuster.

Can you all just agree with me and stop this mind-numbing endless speculation?
 
Not a hope two halves on the bench - gee lol lol. Foran will be on the bench - Cust at hooker, Schu at 5/8th. Although I did see Croker put on some shots in defence in some replays of last year BUT his attacking game is zero. Cust offers some speed - robustness, toughness etc
 

Latest posts

Team P W L PD Pts
3 3 0 48 6
3 2 1 45 4
3 2 1 28 4
3 2 1 22 4
3 2 1 15 4
3 2 1 14 4
2 1 1 13 4
3 2 1 10 4
2 1 1 6 4
3 2 1 -3 4
3 1 2 0 2
3 1 2 -5 2
3 1 2 -15 2
3 1 2 -22 2
3 1 2 -36 2
2 0 2 -56 2
3 0 3 -64 0
Back
Top Bottom