NRL

Newcastle forward Mat Croker has revealed the huge sense of responsibility that comes from representing one of Australia’s most passionate rugby league heartlands.

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Speaking ahead of the Knights’ first NRL preliminary final in 13 years on Sunday against premiership favourites Penrith, the 27-year-old could barely contain his excitement for the challenge that awaits.

“Everyone’s feeling the buzz,” Croker toldSEN radioof the vibe in the Hunter since the team arrived home after last weekend’s stirring upset over the New zealand Warriors at Eden Park.

“That’s the special thing about playing for Newcastle, you have a weird responsibility,” Croker said.

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“The way we play on the weekend can really influence how a lot of people’s weeks go… and at the moment a lot of people are flying,” he continued.

“It’s a really special responsibility and something we don’t take lightly.”

‘Not many people have given us a shot all year’ says Croker

Having experienced the lows of a wooden spoon just 12 months ago, Croker was full of praise for first-year head coach Justin Holbrook and also made special mention of defence coach Brett White, saying the former NRL premiership winner and NSW Origin forward has used the criticism from doubters to fuel a fire within the Knights pack all season — a fire that continues to burn as they head into Sunday’s sudden deathGrand Final qualifier against the Panthers 

“We’ve been carrying that chip on our shoulder the whole way through, not many people have given us a shot all year,” Croker admitted.

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“But we were going up against a pretty handy pack last weekend (Warriors) while missing a few blokes of our own, and we found a way to get it done.

“We throw the ball around a bit, and sometimes it doesn’t come off and you have to defend your line… and in our last two finals we’ve only let in two tries each game against some pretty handy attacks.”

After playing in front of a handful of Knight fans in Auckland last weekend, Croker knows things will be very different on Sunday with tens of thousands expected to make the trip down the freeway to Homebush.

“Everyone was frothing to get back to ‘Newy’ (after the Warriors win)… that’s where the heart and soul of the club was, back here waiting for us,” he said.

“They’re all going to be travelling down to Sydney this week… it’s going to be so good.”

The Knights face the Panthers at Accor Stadium on Sunday afternoon for the chance to face the Roosters in next weekend’s grand final. Kickoff at 4pm.

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