KEY POINTS:
It's an oddity that both the Kiwis and the Kangaroos will field new halfbacks in the test in Wellington this weekend.
Andrew Johns and Stacey Jones are gone, bring on Cooper Cronk and Jeremy Smith.
Smith has beaten Thomas Leuluai to the seven jersey despite Leuluai having played there before. Coach Gary Kemble has made it clear the job is Smith's longer-term if he puts his hand up to take it.
At 26, with plenty of lower-grade international experience behind him, Smith said he was comfortable with steering the game.
"Hopefully I'll go out and prove to the boys that I'm the man for the job. I don't feel too much pressure having to fill Stacey's boots. If you think about it too much you might feel the pressure because they're big boots to fill. I've always wanted that jersey. I'm a pretty passionate bloke so to get it is a really big buzz. I hope to do it justice."
Smith was a halfback when a junior at the Waiheke Island club then moved to Kaeo in the north and to fullback, returning to halfback in his late teens. He played for the Junior Kiwis and NZ Maori before shifting to Australia.
He freely admits he didn't take that first opportunity. "I wasn't thinking of footy as a career. My discipline wasn't good ... Now I realise if you really want to get there you've got to put 110 per cent in."
After a run of injuries and NRL clubs where he played in lower grades, Smith was thrown a lifeline by Parramatta in 2006 and, just weeks after his debut, was named for the mid-year test against Great Britain. But just before it, he was suspended for four weeks for pushing ref Sean Hampstead during Parramatta's loss to St George. He's learned the lesson.
Eels coach Jason Taylor approached Smith about a shift to Souths while he was negotiating to go there himself and the Kiwi did so. He's since established himself as a regular and enjoyed the milestones Souths achieved this season, making the finals.
"We were disappointed the way it panned out [eliminated first weekend of playoffs] because we thought we had a pretty good team. We're looking to push on next season," he said.
Owner Russell Crowe was very hands-on, Smith said, he and Souths and Kiwis captain Roy Asotasi agreeing his backing was a positive.
Smith attributed his own good form and selection to Taylor's coaching. "He's a great communicator."
His opposite in the Kangaroos, Cooper Cronk, is known as a motor-mouth. He started in rugby as halfback/first five-eighths for the First XV at St Laurence's High School in Brisbane, where the yearbook in 2003 talks about his on-field chatter.
"Coop's nonstop talk was crucial to keep the team's game on track. He proved to be the team linchpin, able to turn the game around."
His captain at the Storm, Cameron Smith, has commented that Cronk's chattering drives him nuts sometimes but the pair have a good understanding and Cronk knows when to let Smith do the talking.
The 23-year-old was talent-spotted by Brisbane Colts coach Anthony Griffi and brought to former test halfback Mark Murray who was coaching Brisbane Norths, the Storm feeder side. There, he played with Smith and other Storm players Billy Slater and Dallas Johnson, but was rarely at halfback, filling in at five-eighths, centre, hooker and lock. When Matt Orford was at Melbourne there seemed little opportunity for Cronk except as back-up and utility. In 2005, Orford signed for Manly.
Legend has it the Storm made Orford a late offer of A$400,000 ($471,000), intending only to push the Eagles to spend more than that and so they did, A$450,000.
Storm coach Craig Bellamy was determined to turn Cronk into the permanent number seven and former test five-eighths Matt Johns was employed to help. In 2006 Cronk won the Storm's most-improved award and the Dally M best halfback award while leading the team to the minor premiership and the grand final.
This year, he missed just two games through ankle injury and again steered the Storm to the minor premiership, going one better to win the title. He beat out Orford in the grand final and so took the test spot where the Manly half had been pencilled in.
Cronk thanks Orford for giving him the professionalism that has led him to the top. He is known for his long video analysis of opponents and still rings Johns for advice.
Cronk's boot will be a major weapon for the Kangaroos. He kicks with accuracy and length and can steal 40/20s.
The Kiwis' long-kicking game will be handled by Ben Roberts. Smith's options with the boot are more likely to be the chips in mid-field or to the goal-line.
Both are solid defenders. Both hate losing. Their match-up should be one of the features of an entertaining game.
