- Mick Cronin (rugby league)
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Mick Cronin Personal information Full name Michael William Cronin Nickname The Crow Born 1951
Gerringong, New South Wales, AustraliaPlaying information Height 178 cm (5 ft 10 in) Weight 90 kg (14 st 2 lb) Position Centre Club Years Team Pld T G FG P 1969–76 Gerringong 1977–86 Parramatta Eels 216 75 865 2 1971 Total 216 75 865 2 1971 Representative Years Team Pld T G FG P 1973–75 Country 1973–83 New South Wales 29 7 87 0 195 1973–82 Australia 33 9 139 0 305 Coaching information Club Years Team Gms W D L W% 1990–93 Parramatta Eels 88 33 2 53 38 Representative Years Team Gms W D L W% 1992 Country Origin 1 1 0 0 100 Source: Rugby League Project Yesterday's Hero Michael William "Mick" Cronin OAM (born Gerringong, New South Wales) is an Australian former rugby league footballer and coach. He was a goal-kicking centre for the Australian national team and a stalwart for the Parramatta Eels club. He played in 22 Tests and 11 World Cup matches between 1973 and 1982. He retired as the NSWRL Premiership's and the Australian Kangaroos' all-time highest point-scorer[1] and has since been named amongst the nation's finest footballers of the 20th century.[2]
Contents
Country and early representative career
Cronin played for Christian Brothers (now Edmund Rice) in the Illawarra competition as an under 12. He was so good that when his team made the semi-finals the opposition appealed against Cronin's inclusion on residence grounds, claiming he was from Gerringong.
Cronin's first grade career began in 1969 for Gerringong. He was selected to play for Country in 1973 where he impressed enough to make the that year's Kangaroo tour. He played in two Tests and ten minor tour matches and finished as the tour's highest point scorer with seven tries and twenty eight goals. In 1974 he was named New South Wales' Country Rugby League Player of the Year.[3] He played in all three Tests of the 1974 domestic Ashes series against Great Britain and the following he Cronin played in NSW Country's historic 1975 win over Sydney City. He was selected in Australia's 1975 World Cup and played in five matches in the tournament in the centres alongside Bob Fulton. In a match against Wales in sydney during the series, he kicked nine goals.
By this time Cronin was one of the most eminent rugby league centres in the world, yet he continually rejected big money offers to go to Sydney and played for his home town of Gerringong on the NSW south coast.
Parramatta career
In 1977 he joined the Parramatta Eels but for many years continued to commute to training and matches from Gerringong where he owned and ran the local hotel. He was a member of Parramatta's star studded backlines of the early 1980s playing alongside Brett Kenny, Steve Ella, Peter Sterling and Eric Grothe. In combination with all of these greats he played in four winning Grand Finals for Parramatta (1981, 1982, 1983 and 1986). Alongside team-mate Ray Price, Cronin enjoyed a fairy tale last match end to his career in the 1986 Grand Final where he kicked both goals in the Eels' 4–2 victory over Canterbury.
Cronin played 216 games in ten years with Parramatta placing him equal fourth with Bob O'Reilly on the list of most first grade appearances. His club point scoring tally of 1971 points (75 tries, 865 goals and 2 field goals) is the standing Parramatta record and is over 600 points clear of the next contender Luke Burt. He kicked 11 goals in a round 14 match of 1982 against the Illawarra Steelers, and 10 goals in the round 22 clash of 1978 against the Newtown Jets. He twice scored 27 points in a match for Parramatta.
Later representative career
Cronin made his second Kangaroo Tour in 1978 and played in all five Tests plus 12 minor matches again returning home as the tour's highest point scorer with 142 points. He played in all Tests of the 1979 domestic Ashes series against Great Britain kicking 24 goals in the course of the three games. He played in seven Tests over three series against New Zealand in 1978, 1980 and 1982 before he retired from international representative football.
In 22 Tests for Australia between 1973 and 1982 he scored 5 tries and 93 goals for 201 points. Aside from Cronin's first 5 Tests in 1973 and 1974 when Graeme Langlands was captain and goal kicker, Mick Cronin was Australia's first choice kicker in his next seventeen Test appearances.
State of origin folklore
Cronin made 21 appearances for New South Wales Blues up till 1981 under the old place of residence rules. He played in the inaugural State of Origin match in 1980 and made five further appearances for the Blues under the origin criteria up till the game III in 1983, despite having retired from international representative availability in 1982.
Mick Cronin's name was etched into Origin folklore that first night in July 1980 when fifteen minutes from the end of the game his Parramatta club teammate Arthur Beetson tore in from the right side while Cronin was held up in a tackle by Queensland half Greg Oliphant and threw a loose left-arm around Cronin's chin. To this day that incident is cited in evidence that from the outset State of Origin football was "the real deal" where deeply rooted State passion would take priority over club friendships and loyalties. State of Origin rugby league has ever since been promoted as "state against state, mate against mate". This arch rivalry was typified by the Cronin/Beetson altercation notwithstanding that it was quickly forgotten and that they sat next to each other on the return plane trip to Sydney and didn't mention the incident.[4]
Altogether Cronin represented New South Wales 27 times from 1973 to 1983, scoring 7 tries, 87 goals for 195 points.
Point scoring feats
When he retired in 1986 he was the greatest point-scorer in the history of the NSWRL premiership with 1,971 points and other point-scoring honours include:
• Country record of 316 pts in 20 Group 7 matches in 1971
• Most points in a club season (282 in 1978) – the standing Parramatta club record.
• Most points in a calendar year (547 from 542 games in 1978)
• Most points by a player from any country in World Cup clashes (108)
• Most points in the world in Tests (199)
• Most points in a Test series (54 against Great Britain 1979)
• Most successive successful kicks for goal in top-grade rugby league (26 in 1978).
• Leading point-scorer in 1977, 1978, 1979, 1982 & 1985Coaching
In 1990 he took on the coaching responsibility at Parramatta in a period when their playing roster was at its weakest for years. He coached the Eels until the end of the 1993 season. In 1992 he coached a Country origin side to victory over City origin.
Accolades
Cronin was named "Country Player of the Year" in 1974. He won unprecedented back-to-back Rothmans Medals in 1977–78. In 1985 he was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia "in recognition of service to the sport of Rugby League Football". Cronin received the Australian Sports Medal in 2000 and was honoured further in 2001 by being awarded the Centenary Medal "for service to Australian society through the sport of Rugby League".
At the Dally M Awards in 2007, Mick Cronin was inducted into the Australian Rugby League Hall of Fame.[5]
In February 2008, Cronin was named in the list of Australia's 100 Greatest Players (1908–2007) which was commissioned by the NRL and ARL to celebrate the code's centenary year in Australia.[6]
The eastern grandstand of Parramatta Stadium was named the Mick Cronin Stand in his honour.
References
Sources
- Andrews, Malcolm (2006) The ABC of Rugby League Austn Broadcasting Corpn, Sydney
- Big League, (2005) State of Origin 25 Years Collectors' Edition, News Magazines Sydney.
Footnotes
- ^ ARL (2007). "Australian Rugby Football League Annual Report 2007" (pdf). Australian Rugby League Limited. pp. 50. http://www.australianrugbyleague.com.au/files/ARL_2007_Annrep_1.pdf. Retrieved 2009-07-15.
- ^ Century's Top 100 Players
- ^ Country Rugby League Player of the Year at crlnsw.com.au
- ^ Big League 2005 State of Origin Collectors Edition p16
- ^ Australian Rugby League Hall of Fame
- ^ "Centenary of Rugby League – The Players". NRL & ARL. 2008-02-23. http://www.centenaryofrugbyleague.com.au/site/the-players.aspx?cat=3&list=true. Retrieved 2008-02-23.
External links
- Mick Cronin (rugby league) at the State of Origin official website.
- Mick Cronin at eraofthebiff.com
- Mick Cronin at concreteboots.com.au
Preceded by
Eric Simms
1969–1977Record-holder
Most points in an NRL season
1978–1998Succeeded by
Ivan Cleary
1998–2004Australian Rugby League Hall of Fame 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 Australia squad - 1977 World Cup Final winners (5th title) 1.Graham Eadie • 2.Allan McMahon • 3. Mick Cronin • 4. Russel Gartner • 5. Mark Harris • 6. John Peard • 7. John Kolc
8. Greg Pierce • 9. Ray Higgs • 10. Arthur Beetson (c) • 11. Terry Randall • 12. Nick Geiger • 13. Greg Veivers
14. Denis Fitzgerald • Coach: Terry FearnleyAustralia squad – 1975 Rugby League World Championship winners (4th title) Graeme Langlands (Capt./Coach) • Chris Anderson • Arthur Beetson • Ray Branighan • John Brass • Ron Coote • Mick Cronin • John Donnelly • Graham Eadie • Terry Fahey • Denis Fitzgerald • Bob Fulton • Mark Harris • Ray Higgs • John Lang • Ian Mackay • Allan McMahon • John Mayes • John O'Neill • John Peard • Tim Pickup • Greg Pierce • George Piggins • Lew Platz • Jim Porter • John Quayle • Terry Randall • Tom Raudonikis • Johnny Rhodes • Steve Rogers • Paul Sait • Ian Schubert • Gary Stevens • Ross Strudwick • Greg Veivers • David Wright •Parramatta Eels squad – 1986 NSWRL Premiers (4th Title) 1 Paul Taylor • 2 Mick Delroy • 3 Mick Cronin • 4 Steve Ella • 5 Eric Grothe, Sr. • 6 Brett Kenny • 7 Peter Sterling
• 8 Geoff Bugden • 9 Michael Moseley • 10 Terry Leabeater • 11 Mark Laurie • 12 John Muggleton • 13 Ray Price (c)
• 14 Tony Chalmers • 15 Peter Wynn • Coach: John MonieParramatta Eels squad – 1983 NSWRFL Premiers (3rd Title) 1 Paul Taylor • 2 David Liddiard • 3 Mick Cronin • 4 Steve Ella • 5 Eric Grothe, Sr. • 6 Brett Kenny • 7 Peter Sterling
• 8 Stan Jurd • 9 Steve Edge (c) • 10 Paul Mares • 11 Peter Wynn • 12 Steve Sharp • 13 Ray Price
• 14 Don Duffy • 15 Chris Phelan • 16 Mark Laurie • 17 Gary Martine • Coach: Jack GibsonParramatta Eels squad – 1982 NSWRFL Premiers (2nd Title) 1 Paul Taylor • 2 Neil Hunt • 3 Mick Cronin • 4 Steve Ella • 5 Eric Grothe, Sr. • 6 Brett Kenny • 7 Peter Sterling
• 8 Geoff Bugden • 9 Steve Edge (c) • 10 Chris Phelan • 11 John Muggleton • 12 Steve Sharp • 13 Ray Price
• 14 Peter Wynn • 15 Mark Laurie • Coach: Jack GibsonParramatta Eels squad – 1981 NSWRFL Premiers (1st Title) 1 Steve McKenzie • 2 Graeme Atkins • 3 Mick Cronin • 4 Steve Ella • 5 Eric Grothe, Sr. • 6 Brett Kenny • 7 Peter Sterling
• 8 Ron Hilditch • 9 Steve Edge (c) • 10 Bob O'Reilly • 11 John Muggleton • 12 Kevin Stevens • 13 Ray Price
• 14 Steve Sharp • 15 Paul Taylor • Coach: Jack GibsonRothmans Medallists 1968 Terry Hughes • 1969 Denis Pittard • 1970 Kevin Junee • 1971 Denis Pittard • 1972 Tommy Raudonikis • 1973 Ken Maddison • 1974 Graham Eadie • 1975 Steve Rogers • 1976 Ray Higgs • 1977 Mick Cronin • 1978 Mick Cronin • 1979 Ray Price • 1980 Geoff Bugden • 1981 Kevin Hastings • 1982 Greg Brentnall • 1983 Mike Eden • 1984 Terry Lamb • 1985 Wayne Pearce • 1986 Mal Cochrane • 1987 Peter Sterling • 1988 Barry Russell • 1989 Gavin Miller & Mark Sargent • 1990 Peter Sterling • 1991 Ewan McGrady • 1992 Allan Langer • 1993 Ricky Stuart • 1994 David Fairleigh • 1995 Paul Green • 1996 Jason Taylor • 1997 Brad Fittler
National Rugby League season top points scorers 1908 Horrie Miller • 1909 Arthur Conlin • 1910–12 Dally Messenger • 1913–14 Harold Horder • 1915 Wally Messenger • 1916–17 Charles Fraser • 1918 Harold Horder • 1919 A McPherson • 1920 Frank Burge • 1921 Rex Norman • 1922 Harold Horder • 1923 Arthur Oxford • 1924 Jack Courtney • 1925 Benny Wearing • 1926 Jack Courtney • 1927 Alf Blair • 1928 Benny Wearing • 1929–30 Jim Craig • 1931 Jack Lynch • 1932 Les Mead • 1933 Syd Christensen • 1934–1935 Dave Brown • 1936 Syd Christensen • 1937 Jack Beaton • 1938 Tom Kirk • 1939 Neville Smith • 1940 Tom Kirk • 1941 Neville Smith • 1942 Ray Lindwall • 1943–1944 Tom Kirk • 1945 Dick Dunn • 1946 Tom Kirk • 1947 Pat Devery • 1948 Jack Lindwall • 1949–50 Bill Keato • 1951–54 Ron Rowles • 1955–56 Doug Fleming • 1957 Darcy Russell • 1958 Harry Bath • 1959 Darcy Russell • 1960 Brian Graham • 1961 Bob Landers • 1962 Don Parish • 1963–65 Fred Griffiths • 1966 Bob Lanigan • 1967–70 Eric Simms • 1971 Graeme Langlands • 1972 Allan McKean • 1973 Graeme Langlands • 1974–76 Graham Eadie • 1977–79 Michael Cronin • 1980 Steve Gearin • 1981 Steve Rogers • 1982 Michael Cronin • 1983 Michael Eden • 1984 Steve Gearin • 1985 Michael Cronin • 1986 Terry Lamb • 1987 Ross Conlon • 1988 Gary Belcher • 1989 Andy Currier & Ricky Walford • 1990 Mal Meninga • 1991–94 Daryl Halligan • 1995 Matthew Ridge • 1996 Jason Taylor • 1997 Jason Taylor (ARL) Ryan Girdler (SL) • 1998 Ivan Cleary • 1999 Matt Geyer • 2000 Joel Caine • 2001 Andrew Johns & Ben Walker • 2002–04 Hazem El Masri • 2005 Brett Hodgson • 2006–07 Hazem El Masri • 2008 Luke Covell • 2009 Hazem El Masri • 2010 Michael Gordon • 2011 Benji Marshall
Categories:- 1951 births
- Australian people of Irish descent
- Australian rugby league players
- Rugby league centres
- Parramatta Eels players
- New South Wales Rugby League State of Origin players
- Australia national rugby league team players
- Australian rugby league coaches
- Parramatta Eels coaches
- Recipients of the Medal of the Order of Australia
- Recipients of the Centenary Medal
- Recipients of the Australian Sports Medal
- Australian Rugby League Hall of Fame inductees
- Living people
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