You have a selective memory if you don't recall concerns expressed about his physique and defensive weakness last season.

You're correct about the 'average' nonsense though. He has bags of potential and could be a top centre with a little application and the ability to take advice.

He burst on to the scene with speed & awareness to support..that was something we hadnt seen in the centres for a couple of seasons..but then clubs targeted his weakness (defence)

I don't have a selective memory but nor do I read every post on every thread. I just genuinely don't recall reading about his defensive weakness last season.

Ben Crooks is the ultimate confidence player, when he has it he will apply himself as a top centre but when he doesn't he is a car crash.

A lot of people say Radford may be at blame with his current lack of confidence but IMO playing him in the CC final last year gave him the wrong message then also shattered his confidence.

I have no idea how he has being naughty or in what way, but I'm not seeing him score hat tricks at Donny every week so at this moment in time he is just a passenger at the club.

I would stick with him though, tackling has to be one of the easier things to teach in the game and positional play comes with experience. The kid needs to look at himself in the mirror and admit to himself he is not the finished article and is going to need to work really hard.

what I noticed from the off last yr was centre defended 3 in. 2nd row inside half back outside. Crooks mostly had horne n whiting baby sitting him. I forgave him that being a young skinny kid.
My suspicion is we decided we couldnt afford to devote so much energy to looking after one man. We went back to a conventional defensive pattern n id suspect the coaches when planning pre season assumed crooks would come back bigger stronger n better for his experience. Unfortunately from the off he was flapping arm at defenders putting us under pressure n I think the coaches decided it was easier to take him out than try compensate by rejigging the team around him.
thought radders had played it well taking him out sending him to donny n brought him back for london which was a gimme n soft opposition to come back in. Crooks went well. Next time we had a tough game though he was poor again. So out he went again. Which prob hurt his confidence n maybe a fall out?
I might be reading to much into it but thats how I see.
For a player struggling its been a terrible team in terrible form with terrible direction to try find your form in. Hope we stick with him but seems a lot of noise about him regarding attitude etc n as the saying goes smoke n fire n all that. So quiet on him its like hes left already!

What you mean, like Westerman?

No, not at all like Westerman.

Well surely that's what we've done with him, nurtured him on good money, whilst waiting for him to reach his full potential

You're forgetting one very important difference - Westerman didn't think he was Greg Inglis after one good season and choose not to do the extra work set out for him. Attitude.

Id say he did have a bit of Big Time Charlie about him. Maybe its cos we sacked him as a kid and paid to get him back

Oh yeah, that myth again.

For me regarding Ben Crooks his ability as an attacking player or that he needs to do a little work on his defence in not in doubt however is it more a question of his attitude that has been more of an issue than any ability/inability he has?

For such a fall from grace from last season this for me seems the most logical reason as to his current posotion within the club and to how he is possibly applying himself in training and within the club itself.

If he still has 2 years to run then I think the club would be daft to get rid of a talent unless they have reached an impasse with him in regards to where they see him and his development etc. Maybe the success he had last season has not helped matters. As the old saying goes 'your only as good as your last game' so for Ben he must recreate last seasons performances on a regular basis.

Its a tough one though but form me he has shown enough to warrant spwending some time and effort trying to maximise his ability and potential before binning him.

Adam sent me a letter and said that the reason they weren't saying anything was just to you off.

He said to me that you are banned

I've been told, he has told the club he does not want to play for fc again and has asked for a move but none of the big clubs in England have shown any interest so he has asked his agent to try and get him into a club in Aussy the Eels I believe Shame I think he will be a cracking player one day but it has gone to his head last year, and he thinks he is ready for big money and all the trimmings now instead of serving his apprenticeship so to speak and developing himself and his game further, we only want players at the club who are 100 per cent committed to fc so bye bye and good riddance to anyone who does not want to play for us I say

I would like to say that the first two sentences are pretty much as I understand it, however you didn't put any full stops in it so I can't!

From what I recall, the Donny fans weren't too enamoured of Crooks either in his spells there.
If he has the big fish mentality, he'll always be the Richie Barnett Jr or Kevin Penny of this sport.
It strikes me that he's been getting bad advice from his father and not taking the advice of his employers.

Get rid.

Seen it all now, Wilf picking people up on their grammar

His father is right behind FC on this one (he's still on FCs payroll as club ambassador btw), so lets not peddle things that aren't true. The driving force behind this is his agent and himself.

Unfortunately thats the problem with many agents involved in sport, whilst their job is to get the best deal for their client they often go too far trying to get the money up'd (more often than not for their % increase) and end of costing the client a decent deal.

If this is definitely the case then Ben has been a fool to himself and he should have knuckled down and build on the season he had to increase his worth not destroy it.

If he does go to Aus he will be back after a year imo.

[url=http://www.howesetc.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=13&Itemid=27Spot the face(s).[/url

You have to wonder why he doesn't want to play for FC anymore if that's the case. He might find after 6-8 games next season he wants to play for us again.

tackling ... yes there is techniques to tackling but there is more to it then coaching,if it was as simple has coaching you would not see the amount of dodgy tacklers throughout the game.Crooks defence has always been a problem but its not all down to his defence why he is not playing.Sadly Ben sees himself has a super star and although he has great potenial,super star he is not.He needs a new agent or he will vanish

Bored of it now. Make an announcement. Move on.