17 May 2003
Herald Sun
By MICHAEL GLEESON
DARREN Crocker didn't need to be told who it was on the video.
Small, flashy Aboriginal kid running around for South Fremantle. He'd seen him before running up and down the stands at Arden St. It was Andrew Krakouer, son of Jimmy.
"I was able to recognise him straight away without being told who the video was of," said Crocker, a teammate of Jim's at North Melbourne and now one of Krakouer Jr's coaches at Richmond.
"It was exciting for myself seeing this tape of a young Andrew Krakouer playing in the Colts for South Fremantle. I remember when I was playing with Jim, his boys ... were always at training.
"They were always running up and down the dilapidated grandstand at Arden St and kicking the footies in the rooms. I hadn't seen or heard about the kids for a long time and next minute a videotape arrived at the club.
"And just watching that tape you could see he had some of his old man's attributes, just an uncanny ability to read the ball off the pack, the ball almost melts into his hands at ground level, he never fumbles, just a real one-touch player."
Krakouer, 20, remembers those days at Arden St, but Crocker said he was surprised the young Tiger didn't realise how good a player his father was. Back then Crocker was a forward and back-flanker and Jimmy about the best player in the game.
"Jimmy, I would have said, was the best player that I had played with until obviously Wayne Carey came along," Crocker said.
"For his size, I have never seen anyone who could play with such intensity.
"His tackling was just ferocious. No matter how big the opponent, he would bring them down. His chasing was first-rate and then, on top of that, I suppose a lot of Aboriginal players get tainted with being just skilful and elusive - Jimmy had all that, but he also had the hard work inside of it as well.
"I was lucky to have played with Jimmy and (brother) Phil when they would weave their magic.
"Andy is quite happy to talk about his dad, I think his dad's a fairly strong influence on how he goes about his football and gets to speak to him regularly.
"The `inside' ability is comparable to his dad and (so is) his ability to tackle people of larger stature. We have been screaming out for that small forward since Danny (Frawley) has been at the club and we have always held hopes Andrew could fulfil that role, even though we don't see him purely as a small forward."
Last Saturday, Andrew would have silenced some of Frawley's screams with a bag of five goals that electrified the yellow and black army.
It wasn't just the goals, it was the way he kicked them: picking opponents' pockets, flashing into play, not so much taking possession as the ball finding a way of getting to him.
That ability and, no doubt, Crocker's vivid memories of how damaging his dad was, have the Tigers pegging Krakouer for time in the middle of the ground, too.
Herald Sun
By MICHAEL GLEESON
DARREN Crocker didn't need to be told who it was on the video.
Small, flashy Aboriginal kid running around for South Fremantle. He'd seen him before running up and down the stands at Arden St. It was Andrew Krakouer, son of Jimmy.
"I was able to recognise him straight away without being told who the video was of," said Crocker, a teammate of Jim's at North Melbourne and now one of Krakouer Jr's coaches at Richmond.
"It was exciting for myself seeing this tape of a young Andrew Krakouer playing in the Colts for South Fremantle. I remember when I was playing with Jim, his boys ... were always at training.
"They were always running up and down the dilapidated grandstand at Arden St and kicking the footies in the rooms. I hadn't seen or heard about the kids for a long time and next minute a videotape arrived at the club.
"And just watching that tape you could see he had some of his old man's attributes, just an uncanny ability to read the ball off the pack, the ball almost melts into his hands at ground level, he never fumbles, just a real one-touch player."
Krakouer, 20, remembers those days at Arden St, but Crocker said he was surprised the young Tiger didn't realise how good a player his father was. Back then Crocker was a forward and back-flanker and Jimmy about the best player in the game.
"Jimmy, I would have said, was the best player that I had played with until obviously Wayne Carey came along," Crocker said.
"For his size, I have never seen anyone who could play with such intensity.
"His tackling was just ferocious. No matter how big the opponent, he would bring them down. His chasing was first-rate and then, on top of that, I suppose a lot of Aboriginal players get tainted with being just skilful and elusive - Jimmy had all that, but he also had the hard work inside of it as well.
"I was lucky to have played with Jimmy and (brother) Phil when they would weave their magic.
"Andy is quite happy to talk about his dad, I think his dad's a fairly strong influence on how he goes about his football and gets to speak to him regularly.
"The `inside' ability is comparable to his dad and (so is) his ability to tackle people of larger stature. We have been screaming out for that small forward since Danny (Frawley) has been at the club and we have always held hopes Andrew could fulfil that role, even though we don't see him purely as a small forward."
Last Saturday, Andrew would have silenced some of Frawley's screams with a bag of five goals that electrified the yellow and black army.
It wasn't just the goals, it was the way he kicked them: picking opponents' pockets, flashing into play, not so much taking possession as the ball finding a way of getting to him.
That ability and, no doubt, Crocker's vivid memories of how damaging his dad was, have the Tigers pegging Krakouer for time in the middle of the ground, too.
