KNIGHTS prop Ben Cross hears the critics but does not flinch at their slings and arrows.
On the eve of Newcastle's season-opening game against the Bulldogs at ANZ Stadium tonight, the 31-year-old pack leader has defended his record of just 16 NRL appearances in two years since joining the Knights from Melbourne.
Cross has had a wretched run of injuries including a twice broken thumb, broken wrist, torn knee ligaments, then - after playing the first seven games last year - he suffered a season-ending ruptured biceps against the Wests Tigers at Campbelltown.
Cross's rotten luck continued in the pre-season as a hamstring niggle kept him out of Newcastle's trial against his former club at Charlestown on February 20, then he knocked himself out making the first tackle of the game against Penrith at Port Macquarie a week later.
But he suffered no subsequent dizziness or migraines, has had a fortnight to clear his head, and is raring to go against a Bulldogs pack led by Queensland and Australian prop Ben Hannant.
Despite playing a dominant role in Melbourne's 2007 title team, and earning NSW selection for two State of Origin games in his first year in Newcastle, Cross's detractors suggest he has failed to live up to expectations in Knights colours.
But Cross does not care enough about their opinions to spend hours each day trawling through website forums to follow what fickle fans are saying about him.
"It's pretty easy to sit at your lounge chair and type a few things into a computer, but unless you've been out there and done it yourself . . . That's footy, and people
get injured.
"But hopefully now I'll have a clear run of injuries for the next three years or so," said Cross, who is off contract at the end of this year.
"Once you're back playing, all those things are sort of forgotten about.
"That's the law of the land - freedom of speech - and people have the freedom to say whatever they want. But I know what I've done in my career, and what I've put myself through to get to where I've got to, so until they've actually done that, their word isn't really worth a grain of salt."
Cross declared himself "good to go for a big season".
"I feel like I'm in pretty good shape and feeling strong, and testing wise, it's been one of the better pre-seasons I've had in the gym because I've had a good crack at training this year," he said.
Cross knocked himself out against Penrith making a "kamikaze tackle" from the kick-off to try and inspire his teammates after a lacklustre warm-up. He said he would try to modify his full-throttle attitude while still leading from the front.
"That's the way I play my footy . . . first game back, a bit pumped up, and after a flat warm-up I just tried to do something to lift the team," Cross said.
"But obviously next time I'll be concentrating a bit more on technique and trying to be more effective . . . instead of just going hell for leather, so I can try to preserve the body a little bit better.
"Self-preservation isn't really in my game but sometimes you've got to learn to curb things a little bit and be a bit more effective so I'll definitely be doing that in round one."
Cross was not concerned about his lack of trial time but coach Rick Stone said the coaching staff would have to carefully manage his minutes tonight and in the opening rounds.
"It's been tough for him, and he's the type of player who probably needs a few games to show his best," Stone said.
"So cross fingers, this is the year where he can hopefully string some games together and we can get some value out of him, a bit of presence on the field, and see him start playing some of his best footy like he showed us when we picked him up from Melbourne."
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