He missed the chance to send Salford to Old Trafford but Man of Steel Brodie Croft is ready to bring the style in their Wembley bid.
The silky Australian stand-off will look to fire up the Red Devils in Saturday’s Betfred Challenge Cup quarter-final at Hull KR. Because of an ill-timed concussion, he cruelly had to sit out last year’s Super League semi-final which Salford narrowly lost against champions St Helens. But they can rely on Croft’s guile and creative class as his in-form side - sitting just two points off top place - now make their bid for Cup glory.
The ex-Melbourne Storm star, 25, recalled: “When you reflect on it, it was extremely frustrating what happened last year. It was a tough pill to swallow at the time. But I feel we’ve come a long way since then and played some really good football.
“We played well against KR to get a win over them a couple of weeks ago at Magic Weekend and had a good victory last time out against Castleford so I feel we’re really building as a squad. It’s a great opportunity - we know if we win we’re just 80 minutes away from Wembley - and it'll be a massive contest over at KR. We expect a real battle.”
Free-flowing Salford, who have announced a raft of new board appointments to strengthen off the field, continue to prove to be one of the most attractive sides on it. Gifted Croft, of course, is integral to that but he praised boss Paul Rowley for giving Salford - swiftly becoming peoples’ favourite ‘second’ team - such licence to thrill. He said: “It’s credit to the coaching staff and the structures they’ve put in place.
"They have really honed down on our skills since day one in pre-season two years ago. They wanted to make sure we got all the details right on our shape to back ourselves. They are really good at making sure we back our abilities. Obviously, you don’t want to be throwing silly passes but if you see something we want to go take it and not miss those opportunities.
"They do come down hard on you if you do miss those opportunities and question why you didn't take it. I feel like it really suits the brand we want to play with the players we have and when it comes off it definitely looks good. I can appreciate the entertainment value it brings to the fans. Hopefully we can show something similar on Saturday.
"We know KR have a few players out but the thing they have done really well this year, I think, is that they have a team cohesion. They have a set gameplan, they all play really well towards it, so they make it a hard team to beat. They were hard to beat at Magic and I expect the same this week especially being at their home ground where it’s always hostile. Between the fans and players itself, it’s going to be a great battle out there."
Meanwhile, Croft revealed he still gets some stick from his team-mates after he signed that monster eight-year deal to stay at Salford earlier this year. He said: "A few of the boys have signed since so I’m jumping on the bandwagon and getting into them now and use it as a mirage or distraction from my contract! But it does still come up especially when it comes to paying for coffees! It’s all good and the boys are all good about it. They’re a great group to be a part of so it’s all fun and games."
