S4Sonny
Ooh Ahh Cantona
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You can rarely win a grand final without a champion halfback.
The clubs which have won most premierships in the last three decades all had superstars at the scrum base.
Parramatta had Peter Sterling, Canterbury-Bankstown had Steve Mortimer, Brisbane Broncos had Allan Langer, Canberra had Ricky Stuart, Melbourne had Cooper Cronk and Newcastle had Andrew Johns.
The Bulldogs this season could break the tradition with a player they hardly wanted at the start of the season.
When Des Hasler opened his premiership campaign back in March, Trent Hodkinson was entrenched as the club's No 1 halfback.
Kris Keating was on the outer and played in the NSW Cup for the first four rounds of the season.
Now he's 80 minutes away from an NRL premiership ring.
Team-of-the-century halfback Johns can't believe it.
"If someone said at the start of the year that Kris Keating would be a grand final half you'd laugh at them," Joey said on Sunday.
"No-one talks about him much but he's doing his job really, really well.
"He works hard, he listens, and sticks by the game plan."
Next Sunday night the unheralded Bulldogs halfback comes up against Kangaroos No 7 Cooper Cronk, a player on six times his salary.
The Bulldogs' recruitment guru Noel Cleal is one of the best judges in rugby league and he's not the slightest bit concerned about the possibility of a mismatch at the scrumbase.
"Des's structure is such that it's a team game, rather than relying on individuals," Cleal said. "Kris plays a role in that structure like everyone else in the side and does it very well."
His defence is outstanding, missing just 1.6 tackles per game which is the best of any halfback and means he doesn't give the opposition an obvious target to run at.
Keating is another of the many Parramatta juniors who have got away in recent years.
The Dogs originally wanted to sign Daniel Mortimer but he stayed at the Eels. Daniel Anderson cut Keating so he was snapped up by the Dogs.
Now skipper Michael Ennis is his biggest fan.
"He was overlooked behind Trent Hodkinson earlier in the year but sat down with Des and the other staff, really applied himself and worked hard on his game," Ennis said.
"It's a credit to him and it's good he's getting a rap because he's been a vital part of the side all year.
"He mightn't get headlines but the guys in the team understand and respect how important he is to us."
The Bulldogs skipper has no doubts he will handle the pressure on Sunday evening.
"Kris is very composed for a young guy," he said.
"Playing Manly in that first week of the finals and with 70,000 fans against Souths, I was super impressed how he held his nerve. He's just one of those blokes you can rely on to get the job done."
http://www.foxsports.com.au/league/...d-final-halfback/story-fn2mcuj6-1226480085688