Billy Slater says Cooper Cronk gave no information about the Roosters during his suddenly-controversial Storm training session.
Cronk has denied being a 'double agent' by holding coaching consultant roles at both his former clubs, where he mentors the halves. He branded suggestions that he had not been transparent with the Roosters "far-fetched".
Despite an initial assertion from his agent, George Mimis, that he only held a corporate role with Melbourne, the club confirmed that Cronk was also paid to work with playmakers Cameron Munster and Jahrome Hughes.
He holds a similar role at the Roosters, working with the likes of Luke Keary and Lachie Lam. Roosters coach Trent Robinson has confirmed that he was aware of, and comfortable with, Cronk also working at Melbourne. Cronk is a great of both clubs, winning two premierships with each team.
Slater worked alongside Cronk during a Melbourne session last week and said that there was nothing untoward about the champion halfback's dual roles.
"He's created a little bit of a circus, hasn't he, Cooper," Slater said on Wide World of Sports radio with Mark Levy.
"The Melbourne Storm and the Sydney Roosters don't have a problem with it, they were across everything.
"I was at the Melbourne Storm training last Wednesday when Cooper was down there, it was actually really good to catch up with him.
"He's got a role with the Melbourne Storm in the commercial side of things. There was an event after training, a season launch.
"And he's also got a role in individually developing the halves. I think the Roosters were across that.
"Knowing Cooper ... I would have spent all day with him that day and I learnt nothing about the Roosters.
"He's a very loyal person and both Trent Robinson and Craig Bellamy have come out and said he's of the highest quality and his integrity is extremely high.
"He's not going to go and talk about the Roosters to the Melbourne Storm and vice versa, he's not that sort of person."
Slater said that Cronk had invaluable knowledge to impart to younger players.
"I think we need players of Cooper Cronk's stature in the game to help educate the next generation," he said.
"Players like Cooper can educate and develop people in their position like, head coaches can't do that.
"You need players like that within the football organisation to help drive the standard of the game in general.
"I don't think we have a problem with it (coaching more than one club). Outside noise is obviously creating attention to it but it's business as usual for the people involved."
Slater himself has been working with Storm fullback Ryan Papenhuyzen, who won the Clive Churchill Medal in Melbourne's grand final win last year.
"It's valued knowledge, it's created over a two-decade career," Slater said.
"You have a look at Cooper Cronk's career and what he's been able to achieve and the little things he's been able to pick up along the way that he knows makes a No.7 successful ... for him to pass that on to Jahrome Hughes and Luke Keary and these sort of guys, it's invaluable.
"It's not just invaluable for the clubs that he's helping, it's invaluable for the game because if we want to put another team in Brisbane or expand our competition, we need to develop our players.
"The people within the game that have been there and experienced it are the best people to develop those young guys coming through."
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