By Alex Mitchell in Canberra

CANBERRA champion Jarrod Croker will retire at the end of the NRL season, completing his 300-plus game career.

The 32-year-old told his teammates on Thursday he wouldn’t seek to play on in 2024, having failed to meet the criteria in his contract to trigger a one-year extension.

Croker has been a first-team regular after being recalled by the Raiders in round six, but injured a hamstring in recent weeks and is still trying to prove his fitness and break back into the side.

Coach Ricky Stuart was asked about Croker’s decision after his side’s 48-2 loss to Melbourne on Sunday afternoon, but refused to talk about the retirement in the wake of their poor showing.

Croker brought up his 300th game earlier this season, becoming just the second player in club history to that mark behind Jason Croker.

He struggled with knee and shoulder injuries in recent years and at times looked unlikely to win his spot back in first grade and reach the 300-game milestone.

Melbourne coach Craig Bellamy – a 150-game Raiders player himself – paid tribute to Croker’s service following his side’s win, calling him “a terrific guy” who’d given tremendous service to Canberra “and the game in general”.

“He’s plays the game in a really good spirit,” Bellamy said. “He was a wonderful centre, he was smooth on the ground and he could score tries from anywhere.

“But one of the things the Raiders might miss with him is how dependable he was with his goal kicking, and he’s done that for years.”

Croker will end his career third on the NRL’s all-time points scoring list, behind Melbourne great Cameron Smith and former Canterbury star Hazem El Masri.