By Steve Kaless
August 3rd 2009 @ 6:30am
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Broncos get reality check
Brisbane Broncos - AAP Images
Welcome to the real world Brisbane. Plenty of people who watched the Canberra Raiders hammering of the Brisbane Broncos on Saturday might have put it down to the circus following Karmichael Hunt’s decision to up sticks and move on, but I’d disagree.
I reckon a performance like that from Brisbane has been on the cards for months.
They definitely look to be a side on the slide.
In April they were the book-makers favourites by a long way to take the title, I can’t imagine many people writing a ticket for them this week.
But many of their players simply aren’t up to the mark. Steve Michaels who was talked about as a potential Origin player at the start of the year barely looks to be of first grade standard now.
Justin Hodges seems only interested in arguing with the referee, Lockyer looks exhausted and Hunt has played with the energy of someone who has put the cue in the rack for weeks.
Some will put it down to the departure of Wayne Bennett and given his impact at the Dragons his absence is hard to ignore, but I have another theory related to Bennett and the Broncos woes.
When it was revealed that Bennett had received secret payments of $100,000 a year for the past ten years by mining magnate Ken Talbot it caused a wave of controversy through out the Brisbane rugby league scene.
Steve Renouf spoke out saying that Bennett would never be able to convince players to stay for less as he had done for so many years previously.
Those words have been ringing in my ears as the Broncos have been getting bashed in recent weeks. I suspect the chickens have finally come home to roost.
The reason is that for the first time in history the Broncos look to have some of their best products playing for other clubs.
David Stagg, Greg Eastwood, Ben Hannant, Michael Ennis, Darius Boyd, Joel Moon, Denan Kemp are just some of the players the Broncos have had to let go of in the past season.
Toss in Dave Taylor next year and the Broncos are finally experiencing what every other club has had in the past under the salary cap.
Your quality gets squeezed out.
In theory the salary cap should see sides go from the bottom to the top and the top to bottom.
Brisbane, perennial finalists, may be finally going through their lean period and it may not be a quick fix solution either.
While Hunt’s final choice of destination caused a shock his departure wasn’t and it is up to the Broncos front office to manage their recruitment and retention effectively if they want the side’s stay outside the top eight to be a brief one.
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(26)
Hoy said | August 3rd 2009 @ 8:59am | Report comment
If Steve Michaels is a professional football player and the second best centre within the Broncs reach, then I mustn’t be far behind I reckon. I am amazed at how bad a football he really is, and is a consistent starter. You watch him pass from dummy half… it would have to be one of the worst passes in the NRL… from a centre. I would hate to play outside him. As for him being touted an Origin bolter, not bloody likely.
It seems to be a complete lack of attitude in defence. It is terrible. They all seem to be hanging off, then just throw arms out and get brushed off.
Noone can be bothered anymore. I must admit that I was surprised when they went so well early on this year.
cosmos forever said | August 3rd 2009 @ 9:29am | Report comment
I agree that the Broncos have some serious problems. Not only does Lockyer look tired he almost refused to take a tackle – put players outside of him under constant pressure.
Hodges is the Matt Hayden of Australian rugby league – a flat track bully whose tirades and posing only work when they are winning (how a ref can say out loud he said something that was close to a send-off offence but he doesn’t end up in the Bin or reported is beyond me…).
BUT
this article could just as easily (and if the Raiders were accorded any respect) should have been about how well they played.
“I reckon a performance like that from Brisbane has been on the cards for months” could just as easily read ” I reckon a performance like that from Canberra has been on the cards for months”.
For once instead of crazy second man plays the Raiders ran at the line and gave the ball to a future superstar in Jared Croker. Tongue stayed out of the way and Wadell excelled and the forwards played to their (literally) enormous potential.
Well done boys – they are the tactics that have worked against the Storm and others and show the true potential of this side (until the Roosters just pay all the good young blokes to leave…).
PS – amazing that in a week that the Raiders released conclusive evidence that the video ref favours teams over them (40% success rate plays 86% v opposition in the same games) the video ref was a bit kinder…
Pippinu said | August 3rd 2009 @ 9:54am | Report comment
Sorry – this was no run of the mill shellacking – it was of the highest order against a bottom three team – there is no doubt in my mind that the media circus was front and centre.
How switched on were all the players when Hunt was displaying his atrocious kicking style in front of the cameras on the eve of the game??
Skull said | August 3rd 2009 @ 10:11am | Report comment
As far as I’m concerned it could not happen to a better bunch. Only wish Ribot was still in charge there.
old goalie said | August 3rd 2009 @ 10:26am | Report comment
How they have managed to fit all those players under the salray cap all those yars is a bit of an enigma
Andrew said | August 3rd 2009 @ 10:31am | Report comment
Not really, there were a lot more 3rd party oppurtunities in Brisbane than being a player in a city like Sydney. In Sydney you have to share the limelight with players from 8 other clubs and if your good you tend no to be poular with fans of other clubs.
In Brisbane every player that’s a regular starter used to be able to get at least one TV advetisement deal.
macavity said | August 3rd 2009 @ 7:46pm | Report comment
Anyone following the Gordon Nuttall trial knows how they fit all those stars in for 20+ years.
The same way Gordon Nuttall got houses for his kids….
If it was any team other than a News Ltd owned one, the papers would be all over it.
Couldn’t happen to a nicer club. Hope they get at least one spoon – preferably nothing but spoons from now on.
Alan Nicolea said | August 3rd 2009 @ 10:36am | Report comment
Steve
Many are predicting that the Broncos can not possibly come back from their 56-0 loss against the Raiders. I reckon people are jumping the gun a little bit here. The Broncos are the Broncos and they always find a way to scrap into the finals. They did it in 2003, and they are in a position to do it again. Indeed the Roosters in 2007 lost to Manly 56-0 at Brookvale, yet the following week, they beat the Sharks and then went on a winning streak that almost saw them make the finals courtesy of wins against Newcastle, Melbourne, a draw to the Warriors, and a win against the Tigers in golden point. I predict that Brisbane will turn their form around against the Sharks. They are too proud a club to do otherwise. By all means though if they do not beat Cronulla at home next week, Brisbane do not deserve to be in the finals.
Russell Bussian said | August 3rd 2009 @ 11:19am | Report comment
I think the Broncos are going through what previous champions such as Knights, Roosters & Bulldogs went through a few years after their premierships. It seems hard for these old premiership & rep players to motivate themselves playing for a deteriorating side. They are used to the big stage. Where is the fun busting your guts down at chilly Canberra fighting against a young & enthusiastic but at this stage mediocre team to see if you can squeeze into 8th and then get whipped by the Dragons. No just get on the red bull & sleeping pills, get some bird into the toilets and plan a big end of season party.
The regular season is too long. At this stage of the year motivation decides nearly as many matches as skill.
oikee said | August 3rd 2009 @ 11:47am | Report comment
To be honest i think Cullen is the problem, always has been. He really has no idea how to run a club. Take for instance what has happened so far since the departure of Bennett. They lost most of their coaching staff, lost most of their players, are losing a lot of young talent also,(Dave Taylor, Darius Boyd) and look like sacrificing many more. Also have lost Webke and other players support. So basically he has alienated most of the past players. Alfy stays on because he gets to see the whole match from the middle of the ground.
Bruno Cullen by now should have a club like Brisbane with 52 thousand members, so he has failed big time.
Now if i was in charge of the Broncos, my 1st mission would be to sign the best coach money could buy, offer someone a million dollars to coach the team, and then my next job and all i had to worry about, would be to grow full memberships to 52 thousand, where it should be by now. Thats all i would have to worry about, the coach would coach, and i would not have to worry about anything else. Bruno is a total failure at this club. Many people in Brisbane are not happy, i would expect crowd figures to show their disappointment.
The Link said | August 3rd 2009 @ 11:58am | Report comment
The Broncos are the most successful club of any football code in Australia over the last 20 years.
Looks like they’ve reached a bit of a crossroads I agree Steve, but which way will they go?
They still have all the strategic advantages over most other clubs in the NRL, a maddive RL town all to themselves, the best junior program in QLD, fantastic facilities etc….
You could say hey have too many class players not to rally, but do they have enough in the fowards?
True Tah said | August 3rd 2009 @ 12:04pm | Report comment
The Link
the rise of the Melbourne Storm will really hurt the Broncos future, together with the fact they have to contest with the Cowboys and Titans, plus these days the Sydney clubs do target Qld juniors as well.
In the past, the Broncos could almost boast having a State of Origin side for every game, and they pretty much had Queensland to themselves. These days are over.
Skull said | August 3rd 2009 @ 12:15pm | Report comment
Oikee,
Whoever made the decision to sacrifice their forward pack to sign Folau need to be taken out the back. Worst recruiting decision ever.
But as I said before it couldnt happen to a nicer bunch.
Maybe if they keep losing they can go and start another comp in China or somewhere.
Tom Alexander. said | August 3rd 2009 @ 1:04pm | Report comment
The Bulldogs are where they are because of the inclusion of ex Broncos Hannant, Ennis, Eastwood and Stagg (and ex shark kimmorly). Unfortunately the Broncos took a major gamble with Falou that didn’t pay off. They put all their eggs in the one basket, and it ended up all over their face. Their problems are many fold. Bennett left, Cyrell Connell (their top talent scout since day one, passed away), Forwards coach Webke left, plus current senior players regularly on the piss (and possibly drugs etc). Plus losing Civoniceva, Boyd, Kemp, Moon, Tate, Carlaw, Berrigan and now Taylor leaving. The Cowboys now have the monopoly on all the talent in Northern Queensland. The Titans would be doing the same on the coast and around the south east corner. Times are changing for the Broncos.
The man said | August 3rd 2009 @ 1:24pm | Report comment
Whilst Saturday marked the biggest defeat in the clubs history and one could only hope the Broncos terrible form continued this season and this marked the start of a rapid and long decline in Brisbane, sadly I think it is far too early to pop the champange and break into a corus of “Brisbane can’t play” (but how sweet it will be to do so one day…….)
Given the players in the team, previous form this season and the club being in such a strong financial position (having fully capitalised on their monopoly in a rugby league stronghold including seeing off any opposition in South East Queensland in form of the Crushers and previous Gold Coast’s) I won’t be writing their obiturary just yet.
Maybe the cap, a revitalised Coast and the loss of St Wayne are all helping to bring the Broncos back onto a level playing field, finally.
Mick from Giralang said | August 3rd 2009 @ 1:59pm | Report comment
Steve, I agree this had nothing to do with the Hunt circus. The Broncs have known for sometime he was leaving. There have been signposts to this defeat for months. Since June, they’ve had more than 40 points put on them on no less than five occasions — including by the lowly Sharks. Even adjusting for State of Origin disruption and injuries, the fabled Broncos defence has been shakey since the start of winter. Defence, more than anything else, is a state of mind in our game. There is obviously something terribly wrong in the team’s collective mindset. I’m no psychologist but I’m guessing this sort of thing is harder to put right than mere technical deficiencies. I dismissed the recent media reports about drug and alcohol abuse among some queensland players as yet more baseless garbage. But I’m now wondering whether there is something deeper and more troubling behind the Broncos’ on-field malaise than a mere form slump. And has Bennett’s departure been a psychological blow that the club will take some time to recover from?
Pippinu said | August 3rd 2009 @ 2:17pm | Report comment
The man
A level playing field. This Canberra team that absolutely humiliated them had only scored 22 points in the previous three games, and had trucked a stack of points going the other way.
Mick
Defence is a state of mind – true enough – all the more reason to think the media circus has upset that state of mind.
I’m curious to know the last time we saw a 56> to zip scoreline?
Mick from Giralang said | August 3rd 2009 @ 2:24pm | Report comment
Well, 48-4 against the Storm was close enough. And it shows that whatever is going on in their heads, has been there since the beginning of June
AndyRoo said | August 3rd 2009 @ 2:33pm | Report comment
The game against the Titans was also a worry. The score wasn’t that bad but it’s a big game in Sth East Queensland and the Broncos just didn’t look like winning.
I think the idea of the Broncos being a bad team for a couple of years (unlikely) would scare the NRL, a second team in Brisbane or one in Logan seems to be needed.
oikee said | August 3rd 2009 @ 3:34pm | Report comment
Either way, you can be assured that the broncos will bumble around for the next 5 years with a dud coach, dud ceo before the fans have to do a parramatta and clean out all the dead wood. Just a shame the fans have to suffer with a club which couild be the biggest in the world, but shows no potential or brains to get there. R.I.P.
macavity said | August 3rd 2009 @ 7:50pm | Report comment
the issue there is the fans CAN’T do a Parramatta – unless they buy a majority shareholding that is… and unky rupert isn’t selling his cash cow – he spent hundreds of millions to get it.
well, the NRL partnership is paying him back, but still, its the principle of it…
kevin from glebe said | August 3rd 2009 @ 6:05pm | Report comment
i reckon theyre hurting more than ever with bennet gone.
oh how the mighty have fallen!! im enjoying the broncs going thru some tough times i hate them that much. u cant have a team successfull all the time forever, it was a matter of time before they fell from grace.
plus with all the cap rorts these cheats have been doing i have no pity for them, especially since they have had a whole state to chose a side from and the endless bags of cash to buy players from interstate.
i dont think they will be bumbling around for the next 5 years the club is too big and too strong to head out of the 8 for extended period of time. lockyer retiring soon will put more pressure on that team as wallace is nothing.
oikee said | August 4th 2009 @ 8:09am | Report comment
The fans can make or break the broncos, if the crowd is as low as 10 thousand they would be in strife. So yes the fans can have a affect on the club. Suncorp is a expensive ground, just ask the Reds and the Roar how crowd figures affect their bottom line. Now getting back to the Broncos, Cull Cullen, grow members and the club should be the biggest and healthiest club being a one city team in league heartlands. Dont underestimate people power.
Russell Bussian said | August 4th 2009 @ 9:13pm | Report comment
All the criticism of the Broncos is fair enough but I would have to tip them to win this week. That Sharkies team named this week is a shocker. In my opinion the team named is weaker than last week when they couldn’t score a point at home to Parra. If the Broncs can’t beat them this week something is very wrong.
matt said | August 5th 2009 @ 6:29am | Report comment
Once again coverage that focuses only on the Broncos. it’s not just video ref’s that don’t like the Raiders!
Credit where credit is due, the Raiders played well!.
Robbo said | August 5th 2009 @ 5:22pm | Report comment
I couldn’t agree more with your report Steve (Kaless)