The Broncos more or less had a mirror year compared to Penrith in 2016.
They started off amazingly, with some of the better performances I have ever seen where it looked like they and the Cowboys just couldn’t be beaten. But then they lost, and they started to lose a little and look kinda shaky, but nonetheless they came in at fifth before being eliminated by North Queensland in the second round of the finals in one of the best games I have ever seen.
Since then, you can’t say there haven’t been any issues with this club. With reports of in-fighting, James Roberts’ off-field shenanigans and getting surprisingly beaten by Warrington in the World Club Series, things could be better for the one-city team.
But this side still does have undeniable quality. Will it be enough to drag them into the finals? Or will a Wayne Bennet-coached Broncos somehow miss the eight?
Strengths
It is fair to say that this spine is pretty darn great. It has a mix of most things a spine needs. Darius Boyd is perfect for the attacking structure this Brisbane side has, with his set-up plays being highlighted perfectly.
Meanwhile, while it is popular opinion Ben Hunt had a lacklustre 2016, he still had a boat load of try assists with 21, tied for third-highest in the game, and even if people are down on him they can’t pretend that he isn’t at least above average.
Andrew McCullough is the ‘jack of all trades’ pivot in that he can provide a team with everything, but isn’t the best at any of them, which is fine. He can kick, play-make, provide good service and make a tonne of tackles.
And finally, Anthony Milford, while inconsistent and prone to occasionally fading out of matches, provides the spark that this structured side needs which can push them over the edge of tight matches. We have seen him do it in plenty of matches already, for example against the Cowboys in Round 4 of 2016.
The forwards in this team are good. Korbin Sims is a handy pick up, giving them that fourth first-grade level prop that they desperately needed coming into the season.
Add representative players like Josh McGuire and Matt Gillett along with young players that have all the talent in the world, like Jai Arrow and Tevita Pangai Junior, and you have a prop and second-row rotation that won’t let you down.
The backs are good as well. David Mead is a handy addition to in the centres, and will mean Brisbane have a very fast centre pair with James Roberts, who despite everything is still a good player with speed to burn. Corey Oates and Jordan Kahu are both excellent finishers, and will both rack up a tonne of tries this year.
Weaknesses
People are understating the loss of Corey Parker. He may have had reduced minutes in 2016, but it will be hard to replace the 343 runs, the 2973 metres, the 29 offloads and 732 tackles he provided last year. That isn’t even mentioning the leadership he provided the team on the field.
There must be a question over Ben Hunt in terms of his 2017 commitment. I know he is a professional and what have you, but when you know you are going to move to a different place for the rest of your career sometimes it is hard to keep concentrating.
There have been examples of players ‘phoning it in’ when they know they are on the way out of a club, and I don’t know if Ben Hunt will be able to play the whole season giving it his all.
There has been something sour bubbling at the Broncos for the past season and a half, and I think it is going to come to a head soon. With the whole ‘rat’ incident, the training scuffle involving Josh McGuire, James Roberts’ general misdemeanour problems, the reported egos of McGuire and Roberts as well as the sudden departure of Corey Parker makes me thing something is up.
I had the same feeling about the Rabbitohs this time last year, and seeing how they played in the World Club Challenge, this makes sense. Something is going to happen off the field that will hurt the Broncos this season.
Summary
This is a very good team with a very good coach. There is quality all over the park here with plenty of young players for depth, and they just outclass a lot of teams.
However, due to the issues with Hunt, the loss of Parker and the behind-the-curtains issues that seem to be bubbling, I can’t put them too high in my eight, certainly not among some of the other teams which will do well this year.
Granted they could do a lot better, heck, they could make the top four (but I don’t think Brisbane can win a minor premiership while State of Origin is a thing, they are hurt too much by it), or they could come as low as 10th.
But all things considered, they will finish seventh before being knocked out of the finals in either week one or two. 2017 is not going to be the year of the Broncos.
2016 finish: fifth
Predicted 2017 finish: seventh
Transfers
Gains: Moses Pangai, David Mead, Tautau Moga, Benji Marshall, Mitchell Dodds, Korbin Sims
Losses: Greg Eden, Brett Greinke, Corey Parker, Jarrod Wallace, Jack Reed, Darren Nicholls, Lachlan Maranta
Full-strength team
1. Darius Boyd
2. Corey Oates
3. James Roberts
4. David Mead
5. Jordan Kahu
6. Anthony Milford
7. Ben Hunt
8. Josh McGuire
9. Andrew McCullough
10. Korbin Sims
11. Sam Thaiday
12. Matt Gillett
13. Jai Arrow
14. Alex Glenn
15. Adam Blair
16. Tevita Pangai Junior
17. Kodi Nikorima
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