'Some people out there are quite jealous of Reece': Walters defends Walsh after fullback filmed lashing out at fan

Brisbane coach Kevin Walters has defended Reece Walsh after video emerged of an altercation between the livewire fullback and a young NRL fan days out from the grand final.

In a video posted to TikTok, a Penrith supporter calls out to Walsh as he leaves the fan day at Circular Quay in Sydney on Thursday afternoon. According to the clip’s caption, the supporter told Walsh that Panthers prop Moses Leota was “gonna take his head off” in Sunday’s decider between Penrith and the Broncos.

The brief video ends with Walsh telling the fan “I’ll take your mum’s” and walking away.

The NRL integrity unit has been made aware of the incident but that no investigation had yet been launched.

“The NRL integrity unit is aware of the matter,” a spokesperson said.

Brisbane coach Kevin Walters defended Walsh after the video surfaced on Friday afternoon.

“It’s difficult for ‘Walshy’,” he told Triple M. “You either love him or hate him and most people thankfully love him.

“We’re in a bit of foreign territory here in NSW. So there’s going to be some people out there that are quite jealous of Reece and how he plays the game and his looks and all those things.

“That’s something he’s going to have to get on top of for the rest of his career. You can’t take Nerang out of the Nerang boy.”

Walsh has become one of the NRL’s most popular stars in his first season since joining Brisbane from the Warriors, but has previously run afoul of the league for his fiery temperament.

He received a three-game ban for swearing at referee Chris Butler during a match against Gold Coast in late June, ruling him out of contention for the Dally M Medal.

He was also sent off during the second State of Origin clash after a passionate exchange with NSW five-eighth Jarome Luai in which both men head-butted each other.

Before news of the fan clash broke out on Friday, ARL Commission Peter V’landys had been talking up Walsh’s appeal, describing him as “the Justin Bieber of rugby league”.

“He’s charisma on steroids and we want to promote him in the [United] States and we think we can bring in significant new revenues for the game,” he said on the Today show on Nine. “He’s got charisma and presence.”

Walsh is integral to Brisbane’s chances of upsetting Penrith at Accor Stadium and is in no danger of being banned for the clash with the fan but may be fined by the Integrity Unit.

He was suspended midway through the season for two games after a foul-mouthed rant at a referee during a loss to the Titans.

(Photo by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images)

Daley rules out Blues return

Former NSW boss Laurie Daley has opted against pursuing the State of Origin head-coaching role vacated by Brad Fittler.

On Thursday afternoon, Fittler declined the offer of a one-year extension to remain in charge of the Blues following back-to-back series defeats, leaving the role with immediate effect.

It is understood the deal offered by NSW Rugby League (NSWRL) would have come with changes to the structure of the job, which had been a full-time position for the six years of Fittler’s tenure.

Fittler’s exit left the Blues to ponder his replacement options, a week after he had pitched for his job at a NSWRL board meeting.

Daley was Fittler’s predecessor at the Blues, holding the position between 2013 and 2017 and posting a 40 per cent win rate for one series win from five attempts.

But the Canberra great famously coached the Blues to Origin glory in 2014, breaking a Queensland run that had yielded eight consecutive series wins.

Daley is currently employed in a promotional role by a gambling company, which he would need to vacate to pursue any coaching position.

But the 53-year-old insists he has no interest in returning to the Blues as head coach.

“I’m always happy to help if asked, always happy to help,” he told the Big Sports Breakfast. “But (the head coach role) is for someone else.”

There appears no clear option to take over from Fittler, and NSWRL may need to reconsider its policy that discounts coaches currently in charge of NRL clubs.

Canberra mentor Ricky Stuart and Cronulla’s Craig Fitzgibbon are two possibilities, having respectively served as head coach and assistant at the Blues in the past.

Melbourne’s Craig Bellamy, NSW coach between 2008 and 2010, appears another option but said in June he was not interested in becoming Fittler’s successor.

“(A club coach) can do it, but you put yourself at risk,” Daley said. “If you go into an Origin series and your club team isn’t travelling well, and for that period when you’re away your team struggles, it can put a lot of pressure on the coach.

“Throw into the mix (that) you might lose State of Origin, and you know the impact it has on coaches – you could be copping from NSW and your club.

“It’s a big risk. That would be the worry I have – paying a coach a $1 million a year and they will be spending a quarter of the season, six weeks, out of your system in State of Origin.”

Hannant says Broncos pack better than ’06

The Broncos’ current forward pack is better than the one that last collected a title for the club in 2006, premiership-winning prop Ben Hannant says.

It’s a big call, but three-time title-winning Broncos front-rower Petero Civoniceva agreed the “potential yet to be realised is quite frightening” as the club’s 2023 forward-line prepare for Sunday’s grand final showdown with Penrith.

“If they go all the way and win the competition they’re right up there (with the 2006 forwards),” Civoniceva told AAP.

Hannant, who came off the bench in the 15-8 win over Melbourne in the decider 17 years ago, went a step further.

“If I had my pick of the 2006 forwards and this year’s Broncos forwards, I’d be taking this year’s every day of the week,” he told AAP.

“That is no slag on the 2006 boys. The greats of 2006 like Petero Civoniceva, Shane Webcke and Brad Thorn paved the way for these guys to come through to be better … but these guys are us 2.0.”

Webcke, Civoniceva, Thorn and Tonie Carroll were seasoned professionals in 2006.

This year the Broncos have a suite of young forwards with years ahead of them, led by 25-year-old Patrick Carrigan and Payne Haas, 23.

“We had old, tough warriors. These young guys have every tool in their bag,” Hannant said.

“These blokes are not only big, tough and strong; they have got skills, footwork and huge engines.

“I loved Webcke to death but Haas is 2.0. Look at his stats. Could Webcke run 200m and make 40 tackles a game? Not a chance in hell. 

“Haas is a freak. Look at his post-contact metres.

“We were aggressive, but these guys have extra strings to their bow.”

Civoniceva said it would “hurt” losing prop Thomas Fleger to the Dolphins next year but said second-rower Jordan Riki and bench forwards Brendan Piakura and Kobe Hetherington had been “absolutely fantastic”.

“The scary thing is, there’s more potential in this pack,” Civoniceva said.

“Payne is still so young, you forget. The majority of us (in 2006) were senior players, mid to late in our careers.

“We knew how to close out big games.

“There’s a real tradesman-like toughness about the Broncos. Patty (Carrigan) is leading from the front, week-in week-out.”

To be regarded as a truly great pack the modern Broncos must prevail in a grand final.

“If they hold that group together, there can be many more years of success for the Broncos,” Civoniceva said.

“All the successful years we’ve had have been on the back of a powerful pack that work hard for each other.

“They’ve definitely got all those traits, and then some.”

with AAP