Not good signs for Keary. Surely he needs to start thinking really hard if the game is still worth it for him. I hope he makes the right decision and recovers quickly.

Simple answer to stop Mitchell from swearing is to just stop putting him on camera with a microphone in front of him. Problem solved. If he can’t control himself, then take the opportunity away from him.

here, here.

They do an excellent job on the whole and we wouldn’t have a game without them.

I’m glad that Reynolds has resigned with my Broncs. But I disagree with your article. South’s saw a half that needs to be kept in cotton wool, has known history of leg issues and is always one unfortunate hit from a possible shirt end of career.

They made a judgement call. Bennett has been praised his whole coaching career for letting stars go a season or two early. Broncos could well end up with egg on their face based on your assessment if, Budda forbid, Reynolds has a serious knee or hammie injury.

If Renolds was injured more seriously, would you have written an article praising their business acumen?

Rest well Carl Webb.

Hand eye coordination was amazing. After cramping up Maxwell was just swatting things. He chanced his arm and Afghanistan can feel very unfortunate they they missed bowling him on a few occasions.
But what a spectical that innings was by Maxwell. Cummins will be dining out on that partnership for a while methinks 😉

Singapore Airlines showed the State of Origins live inflight this year. The GF may well be screened, too. So if you are unfortunately in the air during the game, search through your inflight options tonight.

A bit too many errors in last night’s game. That error count will not win a premiership. Panthers will now be in two minds on what type of Brisbane team will turn up next week. Will it be an offload-a-thon again? Or will it be a more traditional bust up the centre for 3 and pass it wide?

Although Brisbane forwards all went well, their was a noticable drop in intensity when Haas and Flegler were rested. I wonder if Kevvie will address that with some changes to the rotation on the bench. Tapou adds a bit bit he has a few too many errors in his game.

Brisbane are looking fit. I recall Wayne Bennett many years ago giving big wraps to Kelvin Giles, the 92-93 conditioner for getting the Broncos so fit and that fitness was the difference in those premiership years. Kevvie seems to have harked back to that train of thought.

All the best for next year, Warriors. You didn’t deserve that scoreline after a stellar season.

Broncs “believe” ( thanks Ted Lasso 😁 ). These guys are playing for each other. Every si gle player on that paddock want the ball. They don’t want to be the one that wasn’t the third man chasing the kick or ready in D.

Kevvie has these guys loving playing together amd they do not want to let each other down. I see a fairy tale coming up if everyone stays fit.

Author has some good insight and perspectives. I feel he brings a fresh view to what the rest of us average punters see. I welcome his views even when I don’t agree with them.

Really happy to see Staggs runni g with so much confidence this year.. when there was talk he wanted to play 5/8, I thought it might end in tears and he would be out the door. But he is getting plenty of ball on the back of attacking raids and can seek the ball coming out of his own end.

What did people think of Farnsworth turning back the clock and playing inside centre in the first half? He was busy looking for ball to create the extra man.

Summed up beautifully.

Broncs had errors but it was a wet game and it looked like they decided to play though the middle and curtail the expansive game they have continued to master for the last 2 seasons.

Don’t the player(s) marking Munster next week. It might be a torrid time for the whole team if the Bellamy rev up gets his forwards angry. A few of them weren’t really on with their timing last night.

Was happy to see Broncs come away unscathed. Walters continues to do good things as does Smoother. Watch most of his SC Falcons home games live last season and he killed it. He is also a fair goal kicker so having him in the squad as a backup is useful.

I’m looking at a Broncs Panthers GF right now. There might be a smokey but we will know more come Sunday night

And your article was very thought provoking, so thanks for the good read.

Here’s to the finals!

You may be right, mate and I respect your decision. I just don’t totally agree. If there were no mutterings on the training paddock and won even 2 or 3 more games this season, would it have been called a failure, regardless of how the finals pan out? New inexperienced head coach, remember.
And if the Broncs crash out of the finals, is that a season failure and Walter’s fault for choosing Reynolds for 3 years. Reynolds was at the helm when Broncs crashed and burned last season. Was that a failure by Reynolds?

Tony, this game is a business. Souths had an aging team and more specifically an aging halves pairing. You said that “In 2021, then aged just 31 and still at the peak of his powers” with regard to Reynolds. But he was being nursed through the season at 31. It was a calculated risk to cut on of the halves. They thought Walker was the man to keep.

Plenty of other coaches have made similar calls. All it would have taken was one wrong injury at the Broncos and it would have been Brisbane with egg on their face. And besides, Brisbane crashed out of last year’s comp in a similar yet not quite as catastrophic fashion as Souths this year.
How did Souths get to heights they reached before their capitulation late in this season if Solly’s error was so gross?
“Silly Solly thought he could replace Reynolds with the 21-year-old Lachlan Ilias, and that players like Mitchell and Walker would step up to fill the void left by Reynolds.” A fair assessment, one would have thought. But Mitchell got injured and sidelined for stupid stuff. How many times has that happened around finals time for Mitchell?
Of Illias you wrote “Put simply, he’s no Reynolds and most likely never will be.” So how old is this kid again? When is it generally accepted that halves mature in this game? You are writing this kid off. How was Mitchel Moses going week in, week out at this kid’s age? How about Sam Walker? There haven’t been that many young halves that have walked into top grade and looked at home. Langer is the only one that comes to mind – he was just a freak from his first Origin game.

How was Reynolds going at this kid’s age week in week out?

“As for Mitchell and Walker stepping up, they just haven’t delivered. Mitchell hasn’t looked like justifying his high price tag in the 30-odd games he’s played over the past two seasons, and often looks disinterested, while Walker is too often distracted by the massive chip on his shoulder.” So this is Solly’s fault, too? What about the unhappy coaches and players?

It wasn’t that long ago that Latrell was going to potentially be NSW’s saviour in 2023. Walker ended up doing in SOO what Panther’s 6 couldn’t. So is capitulation at Souths in the backend of 2023 Solly’s fault, too?
If so, do he get credit for getting Souths to the finals in all recent times with and without Reynolds? Well at least last year, then if you disagree? Where is his credit and foresight there?

Because how many games has Reynolds missed since he has been at the Broncos? How hard is he training or is he on light duties? If Reynolds was playing for Souths with a lazy Mitchell and out of sorts Walker, he would have had to have been doing plenty more per game and likelihood of injury then rises dramatically. Solly would have then been a goose for keeping a broken down Reynolds had he have broken down.

Souths made a business decision that didn’t seem that bad at the time. Wayne Bennett has made a career out of cutting players a year or two short. Not many others have been proven as correct or fortunate, lucky in hindsight. There is a real reason for that.

Billy Slater made a career out of it.

Paul, it is okay to fail. Why persecute Parra for not attaining the high results they set themselves. Plenty of other teams didn’t get close to Panthers either. Should they all be raked over the coals?

I appreciate that you have a job to do, bit the press in general justake issues because they need something to write about.

How about a few more positive aspect stories from you?.. maybe like how the Broncs have played out of their skin. It how the Cows are still on the rise. Or break it down to individuals who have done plenty the year?

Or about the ambassador players coming to the end of their wonderful careers – people who left the game better for them having been involved.

Fluked a grand final, eh? Care to explain that a little more?
Anyone who makes it to a GF deserves to be there. Suggesting otherwise discredits the whole of the league.

There is certainly and air about the Broncs. That right hand attack is gold. Staggs has improved in every aspect this season and he looks for a lot more ball a lot more often.

The left side still has Herbie for this year and when it clicks it is exceptional. But I feel that the Broncs need something else on the left in attack. If they have a plan C for their plan B left attack then they will put the fear into every defending team in the finals

The Broncos are preferring the right side attack these days and very little ball down the left. There is the old saying along the lines of “It is one thing to know what they are going to do. It is another to stop it being done.”
But do the Broncos have enough variety in their attack to get to and win the big dance? They certainly have the talent and the drive to win.

Am with you in that it was good for NSW to win. I personally would have been happy with 3 zip as well but this result for good for the 2024 series.
As a northerner, have no objections to the current coaching staff of NSW to stay on place. Their consistency in picking partially fit player out of position, causing confusion with players, their roles and their futures whilst sticking blindly to other players is great as far as I am concerned.

If Walker and Moses are in anywhere near the same spirits as this season, NSW would be of two minds 5o change a good thing.

Great pack defense by NSW. They also had some great power up the middle with the ball.
Brimson was solid but the difference between Walsh and he is wide at this level.

Good to see the NSW debutantes go well. Poor Gutho must feel gutted.

NSW still could have played much better in some areas, too. Chasing the ball didn’t seem like a high priority tonight. But gee, the intensity was there in other areas.

Well done to NSW. They played with energy and intensity that left Qld looking rather ad hoc after 20 minutes.

Looked like Walker brought some Teflon smoothness to the backline gears and he deserves his accolades.

Cotter or Linsey Collins could have taken the honors for the King medal. Hammer wouldn’t have been out of place either.

Bring on next year.

I’d like to apply. I will assure you that my win / loss record will be no worse than Fittler’s so far this season. I’ll front the media and offer more consistency in selections than Greg Alexander.
On my successful application, I will be taking expressions of interest to dill the role of attacking and defensive coaches, selectors and chief shenanigans organizer.
But if I don’t get the gig, maybe Potter would do a fair job in the role.

Well his thinking might have been that Walsh went so well in game 1 and 2. Brimson was 18th man and the Qld coach is a former fullback. That makes 1, 2, 4... No, no.. 3 …yes… 3 fullbacks in the Qld set up. So that is what NSW will do , too. 😂

Only 2 big men on the bench. Fittler has now chosen 3 different bench utilities in 3 games. How can someone’s thinking on something like that change so dramatically.

Cody Walker is on a hiding to nothing. If he wins it was only a dead rubber anyway. Lose and he will be the fall guy.

Anyway, NSW is not my concern. Bring on game 3.