Australia’s next ‘Adam Goodes’ saga’ is already happening

The NRL is confronting a disturbing truth about the scenes of a Broncos star being booed in a way the league has never seen before.

Ezra Mam. Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images.

Australia’s next “Adam Goodes” saga may have already begun, Broncos icon Gorden Tallis has suggested.

The Queensland cult hero has likened the hostile treatment Ezra Mam has received in recent weeks to the ugly booing storm that forced Swans champion Adam Goodes to walk away from his football career.

The Broncos playmaker on Friday night experienced his most brutal reception from a crowd yet when he was booed every time he touched the Steeden during Brisbane’s 22-18 win over Canterbury at Accor Stadium.

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The 22-year-old has been targeted by crowds since his return to the game in May after serving a nine-match suspension.

His return to the field with the Broncos sparked outrage across all corners of rugby league after he pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of illicit drugs without a licence following a car crash that injured three people in October, 2024.

The 2023 Dally M Five-Eighth of the Year was fined $850 and disqualified from driving for a period of nine months by the Brisbane Magistrates Court after his high-profile incident. No conviction was recorded.

Ezra Mam. Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images.

The NRL and Broncos served Mam with breach of contract notices and he was fined a total of $120,000 by the club and league.

Mam was booed by NRL fans before he even stepped back on the football field with spectators booing loudly when Mam was shown on the big screen inside Suncorp Stadium during Magic Round.

Tallis has noted the booing has gotten louder each match Mam has played since coming back for the Broncos.

“Ezra Mam is getting an Adam Goodes style treatment,” Tallis said on Triple M’s Sunday Sin Bin.

“No matter what ground he went at, Adam Goodes was targeted for a while and Ezra Mam is getting that now.

“It was coming loud and clear through the television the other night when he played the Dogs. It was every time he touched the ball.”

The booing did not appear to impact Mam’s playing ability as he orchestrated a thrilling comeback win.

Mam produced three moments of magic as Brisbane scored four tries in the final 20 minutes to shock the Dogs.

Mam roared towards sections of the crowd as he celebrated his teammates’ tries.

Leading NRL reporter Brent Read said the booing of Mam is not something he can remember seeing before.

“He loved it. I was sideline (reporting) and watched him and you could see his reaction when he set up those two tries, he just gave it to them. Gave it to the crowd,” Read said on Triple M’s Saturday Scrum.

“We’ve seen players booed over the years, but I don’t think we’ve seen a player booed as relentlessly as he was.

“It actually got louder as the game went on.”

Eels legend Nathan Hindmarsh said booing is just something Mam will have to get used to.

“That’s just part of playing rugby league,” he told Triple M.

“Some people are disliked... people are just going to keep booing him. As a professional sportsperson you’ve just got to get it out of your head.”

Last month Mam was called into Queensland’s extended State of Origin squad before Game 2 in Perth.

That selection was met with a barrage of criticism.

Mam was not selected by coach Billy Slater for the series decider on Wednesday night in Sydney.

Mam has been further criticised for appearing to be unaware of why he was being taunted and jeered by crowds.

He told The Sydney Morning Herald he first thought he was being booed for calling out the racist slur used against him by NSW forward Spencer Leniu during the Las Vegas season opener in 2024.

The reality appears to be very different.

Ezra Mam was booed before he got back onto the football field. Photo: Fox League.

Veteran rugby league reporter Phil Rothfield last month suggested Slater’s decision to select Mam in his extended squad was an “up yours” to fans.

“Ben Ikin, the CEO of the Queensland Rugby League and Billy Slater have not read the room under these circumstances,’’ Rothfield said on NRL 360.

“You saw Mam run onto Brookvale Oval and the entire crowd booed him. He is very, very lucky to be playing NRL football this year. I’m not going to go through the crime again.

“I think we’ve had to wear him coming back to play NRL this year. The NRL made the mistake there and so did the Broncos.

“But to put him on the highest stage of our game — extended bench or not — is going to the fans ‘up yours’.”

Mam appears to have a long career ahead of him, unlike Goodes when he left the AFL in 2015.

The two-time Brownlow medallist played 372 games for the Swans, a club record, but the closing years of his career were mired in controversy stemming from his move to call out a young Collingwood fan who had called him an “ape” during a game in 2013.

The AFL failed to take action to protect Goodes as the hostility followed him to every ground he played at.

The AFL four years’ later made a formal apology to the 2014 Australian of the Year.

Originally published as Australia’s next ‘Adam Goodes’ saga’ is already happening