NRL 2020: Brisbane Broncos haunted by Matt Lodge contract
Kevin Walters turned heads when he revealed plans to make Anthony Milford the Broncos captain in 2021, but history suggests it could actually be a masterstroke and help reignite Milford’s spark.
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Robert ‘Crash’ Craddock runs the rule over another week in rugby league land - and it’s a Brisbane contract that kicks off Crash Tackle.
FIVE-YEAR ITCH
Just when you thought the Broncos had their fill of five-year contract dramas another one has landed in the lap of new coach Kevin Walters.
Much was made of the five-year deal handed out to Broncos coach Anthony Seibold but it is now a contract of similar length to Matt Lodge which has come under withering scrutiny.
Midway through last year prop Lodge was given a three-year deal.
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What was not made public in the contract announcement was that Lodge also gained two further years as options in his favour which means he had potentially four years left at the club.
Lodge may have been on the rise at the time but the “six again’’ rule has made lumbering forwards as out of fashioned as big thick phone books which is why the Broncos may yet unload him to another club such as the Warriors.
The lesson has vividly reinforced the perils of long term deals ... again.
GAME IN THE GUTTER
Rugby league is in good shape on the field but a brutal week of bad publicity has dragged it back in time and into the gutter it knows so well.
The Australian’s detailed accusations of Sam Burgess overshadowed last week’s finals and then came the arrest of Wendell Sailor ’s son Tristan for allegedly drugging and assaulting a 22-year-old female and the banning of Parramatta’s Michael Jennings after a positive drug test.
The latest dramatic entry is the stunning revelations of drug-taking, sexual exploits and widespread cover-ups revealed by the former unnamed wife of an Australian player.
One of her most relevant points was not a salacious piece of information but simply the claim that “the NRL integrity until is a joke. It is solely in place to protect the interests of the game.’’
She is not the first to say this and will not be the last. For all of the bucket loads of money spent on the Integrity Unit, it has failed to change the culture of game.
THE COOLEST HEAD
Has Wayne Bennett outsmarted the rest of the NRL?
Bennett revealed after Souths’ rampaging win over the Eels that he deliberately eased off training during the COVID shutdown so his team did not peak too early in the ultra-long season.
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It was a smart move and a brave one given a host of nervous coaches went the other way and got the whips out.
Bennett’s simple game plans are often criticised but often the simplest ploys are the biggest and best plays.
KEV’S COFFEE DATE?
Kevin Walters should invite Lions coach Chris Fagan for a coffee as soon as the AFL season finishes.
They have much in common and Walters can be inspired by the sage mentor.
Fagan had never been a head AFL coach until age 56 when he took over the Lions. Walters will be three years younger when the Broncos start their 2021 campaign.
But there’s more than that. The Lions had finished 17th two years in a row before Fagan landed for the 2017 season. He rebuilt the club from the bottom up by, as Dayne Zorko said in a radio interview last week, working on relationships and banishing big egos by insisting no one was more important than anyone else.
There are many lessons the Broncos could follow.
OH CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN
Some Broncos fans may have crashed into their cornflakes when they read of Walters plans to promote Anthony Milford to Broncos captain but history insists it could work.
Darius Boyd used to be so timid in State of Origin camps he would hide in his room when media conferences were on yet he blossomed into a respected leader.
Johnathan Thurston had his issues as a young player before leadership brought the best out of him.
You never know where a good leader is coming from. The Titans Jamal Fogarty rose to the captaincy after initially thinking he would play the winter with the Burleigh Bears.
Suddenly, choosing Milford doesn’t see a major gamble at all.
Originally published as NRL 2020: Brisbane Broncos haunted by Matt Lodge contract