Broncos football boss Ben Ikin reveals why Anthony Milford had to leave Brisbane
Brisbane wouldn’t even offer Anthony Milford a downgraded deal to stay at the club next season and former coach Wayne Bennett believes the Broncos will pay for that error.
Broncos
Don't miss out on the headlines from Broncos. Followed categories will be added to My News.
New Brisbane football boss Ben Ikin has opened up about his decision to axe Anthony Milford as the $1 million man’s former Broncos coach Wayne Bennett came out swinging in support of the embattled playmaker.
Breaking his silence on Brisbane hierarchy’s strategic call not to offer Milford a new deal for next season, Ikin labelled the five-eighth “super talented”, but believes the under-fire pivot needs a fresh start to reinvigorate his ailing NRL career.
The Milford deal will go down as one of the most controversial contracts in Brisbane’s 33-year history.
When he signed a four-year, $4 million deal in 2017, Milford became Brisbane‘s highest-paid player, their first $1 million-a-season signing and the marquee playmaker the Broncos were banking on to engineer their seventh premiership.
Watch The 2021 Toyota AFL Premiership Season Live & On-Demand on Kayo. New to Kayo? Try 14-Days Free Now >
But the mega deal will expire in three months without a title to show for it and Ikin’s decision not to offer Milford another contract — even at a reduced rate — will draw the curtain on his seven-season, 147-game career at the Broncos.
There is a view Brisbane should have kept Milford on a cut-price, $300,000 deal, but Ikin said the impending departure of their one-time golden boy, who has been dropped three times this season, is the divorce both parties had to have.
“There were a multitude of reasons for letting Anthony go,” Ikin said.
“We looked at a number of roster-management scenarios around what his expectations were, what we had available under the salary cap, the direction the club was heading and the direction ‘Kev’ (coach Kevin Walters) wanted to take the club.
“It’s not one major factor, it’s a whole lot of little things that leads you to make a decision on an individual player.
“The Broncos have made decisions about what‘s coming next year. We have invested heavily in Adam Reynolds (Souths halfback) and we had to look at what we can afford to put around him and who is going to play where.
“We just felt it’s time for Anthony Milford to go and find himself a fresh environment.”
Milford is still young enough to rediscover his NRL mojo. He celebrates his 27th birthday this Monday and Bennett, his former Broncos coach, has not forgotten Milford’s magic that almost saw him win the Clive Churchill Medal in Brisbane’s heartbreaking grand-final loss to the Cowboys in 2015.
The Broncos have been pilloried for handing Milford a $1 million deal but, at the time, he was so highly regarded that Melbourne hired a private jet for the attacking whiz to meet with Storm super coach Craig Bellamy.
The Storm were prepared to pay $900,000 a season. It will never be known whether Milford would have kicked on to become the NRL’s No.1 player at the Storm, but Bennett is adamant the former Queensland Origin supersub is not a spent force.
“A smart club will sign Anthony Milford,” said Souths super coach Bennett, who mentored Milford for four seasons at the Broncos.
“If I was coaching next year and I had a chance to sign Anthony Milford, I would take him, that’s the best reference I can give to any NRL club.
“In a good system where he is appreciated for what he brings, Anthony Milford is a wonderful player, there is no doubt about that.
“But he needs to find a home that can benefit from what he brings and that club has to have a stable environment.
“He will find a club in the NRL, mark my words. He will have to take a major pay cut but it‘s not going to happen that he won’t get another contract.
“I coached him for four years, I know better than most what he can bring.
“The important thing for Anthony, like many players, is having the right environment around him.
“I don’t know if Souths can fit him in, there has been no discussion at this stage but I won’t be here next year.
“He has football ability, he hasn’t lost that. He has got skills most people don’t have and his kicking game is much improved.
“Anthony has more to offer, I really believe that. In the right club, Anthony will succeed.”
Ikin said offering Milford a downgraded deal, to ease the perceived stress of a $1 million contract, wasn’t an option and he hopes the 189-game veteran kicks on at another club.
“That (slashing Milford’s salary) wasn’t a factor in the decision we reached,” Ikin said.
“Based on our planning for next year, we felt that it was best for Milf, and for us, that we part company.
“There is no doubting that Anthony can play. He is a super talented rugby league player.
“Our hope now is that based on our decision, the Broncos can move forward and things work out well for us, and that ‘Milf’ moves forward and finds a place somewhere else and things work out well for him.”
More Coverage
Originally published as Broncos football boss Ben Ikin reveals why Anthony Milford had to leave Brisbane
What Maguire, Broncos can learn from grand final masterclass
Michael Maguire was in the stands for Penrith’s epic grand final win. There was plenty for the new Broncos coach to ponder, writes ROBERT CRADDOCK.
Broncos’ Bellamy blunder: How Brisbane fumbled Bennett successor
It’s the sliding doors moment that cost Brisbane the signing of Craig Bellamy and put Melbourne on the path to a two-decade dynasty. See the inside story of how the Broncos botched their Wayne Bennett succession plan.