By Nick Wright
Déjà vu ensued for the Brisbane Broncos once again: ultimately, they were their own worst enemy.
Coach Kevin Walters would have been left pulling his hair out, as his undermanned side came up with a glut of errors in a 32-16 defeat to the Warriors in New Zealand.
Before they could blink, last year’s grand finalists were down 16-0, with a double to Chanel Harris-Tevita and a Te Maire Martin try all coming directly from errors.
The errors from the Brisbane Broncos forced them into plenty of first half defence.Credit: NRL Photos
First, it was a knock on from prop Fletcher Baker just shy of halfway, before a pair of Deine Mariner mistakes allowed the Kiwis to dominate proceedings.
Dropped balls from both Mariner and Selwyn Cobbo could have proven more costly, if not for jolting tackles from Brendan Piakura and Jesse Arthars.
While their second half was considerably better than the first, errors from Josiah Karapani and Kotoni Staggs led to the match sealers for Dallin Watene-Zelezniak and Freddy Lussick.
This may have been a Broncos outfit without State of Origin stars Reece Walsh, Pat Carrigan and Payne Haas, the suspended Jordan Riki, as well as halfback and skipper Adam Reynolds, but that could be no excuse for a failure to execute the fundamentals of the game.
Walsh and Reynolds absences well and truly laid bare
While their ball control shot themselves in the foot, when Brisbane did have chances to strike their attack lacked creativity and spark.
Their sole first half try through Mariner came from a cross field bomb by Jock Madden which was fumbled by the Warriors. Twice, attempted grubbers in behind were smothered by the hosts, and when they at last forced a repeat set they were unable to reel in the short dropout.
Even after an Ezra Mam 40/20 eight minutes into the second half, and they were unable to offer any threat – every play was a forward taking a hit up, before Madden forced a dropout.
A busting run from Cobbo from the short kick looked to reap rewards, only for the Bunker to deem he had lost possession in the act of scoring. A penalty in the covering tackle gave the chance for Mariner to score his second out wide.
Tristan Sailor has stepped in to replace Reece Walsh in recent weeks for the Brisbane Broncos.Credit: NRL Photos
So much of Brisbane’s attack last year centred around Reynolds’ kicking game and direction and Walsh’s flair, and without the duo sniffing for chances the Broncos lacked penetration through the line.
Walsh will return for the Panthers battle, with his side now desperate to stay in touch with the top eight, but Reynolds (torn bicep) is still a month away.
Mam will need to replicate the form he showed earlier in the year to salvage this attack – his lone line-break assist the only moments he looked to conquer the Warriors’ defence.
Lack of impact highlighted, but veterans wind back the clock
Plenty was made of the off season exits of Thomas Flegler and Keenan Palasia, with pundits voicing concern the Broncos would lack the same punch through the middle as last year’s grand final quest.
Walters was adamant early on that they had enough reinforcements to adjust, but the reality of the situation has been laid bare in this four-game losing streak.
Veterans Marty Taupau and Corey Jensen, however, can hold their heads high for their efforts.
Marty Taupau was one of the few Brisbane Broncos forwards who could hold their head high.Credit: NRL Photos
Taupau’s injection, his first game in the NRL since round three, gave the Broncos a foundation to launch a comeback – his 168 running metres providing the platform for Mariner and Xavier Willison to score.
Jensen has been a reliable ally for Haas this season – and he finished with 160 metres and a whopping 46 tackles – but the seasoned campaigners were the only ones to top 100 running metres.
Willison managed six tackle busts, but was unable to drive forward from them, and the rest of the pack managed just four busts between them. By full-time, the Broncos had run for almost 600 metres less than their rivals.
In contrast, Addin Fonua-Blake, Mitch Barnett (both 164 metres) and Dylan Walker (143 metres) made metres with relative ease, with capable support from Marata Niokure (94 metres) before he left the field for a head injury assessment.
While pressure will heap on Madden and Mam to produce more in attack, they need a platform to work with – ball control and go forward crucial to that cause.
Depth to be tested again
Jack Goseiwski has suffered a suspected broken arm, putting another dent in the Broncos’ depth which has been tested to the brink this season.
Promising rookie prop Ben Te Kura is set to miss the rest of the campaign (Lisfranc surgery), while Riki will remain suspended against Penrith.
Haas and Carrigan cannot shoulder the entire burden of this pack, and the club will be praying for similar outputs from Jensen and Taupau to help support them.