NRL 2024: The Broncos are on the cusp of securing Reece Walsh’s long-term future in Brisbane as the Queensland Origin star returns to his best

After a challenging season, Broncos star Reece Walsh is back to his best and on the verge of finalising a bumper contract extension to remain in Brisbane for years to come.

Reece Walsh has put a disappointing Origin series behind him and been tipped to dominate Brisbane’s run to the finals as the Broncos race to finalise a $6 million contract extension before the Maroons star becomes a free agent.

Walsh was back to his brilliant best in last week’s drought-breaking win against Newcastle and coach Kevin Walters says he will be ready to defuse a barrage of Matt Burton bombs at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday despite battling illness.

Walsh sat out training on Friday due to a virus, but Walters is confident his key fullback will be cleared to face the Bulldogs.

“Reece has been sick the last couple of days so we’ve kept him away,” he said.

“He should be right (to play). He’ll be fine.

“He’s had a lot of training done with Origin and all that stuff. It’s an important part of the year to freshen him up.

“He’s a bit fluey and a bit crook so he’s been away the past couple of days, which is fine. He’ll be right.”

Broncos coach Kevin Walters is confident Reece Walsh will be fit to face the Bulldogs. Picture: John Gass

Illness is the latest hurdle in what has been a challenging season for Walsh on the back of last year’s grand final campaign where he rapidly rose to become the NRL’s most popular player in his return to Brisbane from the Warriors.

Everything Walsh touched last year turned to gold as the Broncos went on a fairytale run before a heartbreaking loss to Penrith in the premiership decider.

Since then, Walsh has experienced the lows that come on the NRL rollercoaster, with a string of injuries, concussion and poor form stalling his 2024 campaign.

But his dismantling of the Knights – including a try, two try assists and four line break assists – to snap Brisbane’s six-game losing streak highlighted how devastating Walsh can be when he is at his brilliant best.

The Broncos have been locked in contract negotiations with Walsh for six months to secure his long-term future at Red Hill before he officially becomes a free agent from November 1 and is hoping to announce a new multi-year deal worth in excess of $1 million-a-season before the end of this year’s premiership.

Broncos CEO Dave Donaghy said Walsh was an integral part of Brisbane’s future and the club was committed to looking after their superstar fullback on and off the field.

The Broncos want Walsh at the club for years to come. Picture: NRL Photos

“We see Reece being part of this club for a long time to come and we want to look after him,” he said.

“I have no doubt he will continue to get better and more experienced at handling challenges on and off the field as he gets older. A lot of those challenges will be unique to Reece Walsh.

“He is a fine young man and I’m looking forward to having him part of the Broncos for a long time to come.

“Reece is integral to the team but has only started 11 games for us this year. The Game One incident (concussion) was a shock and took him a little time to overcome.

“We need to be extremely careful with concussions and the way the club and Reece handled that was the right way.

“We have to make sure he not only gets back to his best in the short-term but also protect his long-term health and wellbeing as well as performance.”

After dominating in his debut Origin series last year, Walsh was mostly well-contained by the Blues as NSW won back the shield this year.

His brutal knockout following a Joseph Suaalii high tackle in the first game took weeks to overcome and Walsh was again targeted in last week’s series decider at Suncorp Stadium.

Walsh was brutally knocked out in Game One of this year’s Origin series. Picture: NRL Photos/Brett Costello

Walsh bravely not only backed up, but dominated, three days later against the Knights and Broncos captain Adam Reynolds said the 22-year-old was getting back to his best.

“He brings excitement. When he is up and about and buzzing around it’s a great sign for this footy team,” he said.

“We want him upbeat and taking the line on because that’s when Reece is at his best.

“We don’t need him frustrated, swearing and carrying on. That’s where I come into it to try and settle him down and get him back on the same page.

“He’s been fantastic to work with and is doing all the right things.

“There’s no doubt things were going to change for him. He’s a quality player and you can’t keep them down for too long.”

Walsh will face another tough test against the dogged Bulldogs if Burton finds time to unleash his towering bombs, but Reynolds said Brisbane’s No. 1 would rise to the challenge.

“I’m sure he will handle it well, he loves those sorts of challenges,” he said.

Corey Oates will come on to Brisbane’s bench for the Bulldogs game to provide backline cover, giving Walters options if Walsh is struggling with illness.

Originally published as NRL 2024: The Broncos are on the cusp of securing Reece Walsh’s long-term future in Brisbane as the Queensland Origin star returns to his best