NRL Magic Round 2023: Broncos win 32-6 over Manly, Raiders win 34-30 over Bulldogs
The Broncos have continued their Magic Round dominance over Manly, with Reece Walsh shaking off some pre-game nerves to help Selwyn Cobbo score yet another hat-trick against the Sea Eagles.
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Anthony Seibold’s Broncos nightmare continued as razor-sharp Reece Walsh and hat-trick hero Selwyn Cobbo turned on the magic to inspire Brisbane’s 32-6 belting of Manly at Suncorp Stadium on Friday night.
Kevin Walters climbed off his sick bed to coach Brisbane to victory, but it was his Manly rival Seibold who was left crook in the guts as his former Broncos club rubbed salt into deep wounds before 50,077 fans.
The Broncos crashed to their first ever wooden-spoon in 2020 during Seibold’s rocky 20-month reign at Red Hill and his return to face Brisbane for the first time degenerated into a Suncorp stitch-up.
Missing the inspirational Jake Trbojevic, it was a Magic Round mauling for Manly (4-5), who bumbled to a 20-0 half-time deficit as the return of Payne Haas and Ezra Mam from suspension ignited the Broncos.
Livewire fullback Walsh was electric and when Cobbo raced 80 metres for his 71st minute hat-trick, it kept Brisbane (8-2) atop the league, setting up a blockbuster against nemesis the Storm next Thursday night in Melbourne.
Just moments before he took the field, Walsh vomited into a wheelie bin. But any big-game nerves were quickly soothed as Walsh torched the Sea Eagles with 140 metres and a whopping 11 tackle busts.
Silenced by South Sydney last week, Walsh aptly rediscovered his magical touches in Magic Round, having a hand in Cobbo’s opening two tries to fire the Broncos to a 16-0 lead inside 23 minutes.
Walsh’s blinding speed off the mark is a formidable weapon for the Broncos. He turns half-chances into genuine tryscoring moments. Slater may well stick with Kalyn Ponga at fullback for Origin I, but ‘Reece Lightning’ is a comforting safety net.
SUPER SELWYN
Has Cobbo done enough to retain his Queensland jumper? On this evidence, the answer is an emphatic yes.
The Indigenous flyer has been patchy at times this season but Cobbo sent Queensland coach Billy Slater a timely reminder of his class with another terrific treble.
Cobbo has become Brisbane’s Magic Round specialist. He now has six tries in back-to-back Magic Round games against Manly, including last year’s sizzling hat-trick in Brisbane’s 38-0 drubbing.
Cobbo suffered a shocking concussion in the opening minutes of last year’s Origin decider but the Broncos ace only has to stay fit to be back in Maroon for the series opener on May 31.
RAIDER PRESSES ORIGIN CLAIMS AS MAGIC ROUND DRAMA BEGINS
— Michael Carayannis
A dramatic late finish almost overshowed Corey Horsburgh’s push for a debut Maroons jersey. Horsburgh is inching towards the Maroons jersey he has long craved after helping lead the Raiders to a 34-30 win against Canterbury to kickstart Magic Round.
Horsburgh is emerging as a genuine Queensland difference maker and the man which could bring the series to life. The firebrand was outstanding in an unbroken 62 minute stint where he laid the foundations for the Raiders to overcome Canterbury which prompted Ricky Stuart to describe him as the “form of his career”.
“There is a class footballer and an Origin footballer,” Stuart said. “He is both. He has been so consistent with his form. He could’ve played 80 minutes but I have three big middles on the bench.”
The Raiders should have secured the game if it was not for a referee error by Chris Sutton. Sutton ruled a knock on call against Wighton where replays showed the ball had hit his head. Raiders winger Xaiver Savage raced away for what would have been a try. Instead the Bulldogs were given the ball on Canberra’s 40 metre line. From the scrum the Bulldogs kicked for Burton who gathered the ball and threw inside to Hayze Perham who was tackled by Ata Mariota. The bunker ruled a penalty try against Mariota to have the Raiders leading by just four.
“Chris has a tough job,” Stuart said. “Two tries that were tries… We are learning while we are winning. We could’ve been in the same position now winning those games.”
BRONCOS BOOST: KEVVIE’S MIRACULOUS RECOVERY FOR MAGIC ROUND CLASH
—Peter Badel
Bed-ridden Brisbane coach Kevin Walters has made a swift recovery from the flu and will be on deck to face Anthony Seibold’s Sea Eagles at Suncorp Stadium.
Just hours after advising the club he would not attend the clash, Walters has been cleared by Brisbane’s doctors after undergoing a fresh Covid test.
Experienced Broncos assistant John Cartwright was set to be thrust into Brisbane’s coaching hot seat after Walters admitted he was unlikely to recover from illness in time for the crucial round 10 clash at Suncorp Stadium.
Walters advised Broncos hierarchy on Friday afternoon that he is too ill to call the shots in Brisbane’s coaching box.
But Walters has made a stunning recovery and turned up at Suncorp Stadium in a boost for the Broncos.
It is understood a Broncos player reported to training earlier in the week with the flu and that has been passed onto Walters.
“I got a bit of a surprise, I spoke to Kevvie on Wednesday night and he is not really well,” Cartwright said.
“We’re being a bit cautious with the flu season and how it can affect a playing group if it goes around, so it’s more of a precaution than anything else.”
SURPRISE GUEST
—Michael Carayannis
Former Wallabies coach and radio star Alan Jones was a surprise guest in the Raiders dressing room prior to kick-off on Friday. Jones was seen chatting with Canberra coach Ricky Stuart just before kick-off.
BENNETT THREATENS WALK-OUT AS MAGIC ROUND KICKS OFF
—Travis Meyn
Wayne Bennett threatened to walk out of his pre-game press conference after being asked about his 900-game coaching milestone.
Bennett, 73, will coach what is regarded as his 900th premiership match when the Dolphins face Cronulla at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday night.
But the seven-time premiership-winner was in no mood to talk about the milestone at Redcliffe on Friday morning, in an otherwise comedic press conference.
“We either change the subject or I just move on,” Bennett told reporters.
“I’m not talking about my achievements, what I’ve done and haven’t done.
“You’ve written about them, had an opinion on them. We’ve all had enough of it.”
When pressed on his coaching career, Bennett gave a final warning.
“Oh, we’re talking about me again?” he said.
“I’ll be clear then. If you want to talk about the team and players, that’s fine.
“But if you want to talk about me I’ll just have to leave the conference.”
Bennett’s 900-game career started with the Canberra Raiders in 1987 (28 games) and has included stints with the Brisbane Broncos (631 matches 1988-2008 and 2015-2018), St George Illawarra (79 matches 2009-2011), Newcastle Knights (75 matches 2012-2014) and South Sydney Rabbitohs (77 matches 2019-2021).
He will coach the Dolphins for the 10th time at Magic Round and his record stands at 562 wins, 323 losses and 14 draws, for a winning percentage of 62.5.
But Bennett said he was well beyond 1000 games if his Brisbane Rugby League coaching career was recognised, which included eight seasons with Brothers and Souths before he moved to the NSWRL.
“If you put all those in I’m well over 900,” he said.
“I coached at least 180 in Brisbane before I went to the NRL.
“I don’t see why they shouldn’t (count), but unless you’re in the NRL life doesn’t really exist outside of it.
“There is a lot of existence outside it and a lot of great players that did great things in those competitions prior to the NRL.
“I’ve always believed the players should get that recognition but it doesn’t count so you move on with life.”
Bennett spoke briefly about his near 50-year coaching career.
“I never thought about being a coach,” he said.
“It’s not something I wanted to do and I’m still not sure if I want to be a coach.
“I found myself doing it and I’m still doing it today.”
Apart from the brief warning to the press pack, Bennett was in a jovial mood, cracking jokes about Dolphins debutant Valynce Te Whare, who will replace injured centre Brenko Lee (hamstring).
The New Zealand rugby union convert has been nicknamed “Val Meninga” due to his stocky build and hard-running style like Immortal Mal Meninga.
But Bennett said the comparisons were off the mark, apart from one area.
“Val Meninga, I liked that line,” he said.
“I saw that the other day and I thought ‘what are the similarities between him and Mal Meninga?’
“I coached Mal, he was a great player and great guy. The only similarities are the shorts – they’re the same size.
“That’s the only similarity I could come up with. He’s no Mal Meninga, I can tell you that much.”
Dolphins captain Jesse Bromwich will miss the match with a minor hamstring injury.
QUEENSLAND ORIGIN HERO’S OMINOUS WARNING
Maroons maestro Cameron Munster says he hasn’t hit peak form as the Storm star sets his sights on returning to the Origin arena to torment NSW.
Munster will lead Melbourne into Saturday night’s Magic Round blockbuster against South Sydney at Suncorp Stadium.
The Storm have rebounded from a shaky start to the season, which included losses to the Bulldogs and Titans, to sit in the top four heading into round 10.
Part of Melbourne’s early-season struggles were due to Munster watching from the sidelines as he recovered from an ugly compound fracture to a finger.
While he has shown glimpses of the form that made him the NRL’s most potent player early last year in recent weeks, Munster insists he is not yet back to his best.
He has three big games against the Rabbitohs, Broncos and Dolphins before Queensland coach Billy Slater picks his Game One team for the Origin series-opener in Adelaide on May 31.
Munster, 28, missed last year’s epic Origin decider victory due to Covid, but will be the first player picked when Maroons selectors meet on May 21.
In what could be a worrying sign for the Blues, the five-eighth said he is still regaining confidence in his finger.
“I’ve been all right,” Munster said when asked to assess his form.
“Having that compound fracture in my finger hindered me for a few weeks and I’m still getting back into the contact things and being confident with the finger.
“At times, the ball-playing is all right but I’m not being that aggressive person I used to be in tackles. I’m trying to get back to that feeling and cohesion in the team.”
The Storm’s title credentials were questioned by pundits following losses to the Bulldogs and Titans, the two games Munster missed.
Since then they have won four of five games, losing only to Manly, and will face the in-form Rabbitohs fresh off a bye.
Munster said complacency was costing teams, including Melbourne, in an ultra-competitive 2023 premiership.
“We’ve played really good footy against the teams no-one really gave us a chance against,” he said.
“No one gave us a chance against Souths (in round five) but we played well and won.
“We had a really good week against the Roosters (28-8 win).
“We’re playing good footy against teams we know we need to play well against.
“Then teams that aren’t given a chance against us, they come out and blast us.
“Teams are getting a bit complacent and that’s around the whole competition at the moment.
“No one gave Wests Tigers a chance against Penrith.
“Anyone can win on their day. If one team is a little bit off and the other is on, then it’s hard to change the momentum of the game with the new rules.
“It’s hard to put a finger on who’s going the best at the moment. The teams going the best at the moment are probably the Sharks and Souths.
“Those two teams are the front of everything at the moment, but anyone can win on their day.”
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