Brisbane Broncos must ‘embrace the collision’ after Sharks pounding to keep top eight momentum

A Maroons great has fears the Broncos could miss the finals while another club hardman says it’s time to ‘embrace the collision’ as the team looks to bounce back from a couple of painful loses.

BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA - MAY 26: Patrick Carrigan of the Broncos in action during the round 12 NRL match between Brisbane Broncos and Gold Coast Titans at Suncorp Stadium, on May 26, 2024, in Brisbane, Australia. (Photo by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images)

Cooper Cronk fears the Broncos are in danger of sliding out of finals contention while stand-in captain Pat Carrigan has called for the side to lift their game.

The Broncos have lost two games in a row against the Titans and Cronulla and former club hard man Trevor Gillmeister has conceded the team was “bashed’’ into submission against the Sharks on Saturday.

The Broncos lie on the bottom rung of the eight with seven wins from 13 games and an improving South Sydney lying menacingly in their path this weekend.

“They (the Broncos) have talent galore, but if they don’t start winning a couple of games here, they might just drop out of the eight,’’ Cronk said on Fox League.

“The key thing when Adam Reynolds went down is can they win enough games and be fit and healthy for when Reynolds comes back. And if they are in the finals, you probably back the Broncos to win from anywhere. But at the moment, they are just not playing their best football.

“They aren’t picking up the two points they should win and if they don’t do it before those boys (return), they just might be really on that edge because there’s a couple of teams jagging wins that will make it quite difficult for the Broncos.’’

Pat Carrigan’s form has been exceptional. Picture: Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images

Carrigan’s form remains exceptional amid the form blip and there has been a feeling over the past month that the team is not grinding out matches as well as they can and are snatching at victory.

“Individually across the field we’re making poor decisions and coming up with cheap errors,’’ Carrigan said.

“The good thing is it’s about us as a group. It’s on us to fix it up.’’

Gillmeister believes the Souths game is one of the most important for the season for the Broncos and has urged the team to “embrace the collision.’’

“They got bashed up on the weekend – physically dominated by Cronulla,’’ Gillmeister said.

“It happens to us all. It is how you respond. Hopefully it is a one-off.

“Souths are a big pack but it is not the size – it is the attitude. They did not embrace the collision against the Sharks.

“As a forward if a coach comes to you and says ‘you blokes got beaten up’, that’s embarrassing for you. The coach is basically say we did not have a go.’’

Kerrod Walters, brother of coach Kevin, sees no immediate cause for alarm so long as the team can learn to put in an 80 minute performance.

“Some of the performances they have had the past couple of weeks you would rather have now that September,’’ Walters said.

“I am confident they will make the finals but they just need to be able to finish games off. If they make the finals they have the team make a run in it.’’

Originally published as Brisbane Broncos must ‘embrace the collision’ after Sharks pounding to keep top eight momentum