NRL 2021: Kevin Walters denies Broncos are a ‘mess’ as club battles to avoid wooden spoon

Kevin Walters has hit out at suggestions the Broncos are a club in crisis amid speculation the coach has fallen out with former Queensland Origin star Corey Oates.

Brisbane Broncos captain Alex Glen addresses the media at Red Hill after their loss against the Canberra Raiders, Brisbane 14th of June 2021. (Image/Josh Woning)

Besieged Kevin Walters has denied Brisbane are a “mess” and insists he is up to the top job amid speculation the Broncos coach has fallen out with former Queensland Origin star Corey Oates.

Walters is in danger of claiming the wooden spoon in his rookie year as coach and his one-time mentor Wayne Bennett can inflict more pain when he returns to Suncorp Stadium on Thursday night with a top-four Souths side.

Hailed as the club legend who could rebuild the Broncos following the Anthony Seibold debacle, Walters has struggled to find traction in charge of a Brisbane side running equal last alongside Canterbury with three wins from 14 games.

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Walters’ Broncos have leaked a whopping 436 points — the worst defensive record in the league — and the coach is underfire for his team selections, which include a consistent snubbing of ex-Origin flyer Oates.

But as he prepares to face Bennett for the second time this season, Walters hit out at suggestions the Broncos are a club in crisis as they fight to avert consecutive wooden spoons.

Corey Oates has only played five NRL games this year. Picture: Getty Images

“I wouldn’t say it’s a mess,” he said.

Asked if restoring the Broncos as a title force was a bigger job than he anticipated, Walters added: “No, not at all.

“All the people I have spoken to, from Wayne Bennett (former Broncos coach) to Craig Bellamy (Storm mentor), two of the great coaches, they understand it’s not always smooth sailing for those guys as well.

“There’s going to be tough times in everyone’s career.

“At the moment we are doing it difficult but I still love the club, I love the place and I love working with our players to try and get them better each week.”

One of those players is the out-of-favour Oates, who was overlooked for round one and was axed again after Brisbane’s 50-6 Magic Round loss to Manly last month.

The Courier-Mail understands the Broncos would be prepared to consider offloading Oates given he is one of the club’s highest-paid players on a deal worth more than $600,000 a season.

Oates has fronted Walters in recent weeks seeking feedback on his game, but the winger has walked away from the meetings confused about where he stands with the Broncos coach.

Walters confirmed he has met with Oates, but insists he has not given up on the 161-game veteran, who is contracted to the Broncos until the end of 2022.

“He (Oates) hasn’t challenged me,” Walters said. “He just asked how he was going and I gave him some feedback ... it’s between Corey and I (what they discussed).”

Asked if Oates will be at the Broncos next season, Walters replied: “Yeah, he is contracted so I can’t see why he wouldn’t be.

“When Corey plays to his ability, he will be back in the side ... it’s not that hard.”

The equal last-placed Broncos and Bulldogs have the same differential (-204), setting up a wooden-spoon battle for the last 10 weeks, but Walters is adamant Brisbane have improved and says the pressure is not getting too him.

“I’m not frustrated,” he said. “Rugby league is a tough world and coaching is tough.

“Certainly there have been some big challenges but it hasn’t been frustrating. We are making some progress. I can see the small steps we are taking, so if we continue to move in the right direction, we will get there in the end.”

Broncos coach Kevin Walters is sticking by Xavier Coates but not Corey Oates. Image by Scott Davis-NRL Photos

THE GLARING ISSUE NO ONE AT BRONCOS IS TALKING ABOUT

Chris Honnery

It’s not just the shadow of Darren Lockyer hanging over the Broncos but it’s his voice which is missing from a team under siege.

Current Broncos captain Alex Glenn has called out his side’s inability to talk on the footy field which has seen the Brisbane club concede 436 points this year — the worst of any team after 14 games.

Brisbane slumped to their 11th loss of the season after Saturday’s 38-16 defeat to Canberra and face the fourth-placed Rabbitohs at Suncorp Stadium on Thursday night.

Leading into this week’s grudge match, Glenn has urged his teammates to talk more on the field and referenced former teammate Lockyer as the perfect example.

Brisbane Broncos captain Alex Glen says a lack of communication is causing all sorts of problems for the battling club.

“I’ve been in successful teams and when you’re in a successful team, no one shuts up out on that field,” Glenn said.

“Prime example is Darren Lockyer.

“His voice was always gone because he just never shut up in attack and defence.

“You can’t be a tight knit group in defence when there’s no talk.

“I noticed it straight away (against the Dragons) and I brought it up in the meeting and rectified it at training.

“In the past, we’ve been very quiet.

“When you’re in defence and there’s no talk, you start to lose trust in the man beside you.

“We just need to get a bit more mongrel in ourselves and wipe those disciplinary errors and we’ll find ourselves getting back.”

Darren Lockyer never shied away from letting his feelings be known by constantly talking to his teammates.

With his sights set on fixing the Broncos short-term problems, Glenn’s long-term future has yet to be decided.

The 32-year-old veteran comes off contract at the end of the 2021 season but has been hampered by injury in recent months.

Glenn said he remained “open to all options” but was yet to make his mind up on his playing career beyond this year.

“It’s only my second game back from injury and I’ve always said to myself that I want to give it a red hot crack and make sure my body is good,” he said.

“I don’t want to be selfish and hang on.

“I haven’t made my decision up yet.

“I want to have a few more games under my belt and push my boundaries.

“The speed of the game is pushing us older blokes out but that’s the reality of the sport.”

Glen comes out of contract at the end of the season and his long-term future remains unclear.

Brisbane are set to welcome back Xavier Coates for their clash with South Sydney this week after the Maroons winger was ruled out last minute with a hamstring injury last weekend.

“I spoke to Xavier (on Monday) morning and he said it’s all good,” Glenn said.

“In the warm up, he didn’t feel anything go and he pulled the pin when he needed to.

“At the moment, there’s some promising signs (with Coates) but I think Albert Kelly might be one more week.

“We’ve got Kotoni Staggs looking to come back for the Sharks game in a couple weeks so there’s some positive signs with players coming back.”

Originally published as NRL 2021: Kevin Walters denies Broncos are a ‘mess’ as club battles to avoid wooden spoon