NRL 2020: Brisbane Broncos leadership group silent during Roosters loss
The most revealing images of the Broncos night of shame came when nothing was happening. Apart from the occasional muttered line or curse, the sound of silence was deafening, writes Robert Craddock
Opinion
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The most revealing images of the Broncos night of shame came when nothing was happening.
If you catch a replay of the Broncos 59-0 loss to the Roosters, take particular attention to who is talking in the team huddles behind the Broncos posts after many of the Roosters’ 10 tries.
The answer? No one. Apart from the occasional muttered line or curse, the sound of silence was deafening.
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With no crowd in the background these must have been truly haunting moments for the players.
There are a collection of startled, almost trancelike expressions from Broncos players who are breathing heavily, but the youngest team in the competition has no commanding voice or guiding light.
Co-captains Brodie Croft and Pat Carrigan are both still learning the game, so any “boys, this is not acceptable’’ rant would have sounded hollow. Both looked stunned and shattered.
If ever a football team needed a “where’s the passion?’’ tub-thumper from a senior player this was the night, but there was no one on hand with the verve or nerve to deliver it.
This is a huge worry. The Broncos seven-man leadership group has effectively become a redundant “followship’’ group.
Darius Boyd is battling to hold his place, while reckless Tevita Pangai Jr would use a sledgehammer to squash a mosquito and his suspensions show a lack of common sense no leader would be proud of.
Alex Glenn can’t get on the paddock, and while Matt Lodge has a crack, there is still the sense the lid is likely to pop from his saucepan when the heat is on.
Mind you, crimes of passion aren’t the worst thing in a team showing none.
That leaves Payne Haas, who some feel is naturally quiet and best left to his own devices, and Carrigan, who is committed and courageous but trying to bail out the Titanic with a bucket is understandably beyond one young man, no matter how promising.
The strange thing about leadership is that the more leaders you appoint, the more it says about how few genuine ones you actually have.
It is a huge setback for a team to have no soothing senior voice because the Broncos may well cop it from all angles this season.
The smiles will disappear at training, players will retreat to their phones to be assaulted by social media.
Just going out in public could at times, be an awkward experience.
Anthony Milford was dropped from the leadership group this season with a view to letting his creative running talents express themselves, but he is a poor “back foot’’ player who is not going to lead from behind, so to speak.
The Broncos probably would not have lost by so many points had their passion levels been roused by a big home crowd, even if that crowd turned against them.
But the question must be asked – if you need a crowd to get you going when your first grade journey is just getting going, do you really have what it takes in the first place?
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GOOD: Roosters hooker Jake Friend is likely to make his State of Origin debut this year at age 30. According to Cooper Cronk, the Nambour kid would put his head where you wouldn’t put your foot. His Origin jersey will be the reward for years of courageous, unsung service.
BAD: The continued “nowhere’’ state of Australian rugby with a hurriedly reshaped domestic competition, no broadcast deal, anxious players pondering overseas deals ... and the certainty that things will get worse before they get better.
UGLY: Horrific is the more appropriate word for the Broncos’ Thursday night stats, which featured just 37 per cent of possession, a butterfingered 57 per cent completion rate, one line break and, just 869 running metres compared to the Roosters’ 1745. Yikes.
Originally published as NRL 2020: Brisbane Broncos leadership group silent during Roosters loss