Pressure is on halfbacks Anthony Milford and Ben Hunt when Broncos host Dragons, says Mal Meninga
THE Broncos let Ben Hunt walk because they believed Anthony Milford was the man to build their team around. This Thursday night, they’ll see if they got it right, writes MAL MENINGA.
Opinion
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RICKY Stuart, of all people, this week best exposed why the Broncos are under so much pressure going into Thursday night’s season-opening clash with St George Illawarra.
When Ricky announced his Raiders team this week to play the Titans on Sunday, a lot of people were taken by surprise to see Sam Williams starting in the halves and Blake Austin on the bench.
For the past two seasons, Austin and Aidan Sezer have been a terrific halves pairing for the Raiders, particularly in 2016 when they were running hot.
But now Austin is benched, Sezer is at No. 6 and Williams — a player who has not yet caught fire at NRL level — will be the starting halfback.
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Ricky is an excellent coach and was one of the best halfbacks of his era, so when he makes a contentious decision in the halves, there is probably a lesson worth heeding.
The selection of Williams says to me that Ricky is looking for game management in his halves — the ability to run the game and push the team around the field.
Williams’ key skill is his organisation. He has really good footy brain on him, is very composed and has a great kicking game. He is a smart player.
Brisbane need a guy like Sam Williams. And they haven’t got one.
Anthony Milford has the ability to do it — he is smart enough, he talks enough and he is a good enough player to be that dominant half for Brisbane.
Now he just needs to do it.
The key halves for both clubs will be under pressure — Ben Hunt, because he has to live up to that enormous price tag, and Milford for the very same reason.
The Broncos allowed Ben Hunt to walk was because they believed Milford was the man to build the team around and to run the show. And that is why the Broncos are paying him $1 million a year to do.
A lot of people expressed surprise that the Dragons would go into this game as favourites but the uncertainty around Brisbane’s halves would be making people think twice about the Broncos hitting their stride early in the year.
Compare these two teams from last season and it is easy to think that the Dragons are much better placed.
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Hunt is a new face in the spine but should settle in quickly alongside three quality players in Cameron McInnes, Gareth Widdop and Matt Dufty.
And any halfback would enjoy playing behind a pack containing James Graham, Paul Vaughan, Tyson Frizell, Tariq Sims and Jack De Belin.
It is easy to see how much the Dragons’ roster has improved from 2017.
You would have to argue that Brisbane’s playing list is weaker without Hunt, Ese’ese, Blair, Moga and Benji Marshall.
NO RIGHT AND WRONG IN LODGE DEBATE
THERE is a lot of negative sentiment surrounding the Broncos debut of Matt Lodge tonight. I guess the only way for him to deal with that is focus on his footy.
He can’t make amends for what he has done. So what does he do?
It’s a tough situation to deal with and I’m not sure there is a cut-and-dried, right-or-wrong answer.
The road ahead is going to be tough for Lodge. Taking everything else out of the equation, you have a 22-year-old making his first appearance for the club in the toughest position on the field.
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Not only that but the club needs him to be the cornerstone of the pack for the season with a total of 12 first grade games under his belt.
That’s a lot of pressure.
On top of that — again outside of issues off the field — Lodge is going to be a walking target for every other prop and big-hit merchant in the NRL this year.
James Graham will be hunting for him. Next week, it will be the Cowboys. That is how things are going to be for the next 25 weeks — and probably for the rest of his career.
How he handles himself through that will decide whether Lodge comes through the other side of this whole affair.
He is in the public eye now and people will be watching how he responds to everything that comes his way as a barometer of his character as a human being.
Tough times are character building and rugby league is an environment that is tough enough to build the character you want to be — if you are prepared to walk the hard road.
I believe in lifelines. I believe in second chances. I understand the value of people believing in you, wanting to give you an opportutniy and help you to become a good person.
That is why the Matt Lodge story, and Todd Carney with the Cowboys, are not about footy.
We know they are good footy players, we get it. But they don’t misbehave when they are on the field. That’s not the issue.
What we want to know is whether they are good people and whether they have the character to be the people they claim they really are.
Originally published as Pressure is on halfbacks Anthony Milford and Ben Hunt when Broncos host Dragons, says Mal Meninga