Brisbane coach Anthony Seibold calls on senior Broncos to show more leadership
As Anthony Seibold aims to end Brisbane’s dismal recent history in Sydney, the Broncos coach has a message for his experienced players — stop relying on the young guns and show some leadership.
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Brisbane coach Anthony Seibold has challenged his senior players to improve their attitude on the road as the Broncos attempt to cure their Sydney curse in Sunday’s elimination final against Parramatta.
Seibold says the Broncos have to stop relying on the solo brilliance of rookies David Fifita and Payne Haas and has called for more leadership from the likes of Corey Oates, Matt Gillett, Anthony Milford and Andrew McCullough.
The Broncos head south to Bankwest Stadium hampered by a dismal away record with Seibold’s troops having conceded a staggering 164 points in five games on Sydney soil.
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Brisbane have conceded an average of 32 points per game in the Harbour City this season and boast a 1-4 losing record headlined by their 38-10 drubbing against the Eels in Round 14 at Bankwest.
The Broncos qualified for the finals on the back of some late-season cameos from Haas and Fifita, but Seibold says Brisbane’s title charge now hinges on the squad’s top dogs aiming up in sudden-death football.
“When we have gone to Sydney we have been very poor — that’s the reality of it,” Seibold told The Courier-Mail.
“We can’t expect Payne Haas and David Fifita to lead us.
“Our young forwards have barely played finals, Dave has played one game and Payne is playing his first game this week, so we need guys who have played in big games to lead the way and be more consistent.
“I want to see blokes like Corey Oates, Milford and our senior guys standing up this week.
“Those guys have played State of Origin. They have played in a grand final. We need those guys to go down there and do the job against Parramatta … it’s all attitude.”
Ironically, Brisbane’s only win in Sydney this year was achieved by the Baby Broncos, who stunned Cronulla 24-22 at PointsBet Stadium in round 16 with 10 rookies in one of the club’s finest triumphs.
Otherwise, the Broncos’ top squad have been flogged by the Roosters (36-4 at the SCG), Souths (38-6 at ANZ Stadium), the Eels (38-10) and the Bulldogs (30-14) last week at Homebush.
“I said to the players the other night (after the Bulldogs defeat) that our young blokes came down against Cronulla and got the job done,” Seibold said.
“We went down to Cronulla with all those young blokes like Xavier Coates and Herbie Farnworth, we had won five games and it was Round 16 and those kids helped turn our season around.
“I don’t see the difference between being home and away, we should play well wherever we go so that’s the challenge for us this week against Parramatta.”
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Seibold is adamant the Broncos’ self-belief has not been dented by a dismal loss to the Bulldogs on the eve of the finals.
“The Broncos went into the finals last year on a three-game winning streak and got beaten 48-18 by the Dragons in week one,” he said.
“Ideally, you want to take momentum into the finals, but I don’t think us playing poorly against the Dogs will have any impact on this game.
“One thing I will say is our games against Souths and Parra lately were very much like finals matches so that holds us in good stead.”
Originally published as Brisbane coach Anthony Seibold calls on senior Broncos to show more leadership