NRL 2024: Brisbane Broncos must face uncomfortable truth about club’s future and where improvement will come from

The disappointment over the Broncos’ 2024 season is still palpable for fans – but as they start to look to the future, the question is – where does improvement come from next season?

Well, that was fun while it lasted.

A moment in the sun in 2023 turned out to be a false dawn.

Who could have guessed it was a mere break in the clouds?

Not I, and I would be willing to bet very few of even the most pessimistic of NRL fans.

No, dark days are here again.

And who knows when they will ever leave.

It’s the uncomfortable truth Broncos fans are now facing.

How will anything change if nothing changes for the better?

And where does the improvement come from in 2025?

The Broncos put on one of their worst performances of the season with finals on the line. Picture: NRL Photos

After Saturday’s loss to the Dolphins Kevin Walters didn’t have the answers either.

Not to questions about how it’s all gone wrong, nor why the Broncos don’t realise they need to play every week or how to get out of the mess they’ve created for themselves.

Nothing meaningful is going to be sorted out in a post match press conference, but at the very least it’s an opportunity to talk to your fans.

And they’re more confused than ever about what the Broncos stand for as an organisation.

Walters claimed it’s not Brisbane-like to lose like they did against the Dolphins, except that it is.

They’ve had shocking losses scattered all throughout the year with their season on the line, and rarely did they look as though they had anything worthwhile to play for.

How are fans meant to feel about that?

Walters is feeling the heat and so he should be as the man in charge.

Never mind the immense disappointment of this season, making finals once in four years is nowhere near good enough for this club, and less popular coaches have paid a higher price for similar results.

Although he tried to make the point, losing a handful of players out of the 2023 grand final team is not the reason for this year’s capitulation.

Good clubs can cover those hits and make up for them elsewhere.

But if they’re not careful the roster will be an issue in 2025.

They’ve gone all in on star fullback Reece Walsh who will need to show a lot more on the field than he did in 2024 to prove he’s worth the investment.

He’s set for a monster contract upgrade, which will have a knock on effect elsewhere.

Off-contract stars Kotoni Staggs or Selwyn Cobbo could be the ones to pay for it.

At the other end of the squad Adam Reynolds is heading into his 14th NRL season and there’s no clear choice to replace him despite the urgency of the situation.

Injuries have taken hold of the champion No.7 this year and there’s no denying he’s at the end of his career, turning 35 midway through next season.

His biggest and best days are behind him.

It will take an almighty overhaul to prove the same isn’t true for the Broncos.