NRL 2021: Anthony Milford opens up on how he can revive his career after Broncos axing

The Anthony Milford narrative will be remembered as one of the most thrilling, confounding and frustrating chapters in Brisbane’s storeyed history. Now he gets the chance to start afresh elsewhere.

Anthony Milford in action for the Broncos earlier this year. Picture: Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images

Unwanted Bronco Anthony Milford insists he is not a spent force in the NRL and has pledged to revive his career after enduring the turbulence of the most controversial contract in Brisbane’s 33-year history.

Speaking for the first time since being told last week he will not be given a new Brisbane contract next season, Milford opened up about the pain of his free fall from $1 million man to Broncos discard.

He insists there is no rift with coach Kevin Walters. There is no bitterness towards Broncos bosses for their call to move him on.

Watch The 2021 NRL Telstra Premiership Live & On-Demand on Kayo. New to Kayo? Try 14-Days Free Now >

The Anthony Milford era at the Broncos is coming to an end.

The off-contract Milford, who celebrates his 27th birthday on Sunday, suspected the bullet was coming.

It has been a wretched campaign for the highest-paid player in Broncos history.

Miford has been dropped three times by Walters this season and suffered two major injuries, including a broken hand and a knee problem which required surgery last month, so when new Broncos football boss Ben Ikin took office a fortnight ago, it was time to deliver the truth.

After seven seasons and 147 first-grade games for the NRL glamour club, Milford is finished as a Bronco. The truth hurt, but there is also a sense of relief. Milford now has clarity.

“There is a bit of sadness about it,” said Milford, who hasn’t been seen in Broncos colours since Brisbane’s 40-12 loss to the Storm on May 27.

“I’m disappointed I have to move on, but it’s part of the professional game these days, it’s business, and I have to accept it.

“They (Broncos hierarchy) called me in and pretty much said there wasn’t a spot for me next year.

“They said they had recruited a few halves and with their salary cap at the moment, there wasn’t enough room left for me.

“There’s no hard feelings with ‘Kevvie’. Sometimes I didn’t agree with why I was dropped.

“I started the year with high hopes, but things just haven’t clicked as a team this year and I have to take some responsibility for that.

“There’s eight games to go so it’s up to me to try and finish the year well.”

Milford didn’t always see eye-to-eye with Kevin Walters.

The Milford narrative will be remembered as one of the most thrilling, confounding and frustrating chapters in Brisbane’s storeyed history.

From day one, Milford’s journey was a turbulent affair.

A teenage sensation at Canberra, Milford declared he was homesick and it took a bitter stoush with the Raiders for the Broncos to eventually secure his release for the 2015 season.

Milford became an instant hit at Red Hill. In his first year at the club under Wayne Bennett, Milford made the famous No.6 jumper his own and went within a whisker of winning the Clive Churchill Medal in Brisbane’s 2015 crushing grand-final loss to the Cowboys.

That game seemed to crystallise Milford’s career at the Broncos.

In the final minute of the game, Milford streaked away and only had to hold the ball to seal a Broncos premiership. Instead, he was stripped of possession, leading to the Cowboys try which sent the game into extra-time and set-up Johnathan Thurston for his field-goal heroics.

So near, yet so far. The story of Milford’s Red Hill rollercoaster.

“It’s hard to get over that grand final. I’ve thought about it over and over,” he said.

“I’ve had some great memories here and made a lot of good friends. I can’t go past the feeling of making the 2015 grand final and the grand final itself. I know it ended badly for us but I look back at the team we had on paper and we had a great squad.

“I know I’ve copped a lot of criticism but I would like to think I gave a lot to the Broncos jumper.

The pain of the 2015 grand final defeat still hurts Anthony Milford. Picture: Adam Head

“The last couple of years have hurt me. I do take pride in my performances and I’m disappointed things haven’t worked out the way a lot of us had hoped.”

It is impossible not to frame Milford’s career at the Broncos around the $1 million contract that put enormous pressure on him to deliver Brisbane’s seventh premiership.

Off-contract in 2017, Milford was in such high demand that Melbourne hired a private jet for him to hold talks with Storm super coach Craig Bellamy. The Storm were prepared to pay $900,000 a season. The Broncos upped the ante to keep Milford with the first seven-figure contract in their history.

It’s fair to say Milford has not delivered bang for his buck, but Bennett, his former Broncos coach, is adamant there were other factors in the playmaker’s gradual demise at Red Hill.

“I don’t think that (the $1 million deal) was an issue,” Bennett says.

“It probably put more responsibility on ‘Milf’, but I don’t think it was the reason why he didn’t play well.

“I don’t know what type of player Allan Langer (Brisbane’s greatest halfback) would have been if he turned up to the current Broncos side of the past two years. Would he have gone on to be half the player he became?

“The culture of a club is everything and that’s the point I made at a press conference last week (when Bennett blamed poor club cultures for a series of NRL scoreline blowouts).

“Milf would have felt more pressure than ever, for sure, but he was a victim of what happened at the Broncos.

Wayne Bennett doesn’t blame the huge contract for Anthony Milford’s poor performances.

“Milf is a wonderful player, but he needs good people around him. He was left to do things himself in the halves ... but he couldn’t do it all himself.”

There is a view Milford will not recover as an NRL player. Given he has ostensibly reached the midpoint of his career, there is ample time for the former Queensland Origin utility to rise again.

The challenge is finding another home. Milford has received offers from two Super League clubs in England, but is reluctant to relocate his partner and their two young daughters.

He has been linked with the Titans, but there has been no formal offer from the Gold Coast. Milford’s manager is confident he will have an NRL contract finalised later this month.

“My preference is to stay in the NRL,” Milford said.

“To be honest, it’s my only option really. I have a young family so I don’t really plan on going overseas.

“I’m not too sure about the Titans. I haven’t spoken to clubs directly yet, so when the time comes, I will put all the cards on the table and see which option suits me best and can help me get the best out of my football.

“I would consider moving to Sydney if I had to. I’ve got two young girls so my family comes first now and I will go wherever I need to for them and what best suits my football.”

A veteran of 189 NRL games, Milford dismissed suggestions he isn’t committed to training and playing and made it clear he wants to remain in the five-eighth position amid calls for him to return to fullback.

Anthony Milford wants to stay in the NRL. Picture: Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images

“I still believe I have something to offer in the NRL,” he said.

“I believe there is a lot left in me, but I have to knuckle down and be more consistent with my training and my preparation towards a game. If I do that, I will be all right.

“Five-eighth is still my best position. Until another coach tells me otherwise, I still feel I’m best suited to six, I played pretty much every game for the Broncos there.

“I honestly believe I have more in me. I’m only 27, but I need to unlock that part of myself and get back to playing simple football.

“I know the hunger and the passion is there. I still love playing the game so hopefully a fresh start can be good for me.”

Originally published as NRL 2021: Anthony Milford opens up on how he can revive his career after Broncos axing